Humanity of Tech

Make real progress on diversity and inclusion or get hit with legislation and regulation.

That’s the message Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA) along with other Congressional members of the Congressional Black Caucus’s (CBC) Diversity Task Force sent last week during their Silicon Valley visit. Check this out to learn more about the Task Force and its 2020 Tech Initiative.

Why the ultimatum? This particular issue dates back to 2012 when CBC representatives first paid a visit to the Valley to broach the issue of the lack of diversity in the tech industry. At the time, Internet companies - considered the new kids on the block - could do no wrong on Capitol Hill. The industry was given the benefit of the doubt. Congressman Butterfield (D-NC) explained that the CBC representatives relied on persuasion and technology to change the culture and move the needle.

However, those promises led to little progress between then and last October during another visit by the CBC. In late 2017, policymakers relied on the argument that there is a direct correlation between diversity and profit though they quickly learned that it could be easily debunked. After all, some Internet companies have managed to grow like rapidly despite lacking diversity in their employment pools.

Butterfield said about that visit, “We were promised that things would get better but not much progress [has happened] since then.” To further drive home his point, Butterfield listed a number of statistics, including 95% of the tech workforce is white and the five largest Internet companies are worth more than $3 trillion combined. He, along with other CBC representatives, are concerned that if the tech industry continues down this path, the wealth disparities will reach unacceptable levels for black people and Latinos who are likely to hit zero wealth over the next few decades.

To course correct, the CBC is making recommendations and offering cautionary tales for the tech industry. Here are the three things we should know about how the CBC intends to help build black wealth in tech.

1. It’s all about SMART policies.

Butterfield and Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA) announced SMART policies that the tech industry should implement to remove. Lee defined ‘SMART’ policies as follows:

Support Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) education and job training by investing in quality, long-term educational programs in underserved area.
Make tech available by investing not only in internet access but also affordable access and tech training for black-owned small businesses.
Address economic stability by the tech community leading public/private partnerships where affordable education and public safety are addressed in [underserved] communities
Retaining black employees because simply hiring black employees is not enough. The conversation has evolved since just a few years ago, and companies must ensure retention as well as pay equity.
Target investments in diverse companies and communities. As companies build offices and data centers all over the world, they should also look to establish their presence in racially and economically [diverse] areas.

2. Diversity and inclusion will not be viewed in a silo.

Congresswoman Maxine Waters, also known as “the enforcer” stated boldly that she is ready to use her power as a policymaker to produce legislation and regulation that will accelerate inclusion in tech and create opportunities for people. Supporting Waters’ views, Butterfield made it clear that they would “use every tool that we have in our toolbox to demand of [tech] CEOs that [they] become more diverse at all levels…”

Additionally, it’s no secret that it’s currently a tough time politically for global Internet platforms. From fakes news and cybersecurity issues to the recent Cambridge Analytica data scandal, global Internet platforms are under heavy scrutiny as policymakers worldwide continue to parse through these platforms’ impact on democracy and society. CBC members are committed to leveraging this opportunity to challenge tech companies on diversity and inclusion issues not only through their asks of policymakers but by taking it a step further through legislation and regulation.

3. Head to the polls during the upcoming election season.

The panel of CBC members made it very clear that the event was not intended to be one for politicking. However, moderator, Bloomberg’s Aki Ito, asked the panel whether we can expect real legislative action to force change in Silicon Valley if the Democrats take back the House of Representatives (House) in the upcoming midterm election in November. In short, the answer was a resounding yes. Congresswoman Lee pointed out that if the Democrats do take control of the House, five or six key committee for the tech industry will be chaired by CBC members. These committees include Financial Services, Homeland Security, Science, Space & Technology, and the Oversight Committee.

Further, in terms of legislation and policy, here’s where the Democrats could assert some authority over tech:

Originally enacted in 1977, Congress intended for the Community Reinvestment Act to encourage depository institutions - financial institutions that acquires funds through deposits made by consumers and the public - to meet the credit needs of communities, particularly low to moderate income neighborhoods. The Act, which was substantially revised in 1995 and updated in 2005, could be up for another revision. Butterfield explained that when this Act was initially written, it did not take into consideration the impact of technology. This Act could be updated to impose obligations on the tech sector to re-invest in low income communities.
Lee, who sits on the Appropriations Committee, noted that many tech companies are also federal contractors. She alluded to the idea of possibly altering federal contract requirements to better understand how companies address diversity and inclusions issues before being awarded a contract.
Waters, Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee drew parallels between the financial and tech industries. She explained that when the Dodd-Frank bill passed, she created an office of women and minorities on the committee to work with big banks and other government agencies such as the FDIC and OCC where women and minorities are not represented adequately. Waters also touched on the lack of minority-owned startups due to a lack of access to capital.

To learn more about their trip and key findings, check out Congressman Butterfield’s latest post.