Acts of Datafication: Reimagining the Right to Public Security in Favelas through Citizen-Generated Data

This paper introduces the concept of "acts of datafication"—a novel framework to capture the deliberate production of data from the bottom-up as a means to foster new forms of social and political inclusion. In the age of datafication, scholars have repeatedly shown that data is shaping the world we live in and the way we perceive it. Yet, data produced by governments is often biased or fails to accurately represent the realities of marginalized populations, reinforcing social inequalities. As a result, grassroots movements and marginalized populations are increasingly generating their own numbers to fill these data gaps, leveraging bottom-up datafication as a form of political and social resistance. This paper employs an ethnographic approach to examine De Olho na Maré, a citizen-driven and favela-based data initiative that monitors the impacts of police special operations across 15 favelas in Rio de Janeiro. It explores how favela residents systematically produce data on human rights violations in combination with demographic data of affected communities. Drawing on Actor-Network Theory and the theory of affect, this paper conceptualizes bottom-up datafication as a socio-technical phenomenon in which data functions as an actant, actively shaping human experiences and social relations. Utilizing qualitative mixed methods, the paper examines the data infrastructures, ethical considerations, political dynamics, and affective narratives generated by those engaged in the production of their own data. This approach highlights the complex interplay between data and social agency, revealing how marginalized groups use data to redefine power structures and societal frameworks. Finally, building on the concept of “acts of citizenship” and drawing from nine months of fieldwork in the favelas of Maré, this paper introduces the concept of “acts of datafication,” emphasizing the growing role of data as a critical means of empowerment for marginalized communities in their struggle for recognition and rights.