Context. Algorithmic racism is the term used to describe the behavior of technological solutions that constrains users based on their ethnicity. Lately, various data-driven software systems have been reported to discriminate against Black people, either for the use of biased data sets or due to the prejudice propagated by software professionals in their code. As a result, Black people are experiencing disadvantages in accessing technology-based services, such as housing, banking, and law enforcement. Goal. This study aims to explore algorithmic racism from the perspective of software professionals. Method. A survey questionnaire was applied to explore the understanding of software practitioners on algorithmic racism, and data analysis was conducted using descriptive statistics and coding techniques. Results. We obtained answers from a sample of 73 software professionals discussing their understanding and perspectives on algorithmic racism in software development. Our results demonstrate that the effects of algorithmic racism are well-known among practitioners. However, there is no consensus on how the problem can be effectively addressed in software engineering. In this paper, some solutions to the problem are proposed based on the professionals' narratives. Conclusion. Combining technical and social strategies, including training on structural racism for software professionals, is the most promising way to address the algorithmic racism problem and its effects on the software solutions delivered to our society.

翻译：背景：算法种族主义用于描述技术方案基于用户种族限制其行为的现象。近期，诸多数据驱动型软件系统被报道歧视黑人群体，其原因既包括使用存在偏见的数据集，也包括软件专业人士在代码中传播的偏见。由此，黑人在获取住房、银行服务、执法等基于技术的服务时面临劣势。目标：本研究旨在从软件专业人士的视角探讨算法种族主义。方法：采用问卷调查法探索软件从业者对算法种族主义的认知，并通过描述性统计与编码技术进行数据分析。结果：我们从73名软件专业人士的样本中获取了回答，讨论了他们对软件开发中算法种族主义的认知与观点。研究表明，从业者普遍了解算法种族主义的影响，但尚未就如何在软件工程中有效解决该问题达成共识。本文基于专业人士的叙述提出了若干解决方案。结论：结合技术与社会策略（包括对软件专业人士开展结构性种族主义培训），是解决算法种族主义问题及其对向社会交付的软件解决方案影响的最具前景的路径。