Google Settles Lawsuit Alleging Anti-Black Bias For $50 Million
Look, I’m not saying all tech bros are racist, but I’m not, not saying it. I mean, the fact that Google recently agreed to settle a class action lawsuit alleging anti-Black bias at the company for $50 million doesn’t help their case.
It’s not an admission of guilt, but it’s certainly not a good look.
According to Reuters, the civil suit was filed by April Curley, a former Google employee who was hired specifically to recruit new employees from historically Black colleges. Curley worked at Google for six years, and during her tenure there, she alleged that she and fellow Black employees were underpaid, denied opportunities for advancement, and stagnated doing lower-level work. Curley alleged she was given unfair performance ratings that stereotyped her as an “angry Black woman” and was fired as she was in the process of reporting Google’s alleged anti-Black bias.
Curley and the other plaintiffs alleged that Black employees were frequently told they weren’t “Googley” enough and lacked “Googleyness,” which they perceived as a racist dog whistle.
It begs the question: how does one have an abundance of “Googleyness?” What makes one “Googley?” Why would one want to be “Googley?” Personally, I’d rather have the swagger of Ask Jeeves than have some middle-aged white man call me “Googley” as he sips a $20 smoothie from Erewhon
From Reuters:
Google, a unit of Mountain View, California-based Alphabet (GOOGL.O), denied wrongdoing in agreeing to settle, and said it fully complied with all applicable laws.
“We strongly disagree with the allegations that we treated anyone improperly and we remain committed to paying, hiring and leveling all employees consistently,” Google spokeswoman Courtenay Mencini said in an emailed statement on Friday.
The lawsuit began in March 2022 after a regulator now known as the California Civil Rights Department started investigating Google’s treatment of Black female employees.
This isn’t entirely surprising from the company that removed Black History Month from the Google Calendar earlier this year and donated $1 million to Trump’s inauguration fund. So clearly Google isn’t racist, y’all.
They just bankroll racists, it’s different.
Racism in the tech industry is sadly nothing new. It’s been over five years since the #SilliconValleySoWhite trend ignited the conversation around the lack of opportunity and racist attitudes Black tech workers have consistently faced in the industry. One of the anecdotes that emerged during those tweets was several Google employees alleging they faced a bias in badging, where white employees would demand to see their badge even if it was completely visible. Sounds like you have to be good at both coding and Karen-ing to work at Google.
The racism in tech has also manifested through the waves of layoffs that have sadly become commonplace throughout the industry over the last three years. Despite making up only 6.05 percent of the tech workforce, Black tech workers represented 7.42 % of the people laid off in the industry. Even before the Trump administration’s crackdown on DEI initiatives, departments at tech companies centered on diversifying the workforce were often the first to face cuts.
The racism in tech isn’t simply limited to alleged workplace interactions, as the algorithms perpetuated by Google generally favor alt-right, anti-woke content. Studies have shown that Google’s YouTube platform is one of the leading causes for radicalization, and I totally understand how. I watch YouTube more than any other platform, and it’s alarming how often the algorithm recommends alt-right gaming grifters offended at the concept of Black people existing. Especially since I watch a lot of Black and leftist content creators and consistently check the “don’t recommend” box whenever the usual suspects pop up. Yet still they persist.
Which begs the question: Are those the folks Google believes are “Googley?” Judging by how they’re moving, it sure feels like it.
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