Fay Cobb Payton, Timnit Gebru, Joy Buolamwini, Mutale Nkonde, Algorithm Bias, Biased Algorithms, Criminal Justice Reform, Criminal Justice, Prison Reform, KOLUMN Magazine, KOLUMN, KINDR'D Magazine, KINDR'D, Willoughby Avenue, Wriit,

These Black Women Are Fighting For Justice In A World Of Biased Algorithms | Essence

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These Black Women Are Fighting For Justice In A World Of Biased Algorithms | Essence

The robots are here. They help us check out at the grocery store, target us with timely ads on Instagram for a new pair of shoes, turn off our lights at a simple voice command and even determine the songs we’re most apt to enjoy on our favorite music streaming platforms. [mc4wp_form id=”6042″]

Though technology has given us more convenience, connection and access than ever before, the algorithms hidden beneath its seemingly harmless code, the algorithms shaping our lives, are also grossly discriminating against our community—and all too often with impunity. If you think this doesn’t affect you, think again.

For us, unchecked technology shows up as police departments disproportionately deploying facial recognition software within marginalized communities to target criminal behavior, or Black people being tagged as gorillas in Google image searches, or Facebook approving housing ads that are filtered to prevent them being marketed to minorities.