There are 8 million people with blindness or low vision in the US. More than 4.23 million of them are working age, but only about half of that working-age population are employed. Employment rates for people with blindness or low vision have historically been much lower than for the general population. An overwhelming majority of jobs across all industries require digital skills. Assistive technologies such as screen readers, screen magnifiers and braille notetakers provide people who are blind or have low vision a chance to succeed in school and the workplace. But despite the abundance of assistive technology, people who don’t rely on it are typically unaware of how it’s being used at work and the challenges users experience with it. Digital content is sometimes technically accessible but unusable by people who use assistive technology. People who are blind or have low vision have been harder to place in jobs than people with other types of disabilities due to inaccessible company software. Although the Americans with Disabilities Act does not mention the digital environment explicitly, the Justice Department has taken the position that Title III of the ADA, which covers public accommodation for people with disabilities, applies to websites and mobile apps. Despite laws requiring and guidelines supporting an accessible digital environment, much if not most digital content is still not fully accessible.

[Michele McDonnall is a Research Professor of Rehabilitation Education and Research at Mississippi State University]

I’m currently enrolled in one of the first bachelor’s degree programs inside California prisons. The program is offered by California State University, Los Angeles, and the laptop is one of its perks. The students in my cohort—the program’s third, but the first to receive personal laptops—were all incarcerated at very young ages and sentenced to prison terms that reflect football scores. I’ve served 17 years of a 50-year-to-life sentence, and none of us foresaw living past our 18th birthdays, let alone attending university. But here we are, in our senior year of a communication studies degree. Sometimes, I walk out into the day room and sit at an available table to do my assignments. I set up my laptop, my MP3 player in my ears and my textbook in front of me. Sitting next to me is my cup of coffee. It’s a table for productivity. There, I’m the CEO of my education, my work, and my life, and I’m busy changing their course.People walk by and ask me what it’s like to have a laptop; they sit with me and ask about their college credits and talk about their aspirations to get into Cal State LA. It’s a conversation I invite, and in an odd way, it’s a reminder of the possibilities and opportunity that this place has. When I work on this borrowed computer in the day room, I can see a future, one I’ve never seen before, where I’m out there, in a coffee shop, working on a laptop of my own.

[Kunlyna Tauch is a Cambodian American storyteller who writes for Empowerment Avenue. Incarcerated at the age of 18, he has served 17 years and now writes about the more humanistic aspects of being incarcerated.]

We write in response to your testimony at the December 5, 2023, hearing held by the House Subcommittee on Communications and Technology titled, “Oversight of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).” Throughout the hearing, you provided troubling answers that suggested that the NTIA would permit rate regulation by states participating in the Broadband, Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program. These answers are concerning, as they suggest that the NTIA is administering this program in violation of the law. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which created the BEAD Program, explicitly prohibits the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information and the NTIA from “regulat[ing] the rates charged for broadband service.” Based on your testimony, it appears that you are planning to ignore this Congressional direction. Although your testimony reaffirmed that NTIA itself would not engage in rate regulation, you did not foreclose approval of state plans that regulated rates of broadband service. Indeed, when directly asked, “Will NTIA permit a state to rate regulate, yes or no,” you did not provide a yes or no answer and instead stated that NTIA would give states flexibility on how to approach this issue. This “flexibility” to pursue rate regulation is not only concerning, but is strictly prohibited. We ask that you confirm whether NTIA will approve state plans that include rate regulation, as defined in this letter. If NTIA plans to approve these plans, we also ask that you provide an explanation of why you and the Biden Administration are ignoring the IIJA. We look forward to your response no later than January 12, 2024. 

This report presents the main findings from the 2023 Statewide Survey on Broadband Adoption Survey. The main goal of the survey is to assess California’s progress towards closing the divide in broadband adoption, with particular focus on variations across different state regions and subpopulations of interest, in particular those defined as Covered Populations in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 (IIJA). Beyond the assessment of broadband adoption, the study covers a broad range of related topics, including whether residents connect using a computing device or a smartphone, the cost of broadband service, and the level of satisfaction with the contracted service. Further, the study probes into the impact of the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), a federal subsidy program established by the Digital Equity Act of 2021 (included in the IIJA) to lessen the affordability burden of broadband service for middle and low-income households. Finally, the study examines the patterns of adoption of telehealth services across Covered Populations.

Mayor Brandon Scott (D-Baltimore) announced FreeBmoreWiFi, a free, public WiFi network in the City of Baltimore, which will be implemented by the Office of Broadband and Digital Equity and funded by American Rescue Plan Act funds. The first locations that will be getting this free WiFi are Middle Branch Fitness and Wellness and the Solo Gibbs Recreation Center. The City aims to have the network up at all of Baltimore City's recreation centers by the end of 2024, with future expansion expected. "FreeBmoreWiFi is about more than internet access," says Baltimore City IT Director Todd Carter. "It's about inclusivity and helps residents leverage the power of technology for their benefit."

Generative Artificial Intelligence (gen AI) has already initiated a seismic shift in work and value creation. A recent McKinsey report identified up to $4.4 trillion in potential global economic impact from gen AI across functions and industries. With gen AI in its infancy, organizations are just beginning to understand the potential of applying it to their own goals. As often happens, the advent of a new technology can create or exacerbate divides, including the racial wealth gap. This article explores how gen AI may affect Black communities and Black workers. While the technology has the potential to widen the racial gap, it’s also possible to shepherd this new technology in an inclusive way that not only yields equitable benefits for Black and other marginalized communities, but also accelerates the closure of the racial gap.