Sunday Times 2
Are Google’s doodles racist and sexist?
Activists have accused Google of being racist and sexist in their choice of figures to create the firm’s much loved Google Doodles for.
Spark, which describes itself as a ‘girl-fuelled activist movement’, said its analysis found the majority of Google’s doodles were of white males.
It said the accolade was the modern equivalent of being put on a stamp, and said ‘it’s uncommon for Google to celebrate historical women of colour.’
Google Doodles range from drawings and animations to full games that replace the Google logo on holidays or birthdays of historical figures.
The Google Doodle team works on a tribute to Freddie Mercury (AFP)
Sometimes the Doodles are seen worldwide, but mostly they’re reserved for the country in which the holiday or individual is best known, as was the case with Hurston-her Doodle was only visible on Google’s U.S. homepage.
The very first Doodle to celebrate an individual appeared in 2001 in honour of Monet, but the Doodles didn’t start making frequent appearances on Google’s homepage until around 2010,
‘For a while now, we at SPARK have noticed that white men get featured on the Google homepage all the time, whereas women of colour are rarely honoured.
‘But it wasn’t until September 2013 that we set out to find the exact numbers.’
The team analysed hundreds of Google Doodles for months.
‘It turns out that from 2010-2013, Google celebrated 445 individuals on its various homepages throughout the world. 1
’9 were women of colour, 54 were white women, 82 were men of colour, and an overwhelming 275 were white men.
‘About half of those 19 women of colour appeared in 2013 alone, so at least we can say there’s been some progress.’
Spark also said there hasn’t been a single Asian, Latina, or indigenous woman featured in a Global Doodle as of February 2014.
The organisation today called for Google to take action.
‘We’re demanding that Google make a concerted effort to change such a blatant imbalance.
‘We want them to acknowledge the problem, but we also want more: we want Google to publicly commit to improving these numbers.’
‘Google Doodles may seem lighthearted, especially when accompanied by quirky games and animation, but in reality they have emerged as a new manifestation of who we value as a society, a sign of who “matters.”
‘Just like statues, stamps, and national holidays, you know that if someone is featured on Google’s homepage, they’ve done something important.’
It called for the Doodles to include all races and genders.
Daily Mail, London