Voice assistants now explain and show their support for the Black Lives Matter movement when you ask questions like “Do Black lives matter?” or “Do all lives matter?”
Apple’s Siri and Google’s Assistant both share support for the movement, according to CNBC.
If you ask Siri, “Hey Siri, do Black lives matter?” she says, “Yes, Black lives matter,” followed by a link to BlackLivesMatter.com. Asking Google Assistant the same question gives you the answer: “Black lives matter. Black people deserve the same freedoms afforded to everyone in this country, and recognizing the injustice they face is the step towards fixing it.”
Microsoft’s Cortana responds to “Do Black lives matter?” with “Yes. And Black Lives Matter is an important movement that’s shaping a national conversation about racism.”
These prompts follow weeks-long, worldwide protests sparked by the killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor by police officers.
The Black Lives Matter movement has gained traction and support over the last week, but not without the “all lives matter” rebuttal.
The voice assistants have a response to that, though. When asked that question, Siri says, “‘All lives matter’ is often used in response to the phrase ‘Black lives matter,’ but it does not represent the same concerns. To learn more about the Black Lives Matter human rights movement, visit BlackLivesMatter.com.”
Google’s response to “all lives matter” is “Saying ‘Black lives matter’ doesn’t mean that all lives don’t. It means Black lives are at risk in ways others are not.”
Asking “Do all lives matter?” to Cortana prompts a Wikipedia entry about the slogan that’s now associated with the criticism of the Black Lives Matter movement.
If you ask Amazon Alexa these questions, you will pretty much get the same answer for both.
“Black lives matter. I think people deserve the be treated with fairness, dignity, and respect,” and, “I think everyone deserves to be treated with fairness, dignity, and respect,” Alexa says as a response.
CNBC reports that Apple and Google’s updates were made within the last week, and Microsoft’s responses have reportedly been included for several years. Digital Trends reached out to Amazon to find out when their voice assistant answers were updated to respond to those questions. We will update this story when we hear back.
