Race After Technology: Abolitionist Tools for the New Jim Code

Technology has been called upon to fix policing issues, but its efficacy is arguable. Ankle bracelets are a problematic solution for overcrowded prisons and immigrant detention. There is a desire for technical fixes that can avoid human prejudice, such as in job hiring. However, outsourcing to AI can lead to the streamlining of biases rather than their erasure. Diversity, Inc.’s software predicts a person’s ethnicity based almost entirely on their name and zip code. It sells this data to companies that cannot legally ask clients their ethnicity. True diversity, Benjamin argues, is not about cultural variety but advocacy for equal rights. Too many organizations have commodified diversity to the detriment of the populations they claim to include.

Tailored content filters individuals into types of people who might like certain products or advertisements. Instead of deciding between invasive customization or discriminatory generalization, Benjamin asks that we insist on more options.

In healthcare, there is a history of adjusting diagnoses or technology based on a person’s race. This is due to misconceptions about biological difference between races. “Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Technologies” (156) predict communities that need the most medical care and target them for aid.