Mini thread of about racist algorithms since one went viral on twitter today:
In case you missed it, twitter centers lighter skinned/white people in the thumbnails of images over dark skinned people. Here’s an example with the members of @runjewels
This is in no way new. This algorithm for instance is reminiscent of google’s racist search algorithm, discussed in @safiyanoble’s Algorithms of Oppression
Alongside this, zoom’s facial recognition failure for Black people is reminiscent of amazon’s algorithm you can imagine amazon is a repeat offender i.e. biased hiring algorithms, partnering with I€E) https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.theverge.com/platform/amp/2019/1/25/18197137/amazon-rekognition-facial-recognition-bias-race-gender">https://www.google.com/amp/s/www...
Most likely twitter’s algorithm is constantly learning and figuring out what pictures get the most engagement, and it indisputably favors white people, as well as whie animals and cartoon characters:
Like https://twitter.com/markemarkau/status/1307616892551487488">https://twitter.com/markemark...
What the fuck https://twitter.com/_jsimonovski/status/1307542747197239296">https://twitter.com/_jsimonov...
This is not only as mundane as who gets centered in an image, it becomes who gets hired, who gets an apartment, who gets a loan, which neighborhoods get policed more https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.technologyreview.com/2020/07/17/1005396/predictive-policing-algorithms-racist-dismantled-machine-learning-bias-criminal-justice/amp/">https://www.google.com/amp/s/www...
Whom amongst formerly incarcerated folks are “at risk” for recidivism https://www.propublica.org/article/machine-bias-risk-assessments-in-criminal-sentencing">https://www.propublica.org/article/m...
Algorithms consistently do this sort of thing not because of the nature of math, but because they are used/built by oppressors to automate what white supremacists have built for centuries. This is explored beautifully in @ruha9’s Race After Technology
This is a much larger rabbit hole than twitter, and I’m not the person to lead that discussion at all. Instead, I’m plugging an amazing lecture by @YESHICAN from @Data4BlackLives about so much more than could be covered in just this thread https://vimeo.com/375310799 ">https://vimeo.com/375310799...
Please feel free to quote/comment with other resources/educational tools!