Yesterday was George Orwell's birthday, and to celebrate, people in Utrecht perched little party hats atop CCTV cameras in public places.
By making these inconspicuous cameras that we ignore in our daily lives catch the eye again we also create awareness of how many cameras really watch us nowadays, and that the surveillance state described by Orwell is getting closer and closer to reality.
No one tried this in London, because there are not enough party hats in the universe.
George Orwell’s Birthday Party
(via Making Light)
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If this catches on in the UK, party supply stores there will make a killing.
If this catches on in the US, police there will likely do the same.
Shouldn’t the hat go OVER the lens?
if they put it over the lens, then there’ll be more incentive to remove it. it staying is better at getting people to ask questions.
Not if you want it to stay on for a significant length of time. I believe it’s social commentary, not civil disobedience.
Oh, that kind of party hat. The latex kind would work better to obscure the view.
If you printed out a picture of what the camera is supposed to be seeing on the inside of the party hat, it might stick around longer.
As I took my family camping over the weekend it was disturbing to see cameras on roads out in the wilderness. Getting away from this kind of crap is half the reason for going camping in the first place.
Sounds like you’ve got something to hide, citizen.
Party like it’s 1984!
I’m in.
We could do a similar thing in the US but we’d need to put a party hat on every phone and computer.