Are Google's doodles racist and sexist? Campaigners call for more diversity in search engine's choice of people

I always thought that they were just a lot of nonsense  -- JR

Activists have accused Google of being racist and sexist in their choice of figures to create the firm's much loved Google Doodles for.

Spark, which describes itself as a 'girl-fueled activist movement', said its analysis found the majority of Google's doodles were of white males.

It said the accolade was the modern equivalent of being put on a stamp, and said 'it’s uncommon for Google to celebrate historical women of color.'

In 1998, before the company was even incorporated, the concept of the doodle was born when Google founders Larry and Sergey played with the corporate logo to indicate their attendance at the Burning Man festival in the Nevada desert.

They placed a stick figure drawing behind the 2nd 'o' in the word, Google, and the revised logo was intended as a comical message to Google users that the founders were 'out of office.'

While the first doodle was relatively simple, the idea of decorating the company logo to celebrate notable events was born.

Google Doodles range from drawings and animations to full games that replace the Google logo on holidays or birthdays of historical figures.

Sometimes the Doodles are seen worldwide, but mostly they’re reserved for the country in which the holiday or individual is best known, as was the case with Hurston—her Doodle was only visible on Google’s U.S. homepage.

Spark also said there hasn’t been a single Asian, Latina, or indigenous woman featured in a Global Doodle as of February 2014.

'We’re demanding that Google make a concerted effort to change such a blatant imbalance.

'We want them to acknowledge the problem, but we also want more: we want Google to publicly commit to improving these numbers.'

'Google Doodles may seem lighthearted, especially when accompanied by quirky games and animation, but in reality they have emerged as a new manifestation of who we value as a society, a sign of who “matters.”

Google said it already is working to improve the doodle gender balance.

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