Algorithms , when NOT used for their intended purpose , also foment racial inequality . Which is not a contradiction to what I said , but it ' s a valuable point to remember . As programmers , it ' s not enough to ensure that the code we write produces beneficial results when used correctly we need to safeguard against misuse . Races can never be equalLet ' s put some concrete metrics on it . Black people should not be any more likely than white people to be killed by police , and we ' ll accept a 5 % gap as close enough . For any given crime , black people should be sentenced about as harshly as white people , with a similar acceptable gap . For any given crime , the probability that someone is arrested given that the committed it should be the same for any race of perpetrator . School funding per capita should be equal for predominantly white and predominantly black schools . When controlling for field of work , education , and experience , we should see no pay gap by race . And they cannot be made equal except through elimination of the racial distinctiveness itselfThere are many elements to race specifically , ethnoracial groups , including but not limited to shared history cuisine attire fashion including hairstyles , makeup , and jewelry music religion language or dialectWhich of these contribute to wage gaps ?