Christian Carlos. Peninsula 360 Press [P360P].
The new SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus causing COVID-19 disease - first reported, according to scientific research, in the central Wuhan region of China - forced the World Health Organization (WHO) to set the start of the COVID-19 pandemic for March 11, 2020.
Since then, governments in different parts of the world established new health safety measures that, to date, have changed people's habits; in addition to biosecurity measures, people were urged to stay at home and work remotely, that is, to assume a scheme of teleworking and online classes.
However, it was not until the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic confinement that the lack of access to the Internet and information and communication technologies increased because most families now had to move their lifestyles to the comfort of their homes in such a short period of time.
The quarantine brought to light the first digital parity issues; for example, how many people in a household can be connected to the Internet at the same time, how many Internet-capable devices exist in a household, and how many of them are capable of performing tasks efficiently that were previously done in structured workplaces, such as an office, or school in classrooms.
For this reason, Ethnic Media Servicesheld an informative session to address current issues and seek possible solutions to the growing digital divide.
Angela Siefer, executive director of the National Alliance for Digital Inclusion, said that the new public policies on digital issues should take advantage of the context to promote an agenda where broadband Internet is considered a basic part of the communications infrastructure in the U.S. She urged the local population to approach their governors because, she said, they should already have information and budgets from the U.S. rescue fund due to the COVID-19 pandemic that was approved during the first half of 2021. "It's about people having access to the Internet in their homes," Siefer said.
Sunne Wright McPeak, president and CEO of the California Emerging Technology Fund (CETF), said that the fund is working to ensure that broadband Internet access is considered a fundamental human right, since it is linked to the right to access information, as stated by the United Nations (UN).
"However, in addition to being considered a fundamental human right, it should also be considered a civil right," said Wright, who said that while the infrastructure in the state of California is adequate, not everyone has access to it or knows how to use it. "The digital divide is also a product of an economic and opportunity divide." Sunne Wright McPeak indicated that this divide ponders a "systemic racism." She concluded by asserting that "no Internet Service Provider (ISP) is a trusted messenger," regarding the move toward social Internet connectivity.
Finally, it was highlighted that 91 percent of the Californian population is already using broadband Internet, compared to 2008 figures, when only 51 percent of the population had access; however, only 6 percent of the current population can connect through a smartphone and does not have another device to connect to the Internet. This exceeds the goal set for 2022, where a target of 90 percent was set.
In contrast, the CETF noted that 1 in 4 people of Latino origin do not have the ability to access the Internet or their access is very limited compared to other ethnic groups. In addition, it was noted that 23 percent of households that generate less than $20,000 per year have been without an Internet connection for an extended period of time and consider residential broadband Internet access to be too costly, above other reasons, such as privacy concerns.
