Skip to main content

Seeing Beneath the Surface

Current reads that offer real and imagined dangers  

[two hardcover books: Seen Yet Unseen: A Black Woman Crashes the Tech Fraternity by Bari A. Williams, There Should Have Been Eight by Nalini Singh] 


[front cover of a hardcover book: Algorithms of Oppression: How Search Engines Reinforce Racism by Safiya Umoja Noble] 


Algorithms of Oppression:How Search Engines Reinforce Racism by Safiya Umoja Noble 
non-fiction information technology 
NYU Press, 2018 

This wonk-erful text is compelling and accessible for non-wonks. The information provided is also disturbing. 

On page 29 the author declares her intentions: 
...In the ensuing chapters, I continue to probe results that generated by Google on a variety of keyword combinations relating to racial and gender identity as a way of engaging a commonsense understanding of how power works... By seeing and discussing these intersectional power relations, we have a significant opportunity to transform the consciousness embedded in artificial intelligence,  since it is in fact, in part, a product of our own collective creation. 

And later on page 33: 
I intend to meaningfully articulate the ways that commercialization is the source of power that drives the consumption of Black women's and girls' representative identity on the web.  

Algorithms of Oppression does more than identify the problem; it suggests practical solutions. 

Overall intentions summarized at the end of chapter four: 
In addition to public policy, we can conceptualize the design of indexes of the web that might be managed by librarians and information institutions and workers to radically shift our ability to contextualize information. This could lead to significantly greater transparency, rather than continuing to make the neoliberal capitalist project of commercial search opaque.   

Chapter five, "The Future of Knowledge in the Public" makes the argument that currently representation in commercially driven search engines strips context from groups of people who are routinely marginalized and dominated by systemic discrimination, to their further detriment.  

The final words of the epilogue issue a call to action: 
In short, we must fight to suspend the circulation of racist and sexist material that is used to erode our civil and human rights. I hope this book provides some steps toward doing so. 

It does. 

Acknowledgements, an introduction, six succinct chapters that blend hard science with intention and human connection, a conclusion, epilogue, notes, references, index, and professional tidbits about the author make Algorithms of Oppression a fascinating, enlightening read.  

Enjoy the author's Time 100 conversation here: 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Best Man: Unfinished Business by Malcolm D. Lee with Jayne Allen Delivers All the Feels

Black love. Black joy. Black drama. Humanity in its vast melanin array.   [front cover of a paperback ARC for The Best Man: Unfinished Business; silhouette of three adults] The Best Man: Unfinished Business by Malcolm D. Lee with Jayne Allen  adult contemporary fiction with romantic elements  Storehouse Voices, July 2025   First, dedicated fans of The Best Man franchise and its beloved characters need not fear how they’re treated in this first of three novels. In fact. One thread of Harper’s storyline seems to reflect the real-life author/screenwriter/director’s battle to protect and maintain the integrity of The Best Man universe. Mission accomplished.  Second, once readers - fans or not - start this novel they won’t want to stop. The compulsion to re/watch The Best Man movies and limited series and maybe even to reread this book while anticipating the release of book two in 2026 will prove difficult to resist.  Who are you?  Who are your people?...

A Million Lives Book Festival - An Unfortunate Exception, Not the Event Rule

[2 decorative stickers on lined writing paper from left to right: a round smiley face arranged upside down to look like a frown and a round smiley face arranged right sight up] By now most bookish folk and others have heard about the inaugural A Million Lives Book Festival held at the Baltimore Convention Center last Friday and Saturday. To recap: according to participating authors and attendees many promises were made and almost all of them were broken.  As outreach director and co-organizer for The Write Women Book Fest scheduled to host its 6th event Saturday, July 19 & Sunday, July 20 of this year at the Bowie Comfort Inn & Conference Center in Bowie, Maryland, U.S.A., my reaction to the feedback being shared about A Million Lives is nightmarish. Even though we aren't connected to it in any way or familiar with the event organizer or her company, our completely unrelated event has felt some minor residual effects because people are worried. And that's an understanda...

Hot Love in the Kitchen & Travelling Through Time

Redemption of the Heart by Moni Boyce contemporary romance Love Snacks Publishing  8 January 2019 Despite addressing heavy themes of domestic violence, incarceration, and grief, Redemption of the Heart is a charming and sweet spicy read in the tradition of a 21st-century interracial homage to Janet Dailey’s monthly romance era. Gemma’s open-hearted ingĂ©nue contrasts starkly with Alex’s jaded workaholic. They struggle with a variety of challenges, but ethnicity isn’t one of them—a spin that feels particularly modern. Once readers commit to their suspension of disbelief regarding the cascading impact of lacks in due diligence by several characters, it’s easy to settle in to enjoy this love story. The recent public debate about the pros and cons of Gillette’s “We believe the best man can be” campaign ties in with the contradictory messages in the story threads about toxic masculinity. There’s a scene in which Alex apologizes to someone who was openly bragging among cowork...