Kirstin and I led a discussion about racism and technology. The reading, Algorithms of Oppression by Safiya Umoja Noble, was very interesting. Many of us have grown up using with Google, and I know that I had never paid attention to any kind of biases within search engines. I found many of Noble’s discoveries to be quite shocking, particularly the case in which a Google search of “black on white crimes” only presented results about white nationalist groups; these search results led to a person planning a shooting, an absolutely horrifying event that was partly caused by the biases of Google algorithms. The inherent racism embedded within the algorithms was something I had never really thought about, but I think it is extremely important for people to be educated about these biases, especially as we proceed in the digital age.

The class engaged in discussions about many topics including censorship, imperialism, and commercialization. I found our discussion about censorship to be particularly interesting, and I was slightly surprised with the way that the class responded. We discussed the ways in which Google tracks and records user information; we know that if we search for L.L. Bean boots on Google, an ad for Bean boots may show up in our Facebook feed. I was surprised that so many students seemed unbothered by Google’s tracking. Some admitted that they know that this surveillance occurs but do not change their habits at all. Maybe Google’s surveillance of us is just so common that we have become numb to its existence. It seems that we have lost our right to privacy in some ways, and I wonder if we will ever get to the point where there will be significant push-back against Google for spying on its users. We emphasize freedom and liberty without censorship in the United States, and we fully support the idea of privacy. When does Google cross the line? It seems that we have to re-establish boundaries with the expanding power of technology, and I wish we had further discussed the implications and significance of Google’s ability to monitor our every digital move.

Another topic I would’ve liked to discuss more was the idea of “safe spaces” on the Internet. Kirstin found an article about a group on Reddit that only allowed black people to join, and each person had to prove that they were not white by including a photo of their forearm. Many students expressed that they do not think these kinds of groups should be acceptable, but I don’t think that the existence of the group in-of-itself is an issue. I think Internet groups that target specific demographics can be comparable to having on-campus clubs that cater to specific groups of people, like the Asian Student Alliance. I think it is okay for an organization like that to have an online group that is for a specific group. However, I do think that the “proving you’re not white” by showing a picture of your forearm seems problematic. That is judging on only how a person appears phenotypically. For example, a black person who is light-skinned may not be admitted to the group because he has light skin that could pass for white. I thought it was interesting that people in the class were so opposed to having this kind of group, saying that it is important for people to discuss and learn from other people. I do agree that people should learn from others, but I also think it is reasonable for people to have a community of others like them where they can share experiences. However, I wish that we had discussed this topic in more detail because I would’ve liked to hear people’s thoughts about if the same situation occurred but the races were reversed. What if white people made an online group that only allowed other white people? Would we still think that is okay? Why might it be okay for minority groups and not okay for the majority group?

I think technology adds a whole new layer to racism, and it’s really important that we continue to learn about how racism is present in all aspects of life so that we are not blind to the biases inherent in our culture.

Talking about racism in education made me consider how societal ideas of racism persist over time. Racism in education causes the prevalence of institutional and societal racism in America. While Zabala’s thesis regarding racism at Bowdoin specifically addresses racism at institutions of higher education, racism creates more foundational biases in elementary and secondary schools across America.

While researching ideas for topics of discussions as a facilitator, I learned about the ways in which a teacher’s expectations can affect a student’s performance. I think this topic would have been interesting to discuss in more detail with the class. In one study, researchers gave children an intelligence test at the beginning of the school year. After receiving the results, the researchers told teachers that some children were more apt to achieve than others. However, they had arbitrarily picked the students who they reported to the teachers as “high-achieving.” At the end of the year, the students who were randomly picked as “high achievers” actually did show higher levels of achievement than other children in the class. Clearly, teacher expectations influence student performance. This discovery has severe implications in terms of race. Society upholds many stereotypes about people of color which can influence a teacher’s impressions and expectations of a student. If a teacher subconsciously does not believe a student will achieve, it is more than likely that the student will not reach his or her full potential. I wonder how such biases could be addressed and eradicated in schools. Is it possible for teachers to believe in all students’ potential equally? Is that even a reasonable or logical solution? If these biases stem from much foundational racial stereotypes in society, how can teachers separate their expectations from the stereotypes of people of color so that students have equal opportunities to thrive?

Racism in primary and secondary school greatly influences the institutional racism of higher education. In class discussions last week, students brought up the idea that racism in lower levels of education not only influences college students’ ideas about race but also the types of students that attend these institutions. For example, students of color who experience racism in early education may feel more inclined to stop their education after high school and teacher expectations or biases can greatly impact a students’ performance in school; if a student of color does not feel supported during his/her secondary education, he or she may not be accepted to more prestigious college due to the lack of competitiveness of their application. Because racism in colleges and universities have such a strong foundation in lower levels of education, how should we go about changing the racial dynamic of college campuses? In her thesis, Zabala advocates for “meaningful, structural change” rather than surface level changes on college campuses. But do the structural changes have to happen earlier, in lower levels of education? Is it the responsibility of colleges to try to undo the effects of racism in lower levels of education? How would they go about doing that?

The class also had an interesting discussion about Bowdoin’s orientation process regarding race. We discussed that while Bowdoin hosted programs about the importance of racial inclusion and diversity, no one ever mentioned incidents such as Cracksgiving, the Tequila Party, or the Gangster Party that Zabala discusses in her thesis. I am interested in the ways that the Bowdoin orientation process could improve because I think learning from Bowdoin’s history could help many students. I do not think it would be a good idea to immediately bring up such incidents as the first presentation because people may not be in the right mindset at that point; there is an overwhelming amount of information we receive during the orientation in the first few days. However, I do think that educating people about these kinds of incidents would benefit the students. Maybe the proctors or RAs could talk to the students about these events because they already address partying and drinking, so it would make sense for them to talk about crossing the line for party themes and the importance of talking about racial instances that happened at Bowdoin. In this way, students could learn about Bowdoin’s racial history in a smaller group so it is less overwhelming than in an auditorium with the whole class, and they would have the opportunity to ask questions in smaller groups. Then, students will have a better understanding of Bowdoin’s racial history.