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Feeling safe in your home is a hugely important thing. It’s your space to relax, tune out and chill, whether with family or alone.

But how could you feel safe in your own home if you had no form of defence and the police were reluctant to help you?

That’s the exact situation that the black American inventor Marie Van Brittan Brown found herself in.

When the only thing to do is do it yourself

Living in Queens, New York in the 1960s, Marie worked as a nurse but was often home alone due to her husband’s working patterns. Crime rates were on the rise in their neighbourhood but the police could not always be relied upon to respond quickly.

Marie wanted to create a system in which she would be able to see who was at her front door, from wherever she was in the house, and communicate with them. Her husband Albert was an electronics technician, so together they created the first home security system.

The award-winning performance poet Sophia Thakur has written a new piece, bespoke for ���˿��� Bitesize, that explores why Marie felt she had to create such a device, highlighting the racism she experienced.

A patented invention

Once installed, the system allowed an image of anyone stood outside to be shown on a television monitor. A motorised camera could move between a number of different peepholes in the door to present a full picture of the immediate area. It was an early form of CCTV.

Two-way microphones were also used to help establish someone’s identity without having to open the door, much like you might see nowadays in an apartment building.

For added efficiency, there was an alarm button that when pressed, would immediately contact the police, which Marie chose to install in her bedroom. There was also a remote control that could activate the locks on the door.

On 2 December 1969, Marie was awarded a patent for her design, with Albert listed second. A patent is a legal document which protects an invention from being copied by someone else for a set number of years.

Get to know the poet

Diversity, empowerment, mental health and self-expression are all topics Sophia has explored in her powerful poetry. Having performed at the likes of Glastonbury, she’s inspiring others to amplify their own voices and experiences through poetry and writing.

Whether it’s leading workshops in schools or posting her work on social media, Sophia always addresses these topics in a way that not only entertains, but encourages empathy and compassion.

Why not try writing a poem about someone that inspires you?