  Anthropographics are human-shaped visualizations that have primarily been
used within visualization research and data journalism to show humanitarian and
demographic data. However, anthropographics have typically been produced by a
small group of designers, researchers, and journalists, and most use
homogeneous representations of marginalized populations-representations that
might have problematic implications for how viewers perceive the people they
represent. In this paper, we use a critical lens to examine anthropographic
visualization practices in projects about marginalized populations. We present
critiques that identify three potential challenges related to the use of
anthropographics and highlight possible unintended consequences-namely (1)
creating homogeneous depictions of marginalized populations, (2) treating
marginalization as an inclusion criteria, and (3) insufficiently
contextualizing datasets about marginalization. Finally, we highlight
opportunities for anthropographics research, including the need to develop
techniques for representing demographic differences between marginalized
populations and for studies exploring other potential effects of
anthropographics.
