 | |
| Author | Virginia Eubanks |
|---|---|
| Subject | technology and poverty |
| Published | 2018 |
| Publisher | St. Martin's Press |
| Awards | Stephan Russo Book Prize (shortlist) |
| ISBN | 978-1-250-07431-7 |
Automating Inequality: How High-Tech Tools Profile, Police, and Punish the Poor is a book by Virginia Eubanks.
The book focuses on how automation negatively impacts the poor. [1] In the United States during the 19th century, poor people were often sent to poorhouses. [2] Eubanks draws a connection from the poorhouses of the 19th century to how we control and contain poor people using technology in the 21st century. [3] Eubanks is an associate professor of political science at State University of New York. [4]
The book discusses how housing in Los Angeles has been automated. [5] The book discusses Mitch Daniels's attempt to privatize and automate welfare in Indiana. [6] The attempt led to a 54% increase in the denial of benefits from the previous three years. [7] In Pittsburgh, there was an attempt to use predictive risk modeling to identify at-risk children. [8] Many automated processes are intended to maximize profit. [9] The last chapter goes over ways that these oppressive systems can be dismantled. [10]
LibraryJournal praised the book for covering academic material in a way that is easy to read. [11] The book was shortlisted for the Stephan Russo Book Prize. [12] The Financial Times compared and contasted the book with Algorithms of Oppression . [13]