Reflection 3: Race After Technology
Race After Technology by Ruha Benjamin, a professor of African American studies at Princeton University, is a collection of anecdotes, experiences, and research centered around the racial inequalities ingrained in the technological society we live in. I chose this book because of my interest in sociology. As an undergrad, I conducted research focused on racial and ethnic disparities and profiling in the Miami Dade prison system. Before that, I worked in preschool classrooms in underserved communities, discerning factors in the classroom that were critical to the kids’ development. Currently, I work in a high school in Brooklyn for girls interested in pursuing careers in STEM. I studied health science in my undergraduate years, and am now working towards a degree in biotechnology and entrepreneurship. Working in and studying healthcare and technology have made me very aware of the biases present in our everyday lives, but this book has made that much more cognizant of how deep-seated and widespread these issues are. For that, I am thankful. However, it has also made me realize that I am at an advantage in terms of education on the matter, due to personal experience and my field of study. The average person likely does not think too much about topics, as it doesn’t affect their daily lives; it is for this reason that I believe anyone interested in any technological field read this book, to be aware of the biases we carry (and hopefully aid in combating them).
We are aware of the Jim Crow laws enforced in this country from the end of the Civil War until the 1960s. We are aware of the damage these laws caused for the black community. The subtitle of this book, which is not included on its cover, is Abolitionist Tools for the New Jim Code. This is the preface of the entire book — the basis of all that follows. Benjamin defines the New Jim Code as “the employment of new technologies that reflect and reproduce existing inequities but that are promoted and perceived as more objective or progressive than the discriminatory system of a previous area.” The harmful habits and logic of people working in tech are being translated into the technology we utilize everyday. Is this form of racism truly worse than that of the Jim Crow era? How much is this really affecting our communities? How do we stop it? Does anyone really care? These are the questions that came to mind within the first few pages of Race After Technology.
Professor Benjamin goes into depth about the idea of engineered inequity. We (or at least I) don’t think of devices and programs as having opinions of inclinations. They are thought of as neutral, objective entities that spit out an output when directed. However, there is another quote that I would like to bring in here: “the simplest explanation for biased algorithms is that the humans who create them have their own deeply entrenched biases…they can often reproduce and amplify existing prejudices.” To me, this is a scary thought, and not something I had paid much thought to. I knew algorithms were lacking in some aspects, but I hadn’t considered the biases of the humans behind them. In class, we’ve spoken a lot about how we are blind to our inherent biases, and no matter what our ideas will always be a product of these biases. No one wants to admit to their prejudices, especially with a topic as sensitive as racial equality, but Race After Technology forces its reader to acknowledge these factors and face them head on, while gaining insight into the multitude of factors contributing to the “Jim Code”.
