ABSTRACT
Colour is an efficient way of quickly conferring conventional meaning through signs, and in this chapter Guillaume, Vuori, and Andersen argue that this makes colour a vital resource in security practice. To wear certain colours in one’s dress, they argue, is a way not only to distinguish oneself from others, but at times also to make certain rights, duties, or norms visible. This feature of colour-use is perhaps most striking in the use of uniforms ‒ whether those of the military, of officials, of urban gangs, or of prisoners. In all such uses, a certain dress characterized by a particular colour-use makes certain security-related norms visible. Guillaume et al. examine the evolution of colour-use in police uniforms and discusses their relation to the interpellation of encounters between citizens and the police.
