Helping to bridge the `Digital Divide'

As part of the University's ongoing celebration of Martin Luther King Jr., activists are working to bring the civil rights movement into the Digital Age. At the Greenfield Intercultural Center yesterday, five members of the Penn community spoke candidly in a panel discussion about the technological gap between poor rural and inner city areas and more affluent regions called "Bridging the Digital Divide." And according to the panelists, this gap is widening each day. "Martin Luther King wanted to bring the whole world together," said Pam Robinson, who is registrar for the Annenberg School of Communication and organizer of the event. "Can we really realize his dream when we have technology that is creating a schism between the haves and the have-nots?" "It's a question that has been confronting the African-American community for quite some time," Robinson said. Penntrex employee and event organizer Chris Cook agreed. "In many ways, the more interesting questions concern the lost opportunities for using these technologies for community organizing and social change," Cook said. Panelist and Communications Professor Oscar Gandy pointed out that "something has to explain the disparities [in available technology] besides income." And despite all other factors, that something, according to many in attendance, is an educational system in need of reform. "I see the digital divide as just another aspect of the educational divide," said Information Systems and Computing employee Steve Thompson. Panelist and ISC staff member James Gist noted that all public schools need to accept the fact that reading, writing and arithmetic need to be supplemented with technology. Panelists pointed to the difficulty that exists for most inner city and low-income families when it comes to buying a computer. "You won't see a Gateway store, or a CompUSA, or a Best Buy smack dab in the middle of an urban area," Engineering senior David Park said. He also noted that many organizations -- including Penn -- have storage rooms filled with older computers that are still technologically advanced enough for use by smaller community centers and schools. "[An old computer] has economic value that can be reused and recycled," Park said. While many inner city kids have cell phones and video games, Celeste Stewart said buying a cell phone and buying a computer are two very different things. "It's easier for me to buy a cell phone than it is... to walk in with $2,000... and buy a computer," she said. In addition, the kinds of relationships many e-mail users have just do not exist in certain areas where the majority of residents do not know anyone outside their own neighborhoods. "When you look at what kinds of relationships can be classified as information relationships, and how many people have those kinds of relationships, a lot of people drop off the list," Gandy said. Audience member and area resident Isabele Mappe remained optimistic, though, that once kids get exposed to computers, they will be hooked. "Once [kids] discover their peers are online... they'll find their way," she said.

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