algorithmic oppression
Black Feminist Musings on Algorithmic Oppression
This paper unapologetically reflects on the critical role that Black feminism can and should play in abolishing algorithmic oppression. Positioning algorithmic oppression in the broader field of feminist science and technology studies, I draw upon feminist philosophical critiques of science and technology and discuss histories and continuities of scientific oppression against historically marginalized people. Moreover, I examine the concepts of invisibility and hypervisibility in oppressive technologies a l\'a the canonical double bind. Furthermore, I discuss what it means to call for diversity as a solution to algorithmic violence, and I critique dialectics of the fairness, accountability, and transparency community. I end by inviting you to envision and imagine the struggle to abolish algorithmic oppression by abolishing oppressive systems and shifting algorithmic development practices, including engaging our communities in scientific processes, centering marginalized communities in design, and consensual data and algorithmic practices.
Algorithmic Oppression: Biased Machines and Where to Find Them
Recent events of racial discrimination in law enforcement and the healthcare industry have shown us how biased and racist humans are. The systemic racism that rules over these institutions is evident from police brutality on black people to the denial of hospital treatment of black patients during the pandemic. We all know the countless stories of innocent black people being targeted and killed by the police. In the healthcare industry, for example, the pain of black patients is commonly taken less seriously than that of white patients. All of these failures of the system are due to human racial bias, either conscious or unconscious. Computers are often perceived as far less biased compared to human decision-making processes.