Crime Scenes in a Ghost Town - The Atmospherics of Lockdown 2020

Professor Alison Young and Dr Bianca Fileborn reflect on how lockdowns have transformed space and how it is regulated.

Lockdowns around the world and a State of Emergency in Victoria have resulted in a profound impact both inside the home and outside in the streets, with cities from London to Sydney being emptied of their usual crowds and described as 'ghost towns'.

This presentation will consider what a city street looks and feels like without crowds, shifting notions of 'crime' during the pandemic, and the consequences of how emergency powers have been implemented.

These issues, which lockdown has brought into focus, have serious implications for future uses of public space and for the ways in which we experience cities.