New Advancements of the Internet Influence a New Era of Oppression
The internet, a source that was once used as an informative tool to access resourceful data would later become a product of capitalism that will too influence racism. Today, the internet has 90 percent of American users logged on with the purpose of their research no longer just to be looking for insightful data. Their purpose would be to support the online market with the help of technological advancements. The market looking to favor the majority of consumers leaves BIPOC (Black Indigenous People of Color) misrepresented when the majority identify as caucasian. BIPOC suffer from the consequences as false representations are made of them on the internet. They are being marginalized and exploited which lead into emotional, physical, and mental trauma they have to deal with. So how does this misrepresentation occur?
Well, the tools that are utilized to enhance to this misrepresentation are in plain sight when opening up a browser. They are the search engines, web links, images, videos, media, and ads which are all constructed from algorithms. Algorithms that are also constructed by the majority that fall into the relevant groups they are supposed to serve. They are known to be software engineers, code writers, website providers, programmers, etc. These tools have a way in enhancing racist societal standards because the internet is one of the most depended on resources for trustworthy information.
Google is the primary browser that lays at fault for allowing stereotypes, discriminative associations towards BIPOC. Their autosuggestions in the search engine contains stereotypical inferences about specific races. The autosuggestions are referred based on whats popular at the time, yet Safiya Noble, the author of Algorithms of Oppression How Search Engines Reinforce Racism proves that what may be referred is also offensive. Dr. Noble compares the search engine for a white and Black women, receiving terms such as “pretty” and “beautiful” for the white women versus the terms “loud” and “angry” for the Black women. Google’s images, videos, ads are also responsible for associating images with derogatory terms. The interpretations that Google makes for each race devalues and dehumanizes the people that belong to such groups.
Below is an ad that was shown in 2017 for Dove. What the actors did not realize at the time was the underlining meaning. Dove implies that the BIPOC versus white is dirty. One is considered clean when they transform to white all around.
A possible solution to this reoccurring issue of racism through the internet could be diversifying the power behind the algorithms. Allowing more BIPOC to work behind the resources and data that is put out for their own community. Assuring that things are rather more factual than biased based. Regulatory filter work through the adjustments that are made to prevent the tools from being discriminative. All could help prevent the dehumanization BIPOC feel when accessing the internet and to break such norms of society. The internet is a new resource, it should not be enhancing such racist methods rather it should be transforming negative views to truth about about BIPOC and giving them the right representation.
