Michelle Alexander, the author of The New Jim Crow, wrote an op-ed for the Times this week about the way algorithms will reinforce racist policing. Referencing Cathy O’Neil a few times, she claims that some of our recent systemic victories like Amendment 4 in Florida are only temporary fixes that disguise the new technology waiting in the wings of the mass-incarceration stage.
Alexander’s book, which was published in 2010, explains how the Jim Crow era never ended; only changed shapes. Through racist police policies, the war on drugs, and private prisons, a price has been put on the head of people of color (specifically black men) encouraging prosecutors to imprison them. Once they’ve been funneled into these private prisons – often for small drug charges – inmates will be given mandatory work for just pennies an hour. Many of our largest, name-recognized companies produce products through this wrangled labor force, including Victoria’s Secret.
She argues, alongside O’Neil, that by digitizing criminal enforcement, the US will be setting racism in mathematical stone that will be beyond reproach due to its opacity. She goes further, discussing e-carceration, a potential upcoming “Newest Jim Crow.”
Read the whole piece here:

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/08/opinion/sunday/criminal-justice-reforms-race-technology.html