Opinion: Wi-Fi Isn’t a Luxury

Every step we need to take to get out of the shelter system involves using the internet to access information apply for jobs and submit rental applications You might think shelters would provide us with a Wi-Fi connection You d be wrong Wi-Fi hotspots William Alatriste for the New York City Council How a multitude of times in the current era have you used the internet Maybe you sent an email detected directions paid for the subway or talked to a medical professional In the internet isn t a luxury it s how we access our everyday lives The internet may feel universal but not everyone enjoys equal access While the New York City Council and state ruling body have worked to expand internet access people living in the New York City shelter system like us are still left out Every step we need to take to get out of the shelter system involves using the internet to access guidance apply for jobs and submit rental applications You might think shelters would provide us with a Wi-Fi connection You d be wrong function d u ac var s d createElement 'script' s type 'text javascript' s src 'https a omappapi com app js api min js' s async true s dataset user u s dataset campaign ac d getElementsByTagName 'head' appendChild s document 'u kmqsczew vunxutxmd' Last month the New York City Council passed a requirement for the city to develop an Internet Master Plan to achieve low-cost access to broadband internet in homes throughout the city But what about the hundreds of thousands of people like us who don t have homes People sleep every night in shelters that don t provide internet connectivity The city s omission of our requirements is a glaring disservice at a moment when New York s homelessness situation is only getting worse When you re choosing between groceries and a cellular plan personal internet access isn t a given and that makes rebuilding your life nearly impossible Finding a job submitting housing applications communicating with legal services or applying for benefits all require going online So do telehealth appointments online coursework and banking managing bills all of which are essential information for a stable life Coalition for the Homeless estimates that percent of shelters for adults lack Wi-Fi based on records collected from its monitoring of the Department of Homeless Services shelter system Without Wi-Fi people experiencing homelessness are forced to movement and pay for insecure inhabitants networks unsuitable for telehealth or legal matters VOCAL-NY and Takeroot Justice surveyed the shelter system to understand how homeless New Yorkers access the internet and the findings from their Wi-Fi for All analysis were disheartening Only percent of surveyed single-adult shelters had computer rooms and nearly percent of those included restrictions such as time limits too sparse machines restricted hours and privacy concerns In shelters that do provide Wi-Fi percent of those attempting to access it on their personal devices disclosed issues including a slow inconsistent infrastructure limited coverage areas outages and monitoring concerns When people who live in shelters are not able to reliably access the internet the consequences can be devastating Of those surveyed in Wi-Fi for All a lack of internet access caused percent to lose housing opportunities percent to miss job opportunities percent to experience healthcare disruptions and percent to miss court dates Lack of access can be isolating preventing communication with friends and family or life-threatening for those who rely on anatomical devices that require an internet connection like heart monitors The concern isn t limited to the city Gov Kathy Hochul has invested more than billion to transform the state s digital infrastructure and expand access to reliable affordable high-speed internet through the ConnectAll project Although the activity notes that providing Wi-Fi in shelters and homeless provision facilities is critical for connecting people who do not have access to a home broadband connection shelters have been left out of the funding equation This discrepancy is a major injustice to the thousands of people like us who live in shelters State lawmakers should respond by passing A S which would guarantee statewide Wi-Fi in temporary housing using the ConnectAll funding stream The consequences of limited internet access for an already vulnerable population are severe and entirely avoidable Both the City s Internet Master Plan and the State s ConnectAll project fail to address the demands of people living in shelters throughout our state creating impediments for people like us to exit homelessness New York must act to require building-wide internet in every shelter with minimum speeds for video and uploads access in rooms and common areas and privacy protections Bringing Wi-Fi into shelters isn t just about connecting people to the web it s about opening pathways out of homelessness for the people who need it the the greater part Troy Walker is a member of the Coalition for the Homeless Client Advisory Group Reynaldo Medina is a member of VOCAL-NY s Homelessness Union The post Opinion Wi-Fi Isn t a Luxury appeared first on City Limits