Critical Race Theory for HCI

TLDR

The HCI community has made limited progress toward racial diversity, with outcomes remaining meager. The authors introduce and adapt critical race theory for HCI to provide a theoretical foundation for race‑conscious research and community practices. They employ critical race theory, using storytelling and personal narratives to challenge entrenched assumptions and illuminate ongoing racial issues in HCI. They argue that racism pervades everyday socio‑technical systems, that HCI is susceptible to interest convergence, and that neoliberal tech underpinnings propagate racism, implying that all HCI research must address race, actively include underrepresented minorities, and reject complacency amid disparities.

Abstract

The human-computer interaction community has made some efforts toward racial diversity, but the outcomes remain meager. We introduce critical race theory and adapt it for HCI to lay a theoretical basis for race-conscious efforts, both in research and within our community. Building on the theory's original tenets, we argue that racism is pervasive in everyday socio-technical systems; that the HCI community is prone to "interest convergence", where concessions to inclusion require benefits to those in power; and that the neoliberal underpinnings of the technology industry itself propagate racism. Critical race theory uses storytelling as a means to upend deep-seated assumptions, and we relate several personal stories to highlight ongoing problems of race in HCI. The implications: all HCI research must be attuned to issues of race; participation of underrepresented minorities must be sought in all of our activities; and as a community, we cannot become comfortable while racial disparities exist.