On C.L.Ai.R.A. and Tech Bias in the United States

Move over Siri and Alexa…C.L.Ai.R.A . has arrived!

Meet C.L.Ai.R.A. - the first Afro-Latina artificial intelligence (AI).

“…C.L.Ai.R.A. is considered to have the sharpest brain in the artificial intelligence world…[and]is an autoregressive language model that uses deep learning to produce human-like text,” (Black Enterprise). C.L.Ai.R.A was created by Create Lab Ventures, a tech company that provides underserved communities with the skills, resources, and networks needed to thrive in tech and media.

The hope is that with C.L.Ai.R.A.’s debut in classrooms across the United States, young people of color will be inspired and uplifted.

It is important to note that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a core theme in any STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) curriculum.

According to Pew Research Center, “Black and Hispanic adults [which C.L.Ai.R.A. is supposedly modeled after] are less likely to earn degrees in STEM than other degree fields, and they continue to make up a lower share of STEM graduates relative to their share of the adult population,” and women only account for a small share of degree earners in fields like engineering and computer science “areas where they are significantly underrepresented in the work force.”

So is C.L.Ai.R.A. enough to counter the “histories and ongoing forms of deeply embedded discrimination, bias, racism,” and white insecurity, that infect U.S. institutions and systems, including technology?

In her interview with Counterspin, Ruha Benjamin, the author of Race After Technology: Abolitionist Tools for the New Jim Code, makes it clear that technology “is not, in fact, objective in the way we are being socialized to believe.”

Counterspin Interviewer, Janine Jackson, offered this example to better illustrate the lack of objectivity, or rather how the implicit biases of the larger society can affect technological outputs, including AI:

“If police are deployed disproportionately to poor communities of color [because of discrimination and racism], then that’s where they make the most arrests. So if you fill a database with that, and then you say, you know, ‘Alexa, where is the most crime, based on the number of arrests?’ Well, it’s going to circle you right back to the data that you fed it, and it’s only predictive because you make it so.”

The Pew Research Center maintains that “the long-term outlook for diversity in the STEM workforce is closely tied to representation in the STEM educational system,” of which C.L.Ai.R.A. of course would be seen as an asset for representation.

However, according to Massive Science’s report on data from the National Science Foundation:

“The share of STEM-field bachelor’s degrees awarded to Black students peaked in the early 2000s and has been falling ever since — despite increasing federal spending on STEM diversity initiatives….

Precisely what is driving the decline is a matter of some debate. Some experts pointed to persistent income inequality and the disproportionate lack of access to quality schools among Black and other minority communities. Others argued that outreach efforts, peer mentoring, and other programs aimed at fostering interest in the sciences among Black students have dwindled, causing enrollments to plummet. But several education and legal professionals also pointed to a more straightforward and sobering correlation: The steady downturn in STEM degrees among Black students, they say, comes in the wake of a large-scale retreat from specific programs and policies that consider race in admissions, recruitment, and retention in higher education — policies commonly known as affirmative action.”

From a Development standpoint, it is suffice to say that likely all of those factors contribute to the current state of bias that can be found in the U.S. tech world.

It remains to be seen if C.L.Ai.R.A.’s introduction to the STEM educational system will have the positive impact her creators are hoping for, and can help to reverse the downward trend of Black and Hispanic/Latinx people in STEM.

While we can hope it is a step in the right direction, there are still several other factors (e.g. lack of quality schools, etc.) that need to be addressed in order for there to be significant and long-lasting change.

The Neonatal Epidemic: An Income-Based Battle

By Zipporah Orbisi, CAPM

Quality Engineer and Consultant

The Neonatal Epidemic: An Income-Based Battle

Imagine, what is supposed to be one of the most beautiful times in a woman's life also being one of the most fearful times in her life. A seed sown to blossom and grow, now facing the rockiest terrain with an impending storm on the homefront. 

Recently, due to the novel coronavirus, women all across the globe have had a taste of what it means to be fearful of every little action they take as they nurture the life growing inside their wombs. Even mothers located in countries that we would deem more economically well-off have had to adjust to the idea of a virtual babyshower and birth scenarios without family members present.

However, many women, especially those located in countries associated with the Global South, have been raging against this age-old battle of raising a child in the womb and rendering fierce protection from the first breath, even though we are well into this 21st century. 

Photo by: Paolo Patruno from the Birth is a Dream Project

The neonatal period is the first twenty eight days of life. These days are the most vulnerable days of a child's life. According to UNICEF in 2019 there were about 2.4 million children who died in their first month of life, approximately 6,700 a day globally.

When you break down the numbers by geography you can see that there is a heavy concentration of occurrences in the Global South, specifically Eastern and Southern Africa and South Asia. 

Statistics show that Somalia had about 36 out of every 1000 children die during the neonatal phase while North America has 3 out of every 1000. If we take that 6,700 a day value that would put over 200 babies falling victim to neonatal issues in this one small country alone. 

The meaning of the word epidemic is: an outbreak of disease that spreads quickly and affects many at the same time. We believe the current neonatal crisis is an epidemic.  A close examination of the reasons for deaths during the neonatal phase reveal that they are often riddled with underlying infectious diseases like Malaria, HIV, Dysentery, and Tuberculosis. These are all considered communicable diseases just as COVID-19. 

So why is COVID-19 a pandemic? It’s effects and repercussions are being felt worldwide. This means on top of the high mortality rate from neonatal issues, countries in the Global South are now adding an additional factor contributing to their leading causes of death.

Still, one should at least question  the prevalence of neonatal deaths in the world. Technology has come a long way making it possible for so many women to have access to safe and happy birthing facilities, right?

The short answer is, yes. Medicine, whole foods, vitamins, psychology, and even the internet have provided the means for many women located in the privileged nations of the Global North to have ideal “butterfly” births and picturesque “4th trimesters”, even in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, well minus the glamorous baby showers and perfectly planned doula birth scenario. But still we find neonatal deaths are the number three cause of deaths globally. Deeper still, neonatal deaths are not even amongst the top ten deaths in middle to high income countries according to the World Health Organization.

All of the world's advancements in technology and medicine come at a cost. 

According to a World Data Report it is shown that average annual income in Kenya is 1750 USD, Ethiopia is 870 USD, and Sudan 590 USD. Subsequently, the Oxford journals released average costs of vaginal births without complications in the Sub-Saharan at about 18 USD. While the average cost to have a baby in the United States is 10,808 USD (Business Insider).

Yes, even in the Global North, many Black and Latinx families struggle to not only find the money needed for quality care but also to secure compassionate physicians and the best equipped facilities to help. 

And in many countries in the Global South, major advancements have been made  to slow the deaths caused by neonatal complications as of 2019. But now with COVID-19 much attention has been averted from this issue to focus on assisting the fight against the global virus.

Photo by: Paolo Patruno Birth is a Dream Project

As the world continues to re-open and we begin to rebuild, it’s important now more than ever that we recognize that we can get back on track and help turn this neonatal epidemic around by offering development assistance at the community level. 

To be effective helpers, we must start by listening. 

We can only help after stepping into the shoes of these women and families through their experiences and stories. 

What do they consider to be their most important needs in ensuring a safe child-bearing process? 

How can we help all members of the family continue to help our child-bearing women and newborn infants?

Truly collaborating with communities involves not only providing the education and resources needed but regularly engaging with the people to hear their ideas about solutions, and ensuring that their needs are being met through the education and resources. 

As with any other area of impact, we must work to ensure that the allocated aid is really what is needed and being requested.

The Loaded Language of Development

Our Principal Consultant was featured on the She Table Talk with Sarah Oseki podcast. You can listen to the episode below. If you enjoy the episode please leave a review of the podcast here.

By Cara-Marie Findlay

FHG Founder and Principal Consultant

The Loaded Language of Development

Certain words elicit specific emotional responses. For example, a word like “failure” can conjure up feelings of fear or extreme disappointment. Words and phrases that include this additional emotional dimension are often referred to as “loaded language.” 

Confusion—an inability to clearly understand and/or to act upon that understanding or intelligence—is also an emotional response. 

One reason people around the world feel disempowered (deprived of opportunities to exert influence over their life and circumstances) is because many of the subjects related to their lives leave them feeling confused. 

In addition, many (if not most) of the systems and institutions that “run the world” and are engaged in Development activities, seem to be hidden away from the eyes (and access) of everyday individuals. These same institutions and systems are often cloaked in language that isn’t easily decoded.  

© BRUCIE ROSCH

On top of that, many of the words and phrases that make up the specialized language of Development are loaded not only with an emotional dimension, but also inherent bias. 

As Robtel Neajai Pailey states, “Even the geospatial terms we employ [in international development] reek of [what she calls] ‘the white gaze,’” (Pailey, 2020, p.734).

For example, referring to nations, regions or societies as:

Developed vs. Developing

First World vs. Third World 

High income vs. Low income 

Industrial vs. Agrarian

Modern vs. Traditional 

Not only do these opposites “suggest both a hierarchy and a value judgment [i.e. which qualities are esteemed and which are belittled]” (McEwan, 2018, p. 17) they are also misleading. 

For example, to say some nations are developed and others are developing, suggests that developed nations “have arrived.” However, even today, whole communities and ethnic groups in so-called developed nations are still being marginalized. 

The truth is that every nation is developing on some level. 

In other instances, how a term is used today gives no indication of its history.

For example, the terms First World and Third World date back to the time of the Cold World. First World was used to refer to those countries who were on the side of the US and its allies, Second World referred to those countries on the side of the Soviet and its allies, and Third World referred to those countries that sought a third way to develop their societies and economies separate from the United States and Russia. Of course, that is not what people mean when they use the term Third World today, which is often linked to images of poverty.

Furthermore using terms like Modern vs. Traditional implies that tradition cannot be modern, or that to be modern one must do away with tradition altogether. 

And to say High Income vs Low Income, assumes that there are not high income families and individuals in countries with lower Gross Domestic Product (GDP) or low income families and individuals in countries with higher Gross Domestic Product.

Moreover, economic indicators alone cannot capture the complex relationships between the key issues of human development, including: life expectancy, quality education, access to opportunities, social justice, and levels of happiness and contentment. 

The United States Nations’ Human Development Index, the Center for Partnership Studies’ Social Wealth Index, the concept of Embodied Economics, and the World Happiness Report are all alternate tools that were created to better capture a composite of those complex relationships related to development.

At Findlay House Global, we are decoding the loaded language of Development to ensure that the activities, discussions, and planning related to development (at all levels—local, state, national, regional and global) is accessible to everyone, especially those who have been traditionally marginalized. Everyone should be aware of “the sociocultural conditions that shape one’s life,” especially those conditions that lead to disempowerment; as well as “the possibility of their transformation” (Svensson, 2018, p. 11).

Here are few of our posts related to unpacking the loaded language of Development.

RESOURCES

• Here’s Why and How Findlay House Global uses the terms Global North and Global South

• What are remittances?

• What is Communicating for Social Change?

REFERENCES

McEwan, C. (2018). Postcolonialism, Decoloniality and Development (2nd ed.). Routledge.

Pailey, R.N. (2020). De‐centring the ‘White Gaze’ of Development. Development and Change, 51: 729-745.

Svensson J. (2018) Empowerment as Development: An Outline of an Analytical Concept for the Study of ICTs in the Global South. In: Servaes J. (eds) Handbook of Communication for Development and Social Change. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-7035-8_43-1