Copyright Forbes
In the days leading up to the suspension of federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, several AI-generated videos of Black women went viral on social media. In one video, Andre Gee of Rolling Stone wrote, a Black woman could be seen in a house full of crying babies screaming about the government shutdown, the loss of her EBT, having seven children with seven men and how it was the taxpayer’s responsibility to support her. Other videos depicted Black women screaming about not being able to use their food stamps in different places. The recent wave of videos are meant to play into the “welfare queen” trope—a pervasive stereotype that portrays Black women as indolent and exploiters of government assistance programs for personal gain. These videos add to the surge of racist AI videos that cropped up over the summer, showcasing Black women AI “influencers” acting in exaggerated ways, which many labeled as digital Blackface. On the surface, some may not understand the harm with these videos. Many may claim they are playful depictions that were made in good fun and are meant to be humorous. But the impacts of these types of videos are far-reaching. These pervasive and persistent stereotypes recurrent in the media subconsciously shape our perceptions of Black women. For many people, particularly those who have little to no contact with Black women except in the workplace, these AI videos contribute to a wider system of bias and inequity. Black women in the U.S. are already in a precarious position with more than 300,000 having been pushed out of the workforce in the last several months. These types of racist videos can feed into the misogynoir, or the unique form of gendered racism, that Black women experience, and propagates the angry Black woman and strong Black woman stereotypes that negatively impact Black women. Recent research from Harvard Kennedy School revealed that when Black women start their careers working with a higher percentage of white colleagues, they are more likely to leave their jobs and less likely to be promoted. Seemingly benign AI videos, like the ones that have recently popped up, can worsen the harm that Black women already experience at work. The emotional toll that continued harm and marginalization have on Black women is often ignored. A 2021 Lean In report indicated that Black women are more likely than other employees to be dealing with the impacts of racism and racial trauma and more than a quarter of Black women surveyed indicated that their race led to them missing out on an opportunity to advance. The othering and disrespect that Black women commonly experience doesn’t just impact Black women; the discrimination that a Black woman experiences at work can cause all employees to become less productive, according to research from the University of South Carolina. Another study indicated that when workers are mistreated, it can impact employee performance. Even small slights, according to research, can lead to reduced employee productivity. MORE FOR YOU At an individual level, it’s important to share information about the deleterious effects of these types of AI-generated videos and how digital Blackface contributes to a larger ecosystem of harm. At an organizational level, companies should integrate ongoing education to address deep-rooted anti-black bias, focusing on how it can subtly show up in workplace policies and practices. There should be consequences for employees who share these types of videos on social media and there should be a clear workplace policy for dealing with inflammatory and racist social media posts made by employees. Tech companies should also integrate guardrails into these AI video tools and make it more difficult to remove AI video identifiers. The public plays a critical role in demanding transparency and accountability, and we must take every opportunity available to call out AI videos, especially the vast amount that perpetuate harm.
