Fixing Silicon Valley’s racial divide
This Black History Month, consider three strategies for making a personal difference
The Bay Area in Northern California has two things going for it: one of the most diverse populations on the planet and the tech spiritual heartland that is Silicon Valley. Unfortunately, there is often a massive gap between these two worlds. Just look at the numbers: 7% of the Bay Area is black*, while within Silicon Valley that representation from the black community shrinks to 2%**. Think about that for a minute: the differential is more than 250%.
It’s Black History Month and I’m not naive enough to suggest there’s a strategy that will change things by the time this moment passes or that at an individual level we can change everything, but in the words of one of history’s greatest social campaigners,
“Whenever you are in doubt, or when the self becomes too much with you, apply the following test. Recall the face of the poorest and the weakest man whom you may have seen, and ask yourself if the step you contemplate is going to be of any use to him.”
- Mahatma Gandhi
As it stands with the divide, you don’t have to look too far to find the poorest and weakest nestled into the iconic heart of Silicon Valley: just a stones-throw away from landmarks like the Salesforce Tower and Twitter Building in San Francisco, images like these are commonplace.
So how can we, as those sitting on one side of the the Silicon Valley divide, be of any use to the poorest and the weakest? I have been very fortunate in my career to have been involved with numerous Diversity & Inclusion programs, such as the Call for Code for Racial Justice (CFCFRJ) and the Open Source Community Grant (OSCG). Let me share a simple strategy that I’ve seen be successful myself.
Understand the problem as specifically as you can
“You can’t understand someone until you’ve walked a mile in their shoes.”
- Anonymous
We often have pre-conceived notions and ideas about issues that that can lead to solutions that don’t get to the heart of the problem. The power of validating ideas and really understanding problems cannot be understated. One example is a team of Spanish developers who wanted to help firefighters using technology. They first dreamt up a big system that was all-encompassing and didn’t really address any specific issue. They took part in the first Call for Code challenge and were unsuccessful. Unperturbed, they enlisted a firefighter and nurse onto their team and the following year came up with a solution dealing with a very specific problem: a small device that could be taped to the arm of a firefighter and measure the level of exposure to toxic gases. This data was fed to a dashboard that could monitor exposure for firefighters over time and pull them from the field if they were in danger of long-term respiratory illness. The team, Prometeo, went on to win the Call for Code Global Challenge in its second year.
In the Bay Area, there are many organizations that offer a safety net and services for those in the greatest need. Volunteering can be a great way to understand what problems are faced by under-served communities if you don’t happen to be a member of one of those. Project Homeless Connect provides quarterly Community Day of Service, bringing together invaluable services for homeless people on a single site, and offering anyone the opportunity to help out.
Attending one such event a few years ago, I was struck by beyond the expected distribution of food and medical services, there were more esoteric offerings available too: a photo project aimed at sharing portraits with loved ones, and in a similar vein a voicemail service for those without access to telecommunications. Spending time with a community can open your eyes up to areas of assistance that you may not have initially imagined as being important.
Don’t be afraid to be an ally
“First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out — because I was not a socialist.
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out — because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out — because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me — and there was no one left to speak for me.”
- Martin Niemöller
You may feel disingenuous for getting involved in an issue or problem that doesn’t impact you directly: do-gooder syndrome, as it’s sometimes called. This can cause a particular problem when looking at something like the representation of the black community in Silicon Valley. The vicious cycle is that arguably because there are not enough members of the black community working along the 101 corridor, there are not enough advocates to make a difference.
There needs to be help from outside: those who want to act beyond their own self-interest and help rectify a difference that is tough to fix from the inside. A great example here is Chris Ferris, a senior member of the technical community in IBM has been the executive sponsor for the Open Source Community Grant and is a staunch supporter for Diversity & Inclusion in the tech industry. In a post in December on The Next Web, Chris suggests that the focus on social justice in 2020 through movements like #BlackLivesMatter will have ramifications for the open source community:
“I predict that in 2021, building off the momentum of this past year’s focus on social inequality and steps made by open source-minded companies and foundations, open source communities will continue to increase the diversity of their communities so that it becomes the rule and not the exception.”
He goes on to make the point that this isn’t just a moral imperative; there is strong business rationale here. For software projects, diversity in thought during design and development leads to diversity in outcome for the finished product, which may just be the differentiation needed in a highly-commoditized area and bring fresh audience that had felt — either consciously or subconsciously — excluded.
Get involved in projects to fix social justice problems
“If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.”
- Maya Angelou
If you are in the tech space — in any capacity — there has never been a better time to get involved in projects that can make a real difference in real time. This may sound meta, but technology can be used to impact social justice, both for the tech industry in places like Silicon Valley as well as addressing broader societal issues. The availability of cloud services and open source components have redefined the business model for Silicon Valley startups and by the same token open up new vistas for those wanting to fight for social justice.
As an example, in the summer of 2020, following the rise in awareness for the #BlackLivesMatter movement, the black community in IBM started a grassroots movement to turn their frustration into action: they formed numerous teams, and using the principles of open source, collaborated on solutions to address specific issues ranging from judicial reform to voting rights and everything in between.
Top projects have been released into the open source community beyond IBM through the Call for Code for Racial Justice, so anyone can get involved. One such project is Truth Loop. Legislation is tough for even the well-educated to decipher, so can appear impenetrable to underserved minority communities. Truth Loop simplifies legalese around policies, regulation and legislation (PR&L) and offers personalized information for a community through a mobile app. It even goes a step further and allows the community to share feedback via video testimonials that can be useful to those in government framing PR&L.
One thing that is common to many of the Call for Code for Racial Justice projects is the innovative use of data and artificial intelligence (AI) to shine a light on problems that we as a society haven’t yet been able to solve, such as identifying judges who offer harsher sentences to members of the black community. The benefits go way beyond technology. As Tricia Akinwande, a member of the IBM black community and early contributor to Call for Code for Racial Justice, has pointed out,
“Through this program, I’ve gained a greater understanding of how deep and systemic the issues are in the criminal justice system and in our society as a whole. If you get involved, you will learn the historical elements that got us to this point and that will help you collaborate and create a more just and equitable future for those who are marginalized in our society. It will also make you more mindful of your EQ (emotional intelligence).”
If you are interested in getting involved yourself, learn more about the projects and the rationale and code behind them.
This Black History Month, I would encourage you to think about how you can make a difference, whether you are in Silicon Valley or not. Even if it is just learning the specific problems faced by underrepresented communities around you, this knowledge can go along way. If there are ways you can be a closer ally to those that need help, don’t be afraid to reach out. If you understand technology well (you don’t need to be a coder) think about projects you can get directly involved in.
If you liked the story, be sure to give it a clap and follow Call for Code Digest for more tech-for-good stories!
