From the Margins can guide them towards accomplishing this difficult and important task.96 This is especially the case when these apps are functioning in countries in which there are higher risks to marginalized users. In fact, the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression has clarified that for ICT companies (and tech companies in general), a proper process of due diligence requires considering the human rights impacts of “design and engineering choices.”97
Case Studies of Designing for the Decentered To bring DFM out of abstraction, I lay out some examples of its ability to bring about inventive and universally useful changes. While these changes do not address the institutional, legal, and historical roots of these harms and human rights abuses, they do provide some recourse to those impacted as well as optionality, safety, and innovation for all generalized users. Designing from the margins has collateral benefits to all of society.
Example One: Grindr and MENA Queer Users I led a project and research98 at ARTICLE 19 with local organizations in Iran, Lebanon, and Egypt (Spectrum99, Helem100, EIPR101 and Rainbow 96
To date, the majority of UN frameworks also focus more on grievance procedures and how to handle human rights breaches after the fact. However there is an increasing need for mitigating breaches before human rights abuses occur.
97
David Kaye, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, Report to the UN Human Rights Council, May 2016, para 88 another note can be seen in the Toronto Declaration on Machine Learning Systems “Private sector actors have a responsibility to respect human rights; this responsibility exists independently of state obligations.12 As part of fulfilling this responsibility, private sector actors need to take ongoing proactive and reactive steps to ensure that they do not cause or contribute to human rights abuses – a process called ‘human rights due diligence’”.
98
Rigot, A., 2018. Apps and traps: why dating apps must do more to protect LGBTQ communities. [online] OpenGlobalRights. Available at: <https://www.openglobalrights.org/apps-and-traps-why-dating-appsmust-do-more-to-protect-LGBTQ-communities/> [Accessed 6 April 2022].
99
Home - Spectrum. 2022. Home - Spectrum. [online] Available at: <https://feministspectrum.org> [Accessed 6 April 2022].
100 Helem.net. 2022. LGBTQIA+ Non-Profit Organization | Helem Lebanon | Home. [online] Available at: <https://www.helem.net> [Accessed 6 April 2022]. 101
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Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR). 2022. Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR). [online] Available at: <http://eipr.org> [Accessed 6 April 2022].
Design From the Margins
