Digital Inclusion and Equity in 2021
In the society that we all live in today, digital inclusion and digital equity have never been more prevalent. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic nothing in our lives have been the same. Life as we know it was seemingly instantaneously shifted from in person to living through a computer. For many upper and middle class Americans this switch was more of an inconvenience than an issue. However, what is easy to forget at a time like this is that not everyone in our society is digitally included, digitally equal, and digitally literate. Lower class and inner city families have been having a hard time for years to gain equal access to physical hard technology. This is still a huge problem but as New York state senator Kevin Parker states in an interview with New York 1 Spectrum News, it is still an issue of accessing the technologies but more now inequality in access to high speed broadband that is becoming the biggest issue. Children across New York and all over the country are facing an issue of not being able to actually get online and do their schoolwork for lack of high speed internet. Taking this fact into consideration, digital inclusion is at an all time low. Without complete digital inclusion, in today’s world children will be unable to receive a fair education and parents will be unable to fully provide for their children depending on their careers. This also is an issue of digital equity in that lower class citizens all over are unable to fully participate in our society, democracy, and economy. Without broadband internet access these days it is difficult to be completely included in societal and democratical activities which is just another ethical issue that can easily be seen in today’s society in the terms of technological inclusion and equity.
When looking to solve these issues, there are several strategies that different cities are using in order to achieve success in bridging the gap. On a corporate level, companies such as Verizon and Spectrum have started up different initiatives on how to get children the necessary devices needed and the necessary high speed broadband needed to succeed in schools. As for citywide, Minneapolis has an entire page on their website dedicated to digital inclusion. This page provides some essential information on where to find some free resources and opportunities for lower class families to get the internet connection and devices they need. This page provides links on locations for public computers as well as how to get low cost computers and internet resources. There are also interactive maps on where to find low cost internet resources and wireless hotspot free internet access locations. At the bottom of this page are links to libraries and computer labs and different resources to improve digital inclusion. Not only is the city of Minneapolis striving to accomplish goals but so have many other cities across the nation. They are reaching for these goals that have been set to close the digital divide and improve the quality of technological well being across the city.
RESOURCES
Bridging the digital divide. (n.d.). Retrieved March 02, 2021, from https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/in-focus-shows/2021/02/21/bridging-the-digital-divide#
Digital Inclusion. (2020, April 24). Retrieved from http://www2.minneapolismn.gov/it/inclusion/index.htm
