Algorithmics are something the everyday person overlooks all the time. We have become oblivious to them, most of the time not even realizing they exist. However, there are some people who do and point out the many problems with them that the average eye over looks. Those people are the Algorithmic Critics, they criticize the everyday algorithms and see if they are actually benefiting us. There are many different things that use algorithms some are: Google, Corporations, Banks, Mathematics etc. Even though algorithms are most of the time made out of good intentions they tend to leave out the minorities or overlook really important aspects all because of one thing that doesn’t follow the programming’s guide lines. Many things are taken into account when making an algorithm but majority of the time its what the person making it thinks will lead to success and profit. 1
In her book Algorithms of oppression Noble talks about how when she searches up “black girls” results referring to pornographic things showed up. 2 Althought back in the 1930’s there was not Google women we’re often objectified as the reason why men are so weak because of how sexual they are. This goes back to the Greek-Roman times where women were seen as evil because of this, often depicted as monsters that lore men to their death with their sexual appearances. 3 Although women were not seen as evil sexual beings like in the Greek roman times they have always been underestimated. That does not help if you are also a woman of color, who tend to be treated worse. In the 1930’s women were expected to always look pretty, keep the house clean, not bring any money in or being in control of the bills, and bare/take care of the kids. The man of the household was supposed to work, then come home, eat the dinner that the wife prepared, pay the bills, and sleep. 4
To an extent it is still like this today, although I feel throughout the years we aren’t as extreme about it as we used to be and tend to have very good support in the community when someone is mistreated. The WPA actives are close to the things we have in the present, in regard to people fighting back against women being treated unfairly. Today we still have protests of women fighting against the anti-feminists, women not being paid the same as men, and so forth. As I said before in todays age it is not as extreme as the 1930’s and I our community has a better understanding of how women are as equal as men there are just a few things we are still fighting for. However, you would think after almost 90 years we would have more equality stablished.
- O’Neil C, The Truth about Algorithms
- Noble, S. U. (2018). Algorithms of oppression: how search engines reinforce racism. New York: New York University Press.
- Johnson, Marguerite. “A Feminist Nightmare: How Fear of Women Haunts Our Earliest Myths.” The Conversation, 24 Feb. 2015, https://theconversation.com/a-feminist-nightmare-how-fear-of-women-haunts-our-earliest-myths-37789.
- Locke, J. L., & Wright, B. (2019). The American yawp: a massively collaborative open U.S. history textbook. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
