I support Timnit Gebru
Google should take this opportunity to commit to transparency and equity after unjustifiably firing Timnit Gebru
Google fired Timnit Gebru, a renowned and respected black woman researcher who led their AI Ethics team, because they didn’t like what she found in her research, and they wanted to cover it up. They didn’t like that she was criticizing Google even though the main goal of an ethics team should be to unearth unethical practices within Google so it can improve those practices and move towards more ethical and equitable services. If Google is going to have an ethics team, they are going to have to get used to feeling uncomfortable and dealing with their own shortcomings.
Members and Google employees of the Ethical AI Team at Google have submitted a letter to Google CEO Sundar Pichai to reinstate and promote Gebru. This would go a long way to show that Google is committed to inclusion of all voices at Google and that it doesn’t shy away from conflict in a field that is new and constantly changing. We all need Gebru to continue her important research on the ethics of AI and its effects of marginalized people. Advances in technology should benefit all of us, not just those who already have wealth and privilege.
Google employees have a celebrated history of retaliating against the company for its unethical treatment of minority employees. So far, Google has not shown that it is committed to equality inside or outside its walls. I hope that will change soon. 2020 seems like a perfect year to commit to a new culture of equality and inclusion for all people especially women and people of color, especially a brilliant black woman like Timnit Gebru.
I use Google’s services, and I have written a letter to Google CEO Sundar Pichai demanding accountability of their leadership for this recent racist, unethical treatment of Gebru and her important research.
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