Sociotechnical networks in motion: mobilizations in defense of the freedom of the Togolese migrant Falilatou

Abstract

This article deals with the mobilizations in defense of the street worker Falilatou, a migrant from Togo, accused of a crime she didn’t commit and whose life was entangled in a very intricate criminal process. The case ended up mobilizing an extensive socio-technical network under the banner #FreedomForFalilatou, which would bring to light the evidence of rights violations inscribed in the intricacies of this process, while at the  same time signalling the construction of a  political field articulated around events critical of state violence. The “Falilatou case” opens up a range of issues that are worth discussing here. On one hand, this story intertwines key structural elements of the popular sector: transnational migration and its integration into the urban fabric; the precarious nature of street vending, caught between daily earnings and the aggressive control and oversight by  law enforcement; the punitive approach  embedded in police operations and the complexities of the criminal process that the Togolese woman faces, all of which are marked by aggressive racialization practices and  prejudice against non-white migrants. On the other hand, the broad support network that has formed in defense of Falilatou goes far  beyond simply denouncing an injustice. It represents an alliance of diverse collectives (Black movements, migrant associations, anti-prison collectives), human rights organizations, parliamentarians, journalists, activist lawyers, and researchers. In their actions, this network functions as a socio-technical system,  mobilizing various forms of knowledge and skills, as well as technical, institutional, and political resources to gather information, build evidence of the injustices committed against  the Togolese woman, and make these public in various forums for debate and political  contestation, including through media and digital platforms. The article is structured in  four parts: (I) Falilatou’s life story, her biographical timeline in connection with the social and historical context of her migration to Brazil; (II) her involvement in street vending in São Paulo; (III) her arrest and the stages of the criminal process she is undergoing; (IV) the support networks that have rallied in her  defense, forming a political field with its  various dimensions and developments.