Three Reasons Why Diversity in Tech is a Modern-Day Civil Rights Issue

On September 9, 2022, as director of education for NAACP , I served as a panelist for the 2022 CMD-IT/ACM Richard Tapia Celebration of Diversity in Computing Conference in?Washington, DC. The panel title was "The State of Tech Diversity: The Black Tech Ecosystem."?The Tapia Conference is the premier venue to bring together computing researchers and practitioners from all backgrounds and subfields within the profession to interact, present, and discuss cutting-edge research in diverse computing disciplines.

During the session, the moderator, Shana V. W. of the Kapor Center, asked, "Why diversity in Tech is a Modern-Day Civil Rights issue?" These were the three reasons I gave:

1. Discrimination in the tech sector can worsen the racial wealth gap. Currently, the average Black household has $7,000 in wealth while the average white household has $140,000 in wealth. The tech sector is a major driver of economic growth and prosperity, but people of color have been largely left out of its benefits. People of color are underrepresented in the tech workforce, and they earn less than their white counterparts even when they have the same qualifications. This will make the existing wealth gap worse if it's not fixed. We need to make sure that everyone has an opportunity to participate in the growth of the tech sector. This means encouraging diversity in the tech workforce, closing the wage gap, and investing in programs that promote STEAM education for people of color. If we don't take action, we'll see the already large racial wealth gap continue to grow.
2. Because of the impact of emerging technologies on society, lack of diversity will lead to products that do not serve people of color well at best, or harm them at worst. If the people who are building these products are not representative of the population they are meant to serve, they may not be aware of certain biases or problems that could exist in their product. For example, Black people are often misidentified by facial recognition algorithms. This could lead to black people being disproportionately arrested or harassed by the police. In health, we've seen how artificial intelligence can be biased against women and people of color. This could lead to these groups not receiving the same quality of care as their white counterparts. We must have a diversity of perspectives in the tech field so that we can create products that serve everyone well.
3. The Civil Rights Act, which was passed decades before most tech companies were founded are being evaded by tech companies. There is no question that technology companies - and the tech industry more broadly - face significant challenges in terms of diversity and inclusion, but the nature of the discrimination is more elusive. Through implicit biases, people are often unfairly passed over for jobs or promotions because of their gender, race, or ethnicity, even if they are equally or more qualified than someone else. Another form of discrimination in the tech industry is through networks of privilege. This happens when people are hired or promoted because they know someone who already works at the company, even if they aren't the best candidate for the job. This type of discrimination is particularly common in Silicon Valley. To fight discrimination 2.0, we need a Civil Rights Act 2.0. We need to change the way we think about diversity and inclusion in the tech industry. We need to do more than just add a few people of color to the workforce - we need to create an environment where everyone can succeed.

These are just a few of the reasons why diversity in tech is a modern-day civil rights issue. We must take action to ensure that everyone has an opportunity to participate in the tech sector and to create products that serve everyone well. We need a new approach to diversity and inclusion, one that goes beyond just adding a few people of color to the workforce. Only then will we be able to achieve true equity in the tech industry.