Artificial intelligence (AI) permeates almost every aspect of modern life due to the ubiquitous use of technological devices and services, including smartphones, computers, facial recognition devices or software, automobiles, navigation maps, and chat or digital assistants. Although people interact with and use AI incessantly, they fail to realize or acknowledge the potential risks and hazards stemming from ethical issues related to the technology. For example, a prominent ethical issue with AI in self-driving cars is assigning responsibility for accidents or privacy concerns in data collection and use by AI tools in various circumstances. AI ethics is a critical issue even though many people fail to realize its significance in their lives or the long-term effects on their health or well-being.
AI ethics are also crucial for people of color, even if they do not recognize the significance due to the lack of neutrality in AI decisions or outcomes. A primary ethical issue with artificial intelligence is that it is biased and discriminatory rather than neutral or impartial, as many people may believe. AI reinforces and aggravates systemic racism through biased outcomes that disproportionately favor people of particular races, genders, and ethnicities. The racism in AI outcomes is mainly because of the human biases and prejudice embedded in the data and algorithms used for machine learning and AI. AI ethics is a prominent issue for people of color due to its role in deepening systemic racism. Prominent AI specialist Calvin Lawrence highlights the significance of AI ethics for people of color through his book.
Calvin D. Lawrence is a distinguished engineer and Chief Technical Officer (CTO) of Responsible and Trustworthy AI Global Markets at IBM. He is also a member of the AI ethics board at IBM and the author of Hidden in White Sight: How AI Empowers and Deepens Systemic Racism. Lawrence argues that AI ethics are crucial for people of color due to the role of AI in aggravating systemic racism. He has over 25 years of experience in engineering, applications and system programming, enterprise architecture, research, and artificial intelligence. Lawrence has also authored over fifty articles, white papers, and books on topics covering technology and artificial intelligence. He also worked closely with several teams to develop AI models and study AI ethics from various perspectives. His substantial experience and interaction with AI models and close examination of discriminatory AI outcomes in various settings make Lawrence an expert in AI ethics.
The book “Hidden in White Sight: How AI Empowers and Deepens Systemic Racism” highlights the discriminatory elements in AI that disproportionately favor or work against particular races and genders. Lawrence argues in the book that although many people perceive AI as a neutral and impartial technology, it involves numerous inherent flaws in the algorithm and human data. Human bias and prejudice seep into AI because people provide the data and information used by AI for acquiring knowledge, learning, and making decisions. Although discriminatory elements are not purposefully integrated into the AI mechanism, the unintentional biases inherent in people due to social influences permeate AI algorithms and lead to racially biased outcomes. Hidden in White Sight implies that AI deepens and aggravates systemic racism by restricting or refraining people from particular racial backgrounds from public or private services. For example, AI models may disproportionately favor white individuals in loan processing, college application, and healthcare or insurance management due to the biased algorithms underlying such processes.
AI ethics play a primary role in alleviating and eliminating discriminatory elements from AI while upholding values that promote equality and fairness. Systemic racism adversely affects people of color due to a lack of opportunities and inferior academic, healthcare, and social outcomes than their white counterparts. AI aggravates systemic racism by promoting disproportionate outcomes due to the human stereotypes and prejudice embedded in AI algorithms and data. However, in his book Hidden in White Sight, Calvin Lawrence implies that increasing awareness and voices regarding AI ethics can significantly improve equality and diversity. Lawrence also asserts that AI ethics should be a primary concern for people of color because AI deepens and aggravates systemic racism against racial minorities. People need to understand how AI affects their social outcomes due to their racial or social backgrounds and how AI ethics can help improve racial and social equality. Calvin Lawrence highlights the significance of AI ethics for people of color by implying the role of AI in systemic racism through his book Hidden in White Sight: How AI Empowers and Deepens Systemic Racism.
