Olay Teams Up With Algorithmic Justice League's Joy Buolamwini To Combat Coded Bias Against Black Women

Throughout history of mainstream culture in the United States, Eurocentric features have been deemed as the “beauty standard” and Olay’s latest initiative aims to combat this narrative.

In partnership with Algorithmic Justice League founder Joy Buolamwini, Olay has launched #DecodeTheBias. According to Adweek, the initiative is “a platform that aims to double the number of women entering STEM fields and challenge the bias that digitally boxes women of color out of everyday beauty searches.”

“We are excited to work with Black Girls CODE to provide that spark and encouragement to enter the field,” Olay’s Vice President Stephanie Headley said in a statement. “This is one step to bringing greater equity and inclusion to our online spaces that will also get us closer to achieving Olay’s goal to triple the number of women of color in STEM fields by 2030.”

The inclusive beauty brand continues to make strides in not only bringing more women into science-related fields, but also in diversifying STEM for there to be changes in the future of coding. Each time #DecodeTheBias is shared on social media, one girl is sent to the Black Girls CODE camp until they reach 1,200.

Adweek reports that Olay is also partnering with O’Neil Risk Consulting & Algorithmic Auditing — with Buolamwini’s consultation — “to take an internal look at its Skin Advisor AI platform for coded bias.” While cognizant of how coding bias heightens online discrimination, Buolawmwini describes its tactics as “seemingly neutral machines propagating racism, sexism, and ableism, while fueling discriminatory attitudes.”

“I remember being a little girl and being teased for my dark skin and being told I was not the standard of beauty, so to have the opportunity to be a face that young girls can relate to is incredible,” Buolamwini shared in a statement. “And I am proud to work with a brand like Olay that is taking real action to empower the next generation of girls.”

Each time #DecodeTheBias is shared on social media, one girl is sent to the Black Girls CODE camp until they reach 1,200.