Big Data: A Report on Algorithmic Systems, Opportunity, and Civil Rights

Civil rights legislation of the last century responded to the reality that some Americans were being denied access to fundamental building blocks of opportunity and security, such as employment, housing, access to financial products, and admission to universities, on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or family status. Today, in the United States, anti-discrimination laws help enforce the tenet that all people are to be treated equally. These safeguards are important to protect all Americans against discrimination. Big data techniques have the potential to enhance our ability to detect and prevent discriminatory harm. But, if these technologies are not implemented with care, they can also perpetuate, exacerbate, or mask harmful discrimination.