Kevin P. Lee (North Carolina Central University School of Law) has posted The Civil Rights Act in the Age of Generative AI, an Interim Report on SSRN. Here is the abstract:
As generative artificial intelligence (GAI) reshapes key aspects of society, it presents profound challenges to the civil rights protections enshrined in the Civil Rights Act of 1964. While the Act was designed to combat overt discrimination in domains such as employment, housing, public accommodations, and education, GAI introduces new forms of bias that are often opaque, scalable, and systemic. This paper explores the intersection of GAI and civil rights law, arguing that the current legal framework, though foundational, requires significant adaptation to address the unique challenges posed by automated decision-making systems. Drawing on critical race theory, human rights scholarship, and philosophical critiques of technology, the paper examines how GAI perpetuates and amplifies structural discrimination through algorithmic opacity and bias. It analyzes the limitations of Titles I-X of the Civil Rights Act in countering these challenges and identifies gaps in enforcement mechanisms that hinder accountability for AI-driven inequities.
The paper develops a threefold argument: first, it proposes a theoretical framework for understanding GAI as a new locus of power that disrupts traditional legal protections; second, it identifies specific reforms needed to strengthen civil rights protections, including expanding disparate impact provisions, mandating algorithmic transparency, and embedding accountability mechanisms in AI governance; and third, it underscores the necessity of grounding these reforms in the principles of dignity, recognition, and equity that underlie civil rights law.
By linking the ethical imperatives of civil rights to the technical realities of GAI, the paper calls for a reconceptualization of legal and regulatory frameworks to safeguard equity and justice in the digital age. It concludes by advocating for interdisciplinary collaboration and proactive legal reforms to ensure that GAI functions as a tool for advancing civil rights rather than a mechanism of exclusion and inequality.
