Decolonizing Your Design System Unveiling Biases and Revolutionizing Inclusion - Michelle Chin

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UX Y’ALL 2023 UNVEILING BIASES AND REVOLUTIONIZING INCLUSION DECOLONIZING YOUR DESIGN SYSTEM MICHELLE CHIN DESIGN ADVOCATE @SOYSAUCECHIN

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CONTENT WARNING: • Some topics may be triggering (slavery, racism, genocide, white supremacy). • Please take the time and space you need to take care of yourself. • I’m available to talk; ﬁnd me at the conference

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WHITE SUPREMACY: THE BELIEF THAT WHITE PEOPLE CONSTITUTE A SUPERIOR RACE AND SHOULD THEREFORE DOMINATE SOCIETY, TYPICALLY TO THE EXCLUSION AND DETRIMENT OF OTHER RACIAL AND ETHNIC GROUPS. IT WAS A KEY JUSTIFICATION FOR EUROPEAN COLONIALISM. OXFORD DICTIONARY; WIKIPEDIA

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WHITE SUPREMACY: ENSLAVEMENT OF PEOPLE

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WHITE SUPREMACY: ACTS OF LEGISLATION

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WHITE SUPREMACY: CULTURAL GENOCIDE

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Oh hello! You must be the new owners! Wow! He’s thinks I might be the gardener! Oh hello! Do you live here? WHITE SUPREMACY: FUELS IMPLICIT BIASES

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CENTURIES OF WHITE SUPREMACY NORMALIZED SYSTEMIC RACISM AND IMPLICIT BIASES.

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IT’S JUST A BUTTON, RIGHT? It’s not racist. Don’t be dramatic Everyone needs buttons!

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UI ELEMENTS • For the most part, they work for everyone. • So it’s not a big deal, right?

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WHO MADE OUR UI GUIDELINES? Atomic Design Brad Frost Apple’s Human Interface Guidelines Bruce Tognazzini 10 Usability Heuristics for UI Design Jakob Nielsen Material Design Jon Wiley

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• Over half of respondents were from Western ethnicities. • Less than half was everyone else. WHO’S ON YOUR DESIGN SYSTEM TEAM? 62% 38% How We Document Report

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TEAMS DON’T REFLECT THE WORLD 62% 38% How We Document Report World population 83% 17% Everyone else Westerners

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WE ARE MISSING CULTURAL CONSIDERATIONS FROM A MAJORITY OF THE WORLD. BUT IT’S NOT ALWAYS INTENTIONAL.

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WHITE SUPREMACY IS SO COMMON PLACE Hmm… this never occurred to me. I never thought about this.

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• Design system teams create the foundations that products are built from. • If there’s cultural context missing from the foundations, it will be missing from products. • Designers carry a huge responsibility to serve our users. WHY DOES THIS MATTER? Everyone should read this book

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OMG… MY DESIGN SYSTEM MIGHT BE RACIST… BUT HOW DO YOU DECOLONIZE A BUTTON?…

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SPOILER: IT’S NOT ALWAYS IN THE COMPONENTS IT’S IN THE PATTERNS

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PATTERNS: MODELS FOR MAKING THINGS. IN DESIGN SYSTEMS, THEY CAN HAVE PRESCRIPTIVE ELEMENTS BUT ALSO GUIDELINES THAT ALLOW FOR SITUATIONAL FLEXIBILITY AND DECISION-MAKING BY THE DESIGNER. THIS IS WHERE CULTURAL CONTEXT COMES INTO PLAY.

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JAPA N EGYP T U.S . More info Right to left design

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HOW DO I DECOLONIZE MY DESIGN SYSTEM?

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HOW DO I DECOLONIZE MY DESIGN SYSTEM? HIR E LEAR N CONTRIBUT E

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HIRE What do you think? I like it! I like it! I like it! I like it! I like it! What do you think? Well… Question… Something to consider This could work I’m concerned…

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• Means going out of your way - meetups, outreach events, working with universities • Be OK with being inconvenienced to make a better team • Hiring systems in place aren’t always accessible to everyone HIRE

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• See the rest of the world! • Observe not just the “what” but the “how” and “why” people are doing what they’re doing. LEARN: TRAVEL + OBSERVE

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• What: People are waiting for their train • How: The ﬂoor is marked very obviously for each line. People are standing in the appropriate line. • Why: Are train lines confusing? Do they want to ensure no one makes a mistake? Does a lot of info ensure conﬁdence for people? OBSERVATIONS

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• You can still learn so much without leaving your home • Read travel books, memoirs and think about the “how” and “why” • Watch videos on YouTube - travel videos, “a day in the life” videos, and more! LEARN: COUCH TRAVEL

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• Talk with people who are unlike you at conferences and events • Usability test with a variety of people - especially those not represented in your design team. • Speak with translation teams for insight LEARN: MEET PEOPLE

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I heard Americans love big trucks, is that true? • Be patient and respectful. • Rather, “Where are you from, like really from?” Ask, “Have you always lived in London?” • Avoid stating assumptions in your questions; focus on questions. TIPS FOR ENGAGING IN CONVERSATION What’s transportation in the U.S. like compared to here?

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CONTRIBUTE: CREATE PATTERNS Pattern that favors minimalism Pattern that favors more context

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CONTRIBUTE: CREATE PATTERNS We’re barely able to get our components ﬁgured out. Patterns are confusing; this is even more work. Our focus is only in the US. We don’t need patterns for multiple countries just yet.

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EXCUSES !

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I NEVER SAID THIS WOULD BE EASY. BUT IT ’S WORTH IT.

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WE’RE UNDOING CENTURIES OF WHITE SUPREMACY.

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WE DON’T HAVE TO DO THIS ALONE.

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CONTRIBUTE: GLOBAL DESIGN SYSTEM

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• A UI pattern library that considers cultural contexts • Cultural “sketches” to help provide context • An opportunity to leverage design tokens! • Come join me in making this happen CONTRIBUTE: GLOBAL PATTERN LIBRARY

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Underrepresented people: • Only contribute if you’d like to • Don’t feel obligated to undo white supremacy Represented people: • Use this as your motivation to learn • Use this as your way of showing active allyship • Unburden us by carrying the weight CONTRIBUTE: CALL FOR CONTRIBUTORS

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THANK YOU! Let’s talk! • Come ﬁnd me during UX Y’all • LinkedIn: michelletchin • @soysaucechin bit.ly/decolonize-your-design-system