Face surveillance is the probably most dangerous of the many new technologies that are available to police. It goes without saying how terrifying it can be towards communities of color, especially Black Community. Algorithms can be racist. Apple’s Iphone is a prime example of that. Some facial recognition algorithms misclassified the facial features of at least 35 Black women. (Bulwamini and Gebru, 2018). Another study shows that these problems also persisted with Amazon’s software. These issues have raised concerns about the persistence of white supremacy through technology. SketchFactor, an app, has been criticized for promoting racial and classist profiling. It literally has asked people to mark lower income BIPOC neighborhoods as “risky” and “unsafe”! (95).
Racial Profiling Through Tech: How Tech Becomes the New Face of White Supremacy
2 thoughts on “Racial Profiling Through Tech: How Tech Becomes the New Face of White Supremacy”
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Technology-encoded racism, whether explicit or subtle, is important, and so I am glad you’re raising it here. Your post reminds me of Chris Gilliard’s (Macomb CC) 2019 Computers & Writing keynote, where he offered an unforgettable argument about opting out. Along those lines, given that lots of critical, hard-working academics have had their eyes up on this issue for more than a decade, I wonder, do you see avenues or inroads for new and different interventions—by everyday people, by governments, by anyone? What stands the chance of shifting these conversations into meaningful action, whether among investors, Silicon Valley elites, app developers, or others, in your view?
I think technology-based racism has always been there, in some capacities. Chris Gilliard’s keynote at Computers & Writing is a sobering and timely reminder that many technologies can utilize our data to create and maintain systems of oppression I totally agree with this statement. Big Techs as businesses and industries, are racist and white supremacist to begin with. I still remember how Amazon was called out for treating their BIPOC workers. Facebook’s patent of facial recognition technology, can scan customers’ faces and determine if they are worthy to purchase certain items based on metrics such as credit scores and social media scores. To contextualize the oppressive potential of this technology, Gilliard pairs this introduction with a quote from Ta’Nahesi Coates about someone who reacts defensively to an approaching African-American man and compares the patent to the racist practice of locking car doors to secure oneself against a perceived threat. I do think the BIPOC community is raising their voice against this tech-based racially charged oppression. Because I think that is embedded in the struggle for our existence. I, for one, do not see that the government is doing much to address this issue. I remember in one hearing at the House Oversight Committee (circa 2019) Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14) was interrogating FB CEO Mark Zuckerberg if he would take down lies that are stereotyping and harmful for the BIPOC community, especially those that target Black men in particular. He replied “No”. I mean if the Government wanted, they could have pressurized Big Tech to do something about this harmful tech-based racism. We still have a long way to go before these conversations shift into meaningful action!