Data for Black Lives

Last updated
Data for Black Lives
NicknameD4BL
FormationNovember 2017
Founder Yeshimabeit Milner,
Lucas Mason-Brown
HeadquartersCambridge, Massachusetts, U.S.
Website d4bl.org
Formerly called
Data 4 Black Lives

Data for Black Lives (D4BL) is an American non-profit organization with the mission of using data science to create concrete and measurable change in the lives of black people. [1] [2] Headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Data for Black Lives was founded by Yeshimabeit Milner and Lucas Mason-Brown. [3] [4] [5] [1] Milner attended Brown University; having encountered discrimination towards the black community, she organized a group of scientists to combat the mistreatment of black people within data algorithms. [1] [6]

Contents

History

D4BL began in November 2017 as statistical research project, and expanded into working with a team of people on data analysis. The formation of D4BL was initiated by Yeshimabeit Milner, who witnessed racial discrimination, watching her peers suffer from police brutality. [7]  Milner discovered through research that black children were getting suspended at a much higher rate than white children. [8]  After graduating from Brown University, Milner incorporated her passion for data science into social activism. [8]

D4BL has regional organization chapters, including a group in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. [9] Additionally there is a community of other organizations working towards the same goals, including Data and Society, Algorithmic Justice League, and the Distributed Artificial Intelligence Research Institute (DAIR). [10]

Between 2019 and 2021, D4BL was awarded a grant by the MacArthur Foundation for broad operating support. [11] [12]

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Rosenfeld, Maia (February 21, 2019). "University event highlights complexities of data power". The Brown Daily Herald. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 2021-12-21.
  2. ↑ "What Can Local Government Do to Avoid Inequitable Tech?". Governing. 2021-12-05. Archived from the original on 2021-12-27. Retrieved 2021-12-27.
  3. ↑ "Data For Black Lives, Inc". Open990. Archived from the original on 2021-11-17. Retrieved 2021-11-17.
  4. ↑ Roose, Kevin (2020-12-30). "The 2020 Good Tech Awards". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 2021-12-21.
  5. ↑ "Predictive policing algorithms are racist. They need to be dismantled". MIT Technology Review. Archived from the original on 2021-12-20. Retrieved 2021-12-21.
  6. ↑ "Yeshimabeit Milner | Ashoka | Everyone a Changemaker". www.ashoka.org. Archived from the original on 2021-11-17. Retrieved 2021-11-17.
  7. ↑ Cocco, Federica; Smith, Alan (July 22, 2020). "Race and America: Why Data Matters" . Financial Times. The Financial Times Limited. Archived from the original on 2021-01-13. Retrieved 2021-01-17.
  8. 1 2 "Yeshimabeit Milner (2021) | JFK Library". John F. Kennedy New Frontier Awards Recipients. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Archived from the original on 2021-11-17. Retrieved 2021-11-17.
  9. ↑ "CMU grad student launches data platform to 'dig deeper' into why systems are failing Black residents in Pittsburgh". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on 2021-12-27. Retrieved 2021-12-27.
  10. ↑ Tiku, Nitasha (December 2, 2021). "Google fired its star AI researcher one year ago. Now she's launching her own institute". Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2021-12-02. Retrieved 2021-12-27.
  11. ↑ Gunther, Marc (August 25, 2020). "'Fund Us Like You Want Us to Win': Foundations are putting unprecedented billions into racial equity, but some grant makers worry that too little is going to grassroots movements". Philanthropy.com. Archived from the original on 2021-12-27. Retrieved 2021-12-27.
  12. ↑ "Data for Black Lives". MacArthur Foundation. Archived from the original on 2021-11-10. Retrieved 2021-11-17.


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