"Can I take your picture?": Privacy in cosplay

Abstract

In this piece I examine the privacy concerns faced by costume players, or cosplayers, as a means of beginning to examine the question of how privacy can still exist in an increasingly public world. I first offer a brief overview of philosophical and current legal approaches to the concept of privacy, and then discuss the cosplay community and its concerns regarding harassment at conventions. I conclude by demonstrating how these concerns are actually privacy concerns and what this suggests regarding attempts to address these concerns both presently and in the future.