Libraries Break Down Barriers for the Digitally Divided · Libraries Break Down Barriers for the...
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Jessamyn West librarian.net/talks/nyla18 #plsbreakbarriers Libraries Break Down Barriers for the Digitally Divided
Transcript of Libraries Break Down Barriers for the Digitally Divided · Libraries Break Down Barriers for the...
Jessamyn West librarian.net/talks/nyla18 #plsbreakbarriers
Libraries Break Down Barriers for the Digitally Divided
2This is a footer, so use it when you need it.
Sothanksforhavingme.IlovecomingtoNewYork.Andvisi:ngbig(ger)ci:eswheretechcanseemmorelikea(poten:ally)cooland
actuallyUSEFULthingandless(tosome)likeahos:leinvadersetondisrup:ngourwayoflife.I'mheretotalktoyouaboutthedigital
divide.Whatitisandhowlibrariesarecrucialtoovercomingit.I'mheretodothreethings
1. Talkaboutsomeofthecharacteris:csofthedigitallydividedandintroducetheideaofdigitalreadiness(orangecountyin2012)
2. Introduceyoutototheworkandtac:csofPhilAgreandbuildonsomeofit.
3. Openaconversa:onaboutwaysweaslibrarianscanmakethissitua:onbeNerwhichcanalsobeaframeworkforhowtothinkabout
thingsduringthisandotherconferences
AndIshouldmen:on:thesearemostlywhatwecallsoPskills.Hardtoquan:fy,"hightouch"qualita:velyreallyuseful.
Phil Agre's How to help someone use a computer
Computer people are fine human beings, but they do a lot of harm in the
ways they "help" other people with their computer problems.
“
Ifwasdoingthistalkin45secondsinsteadof45minutes,I'dsay"Thedigitaldivideisimportantbecause1.techisimportantforpersonal
andprofessionalreasonsespeciallyastheworldchangesanddigitallydividedpeoplegetlePbehind2.thepeoplewhoarebuildingalot
ofthetechnologyweuseare(some:mes,oPen)makingbadchoicesbecauseofthedigitaldivideandasaresulttheymakethingsworse
foreveryone.Notonpurpose,necessarily."
Librariansareusuallysomewherebetweenthefirstgroupofpeople(thedivided)andthesecond(thetechiesandprogrammers).I'dalsosay"ReadthislistofthingstoknowabouthowtoteachpeoplehowtousecomputersbyPhilAgre."ItwaswriNenin1996.It's
s:lltruetoday.Iusesomequotesfromitthroughoutthetalk.It'sgoodadvicebecauseit'snotjust"Holdthemouselikethis"butrather
"ThinkabouttheworldlikeTHIS"usefulforpeoplelikeusandwillplugintosomeotherthingsIamgoingtotalkabout.
It'ssortofhardto"show"thedigitaldivideandthisispartofthelargerproblem.Lotsofpicturesofbridges(anecdote:bookcover,
today'stopic).Librarianstendtounderstandtheissue—weseedigitallydividedpeopleinourpopula:onseveryday,buttheycanbea
liNleINvisibletothepeoplewhocreatethetechnologythatthedigitallydividedfolkshavetouse.Partofthedivideisthelackofoverlap
betweentech-richpartsofsocietyandtech-poorparts.Thiscanbeproximity,howfaryouarefromSiliconValley,butalso
demographically—age,class,race,gender.
20-somethingwhitemeninUSci:esarebuildingalotofthetechnologythateveryoneelseisusing.
(click)I'vetakentojusttellingstoriesaboutthepeopleIworkwith.ThisisJanet.They'reeverydaystoriesbuttheyplaybigonTwiNer
wheretechpeopleare.Iliketothinkthisishelping.ImetJanetthroughmyregulardrop-in:me,aprogramIdothroughalocaltechnical
highschool(youguyshaveteched?).Ihangoutinaroomonceaweekandpeopleinthecommunity(pop4500orso)comeintoask
ques:ons.I'vebeendoingitforthirteenyears.
It'ssortofhardto"show"thedigitaldivideandthisispartofthelargerproblem.Lotsofpicturesofbridges(anecdote:bookcover,
today'stopic).Librarianstendtounderstandtheissue—weseedigitallydividedpeopleinourpopula:onseveryday,buttheycanbea
liNleINvisibletothepeoplewhocreatethetechnologythatthedigitallydividedfolkshavetouse.Partofthedivideisthelackofoverlap
betweentech-richpartsofsocietyandtech-poorparts.Thiscanbeproximity,howfaryouarefromSiliconValley,butalso
demographically—age,class,race,gender.
20-somethingwhitemeninUSci:esarebuildingalotofthetechnologythateveryoneelseisusing.
(click)I'vetakentojusttellingstoriesaboutthepeopleIworkwith.ThisisJanet.They'reeverydaystoriesbuttheyplaybigonTwiNer
wheretechpeopleare.Iliketothinkthisishelping.ImetJanetthroughmyregulardrop-in:me,aprogramIdothroughalocaltechnical
highschool(youguyshaveteched?).Ihangoutinaroomonceaweekandpeopleinthecommunity(pop4500orso)comeintoask
ques:ons.I'vebeendoingitforthirteenyears.
It'ssortofhardto"show"thedigitaldivideandthisispartofthelargerproblem.Lotsofpicturesofbridges(anecdote:bookcover,
today'stopic).Librarianstendtounderstandtheissue—weseedigitallydividedpeopleinourpopula:onseveryday,buttheycanbea
liNleINvisibletothepeoplewhocreatethetechnologythatthedigitallydividedfolkshavetouse.Partofthedivideisthelackofoverlap
betweentech-richpartsofsocietyandtech-poorparts.Thiscanbeproximity,howfaryouarefromSiliconValley,butalso
demographically—age,class,race,gender.
20-somethingwhitemeninUSci:esarebuildingalotofthetechnologythateveryoneelseisusing.
(click)I'vetakentojusttellingstoriesaboutthepeopleIworkwith.ThisisJanet.They'reeverydaystoriesbuttheyplaybigonTwiNer
wheretechpeopleare.Iliketothinkthisishelping.ImetJanetthroughmyregulardrop-in:me,aprogramIdothroughalocaltechnical
highschool(youguyshaveteched?).Ihangoutinaroomonceaweekandpeopleinthecommunity(pop4500orso)comeintoask
ques:ons.I'vebeendoingitforthirteenyears.
It'ssortofhardto"show"thedigitaldivideandthisispartofthelargerproblem.Lotsofpicturesofbridges(anecdote:bookcover,
today'stopic).Librarianstendtounderstandtheissue—weseedigitallydividedpeopleinourpopula:onseveryday,buttheycanbea
liNleINvisibletothepeoplewhocreatethetechnologythatthedigitallydividedfolkshavetouse.Partofthedivideisthelackofoverlap
betweentech-richpartsofsocietyandtech-poorparts.Thiscanbeproximity,howfaryouarefromSiliconValley,butalso
demographically—age,class,race,gender.
20-somethingwhitemeninUSci:esarebuildingalotofthetechnologythateveryoneelseisusing.
(click)I'vetakentojusttellingstoriesaboutthepeopleIworkwith.ThisisJanet.They'reeverydaystoriesbuttheyplaybigonTwiNer
wheretechpeopleare.Iliketothinkthisishelping.ImetJanetthroughmyregulardrop-in:me,aprogramIdothroughalocaltechnical
highschool(youguyshaveteched?).Ihangoutinaroomonceaweekandpeopleinthecommunity(pop4500orso)comeintoask
ques:ons.I'vebeendoingitforthirteenyears.
Pew Research Center
13%13% of American adults do not use the internet at all.
Additionally, 9% of adults use the internet but not at home.
We'llstarthere.Thisisatruefact.What'sweirdisI'vebeendoingvariantsonthistalkforoveradecadeandthisnumberwhichwasa
liNleover20%usedtomoveanditdoesn'tanymore.Those13%arestayingput.
Whatdoesitmeantobeoffline?Whataretheoutlinesofthedigitaldivide?
Three (or more) digital divides
People couldn't afford computers or broadband.
Some still can't but libraries have filled that gap for most people.
Financial
Theideaofthedigitaldividesoundssimple,butitiscomplex.It'snotonethinganymore.Itwasandnowit'snot.Itusedtojustbe"Hey
computersareexpensiveandpeoplecan'taffordthem…"or"Gegngtheinternetisexpensiveandpeoplecan'taffordTHAT"But
realis:callynowintheUS97%ofourpopula:onshaveaccesstopubliclibraryservice.It'snotfixedbutit'smostlyamelioratedandhas
hadremediesthatwork.
Three (or more) digital divides
People couldn't afford computers or broadband.
Some still can't but libraries have filled that gap for most people.
FinancialWebsites are hard to use
and people have cognitive and physical
challenges that make this harder than it needs to be.
Usability
"Most user interfaces are terrible. When people make mistakes it's
usually the fault of the interface.
You've forgotten how many ways
you've learned to adapt to bad interfaces."
- Phil Agre
Secondly, there's the usability stuff or, as I like to call it in my facebook classes "let's learn where the tiny triangles are which hide all the stuff you want." Because seriously, this little triangle is dark blue on slightly lighter blue and it's 30-ish pixels on a 2000-ish pixel screen. That's a tough target. (click) The US healthcare debacle of a few years ago was a great example of this. Not only did people have to apply online, they were confronted with a terrible poorly-functioning website to do it. People got driven online, in droves, were forced to interact with this website and walked away thinking "Computers are hard" That is a failure on so many levels, and extra sad because it was untrue and avoidable. People who think they are bad at computers are often just having trouble with interfaces.We can help with this with our advocacy and our own good practices. Build good, tested, usable websites. Demand them from your vendors.
Three (or more) digital divides
People couldn't afford computers or broadband.
Some still can't but libraries have filled that gap for most people.
FinancialWebsites are hard to use
and people have cognitive and physical
challenges that make this harder than it needs to be.
Usability
"Most user interfaces are terrible. When people make mistakes it's
usually the fault of the interface.
You've forgotten how many ways
you've learned to adapt to bad interfaces."
- Phil Agre
Secondly, there's the usability stuff or, as I like to call it in my facebook classes "let's learn where the tiny triangles are which hide all the stuff you want." Because seriously, this little triangle is dark blue on slightly lighter blue and it's 30-ish pixels on a 2000-ish pixel screen. That's a tough target. (click) The US healthcare debacle of a few years ago was a great example of this. Not only did people have to apply online, they were confronted with a terrible poorly-functioning website to do it. People got driven online, in droves, were forced to interact with this website and walked away thinking "Computers are hard" That is a failure on so many levels, and extra sad because it was untrue and avoidable. People who think they are bad at computers are often just having trouble with interfaces.We can help with this with our advocacy and our own good practices. Build good, tested, usable websites. Demand them from your vendors.
Three (or more) digital divides
People couldn't afford computers or broadband.
Some still can't but libraries have filled that gap for most people.
FinancialWebsites are hard to use
and people have cognitive and physical
challenges that make this harder than it needs to be.
UsabilityPeople don't "see
themselves" in online spaces and don't see it as a place where they
belong.
Empowerment
And then there's empowerment. Offline people look at ads like these grinning white people all wrapped up in their own devices ignoring each other and say "That's not what I want. Why would someone think I want that?"A lot of people who are not fully online have … concerns. I used to moderate a giant online community, helped keep people from fighting with each other. The line I use about heavily online users is that they're online for a reason. Maybe they have a disabled family member they're caretaking for, maybe they are the disabled family member, maybe they're timeshifted, maybe they have agoraphobia, maybe they're an expat, maybe they have a small weird hobby or a kink. Understanding their lives can help you understand how to work with them when they struggle.The same is true for offline people. The 13%. They may have physical challenges but they may also have mental or emotional ones. Lack of energy for learning an all-new thing. Concerns over doing something wrong and wasting money or time. NOT LIKING TO FEEL STUPID. They're looking for more of a welcome mat and less of a "Hey have you tried Ubuntu?" approach.
Seriously "Try Ubuntu…"
SorememberJanet,theonewhoisorganizingthesquaredancingcampingspreadsheet?IgotthisfeedbackaPerItweetedabouther.
Andthisguyis…notwrong.Butwemightalsosay"notEVENwrong"becausehe'sgottherightsolu:onbutforthewrongproblem.
Whichisnotunusualinthetechworld.Butwe,librarians,canbecompassionatetowardshimwhiles:llnotinstallingUbuntuonJanet's
laptop.Unlessherproblemtosolveis"toomuchfree:meandadesiretolearnanewopera:ngsysteminher80s"inwhichcasego
Janet!
Three digital divides
People couldn't afford computers or broadband.
Some still can't but libraries have filled that gap for most people.
FinancialWebsites are hard to use
and people have cognitive and physical
challenges that make this harder than it needs to be.
UsabilityPeople are made to feel
unwelcome in online spaces or with UX
considerations and then figure "Why bother"?
Inclusion
Empowerment can also be inclusion. Or equity… These are different aspects of a similar issue. Often people, "computer people" to use Phil Agre's parlance, are looking for scalable solutions and they oversimplify the complexities of humanity into something that will fit into a checkbox or a database. Letting people fill in their own gender, using their own words, for example, is vastly preferable from a human standpoint, but difficult from a database standpoint (or a market research standpoint where your client is telling you "we need this split up by gender" and you're not deputized to explain genderfluidity to them). But how do you explain that to the digitally divided transgender kid who is faced with this choice? And that kid feels 1% or heck maybe 25% less likely to want to engage online because of it.
Credit: Garry Knight, on Flickr
"The digital divide hurts everyone"
Italkalotaboutsocialjus:ceandinequalityissues.Itrytobetac:calaswellastruthful.OneofthemessagesIfindhelpful,tac:cally,is
theideathatmanyins:tu:onalizedissues(poverty,racism,ableism,ageism,homophobiaandtransphobia)hurteveryone,notjustthe
peoplewhoarethe"targets"or"vic:ms"ofprejudiceandintolerance.Feminism,asamorestraighmorwardexample,canmakeamorepragma:ckindofsensetoawideraudiencewhenit'snotjustathing
forwomenbutathingforeveryonebecausetheideaofthepatriarchy—norma:vegenderstereotypes,toxicmasculinity,people
pressuredtofitsomesocietalno:onofgenderroles—isbadforpeopleofallgenders.
Sothisismymessageaboutthedigitaldivide:Ithurtseveryoneandworkingonithelpseveryone.WhenyoulistentoSadyFisherthis
aPernoonIsuspectshe'llbetalkingaboutmoreofthissortofequity.
Credit: Justice Ender on Flickr
Social model of disability
AndsowhenIthinkaboutremovingbarriers,some:mesIthinkaboutliteralones(ifsomeonecan'tuseatouchpadGIVETHEMA
MOUSE)butsome:mesthefigura:veones.
Aconstruc:onIfindhelpfuliswhatiscalledtheSocialModelofDisability(linksonthelinksheet).Whichiscontrastedtothemedical
modelofdisability.Thatis,thisguy'sissueisNOTthatheisusingawheelchairtogetaround,thatisjustafactabouthim.Thisguy's
problemisthatnoonemadethiswalkwayaccessibleinthesnow.It'sasocialproblemwhichneedsasocietalsolu:on.Notamedical
one(whereyoumightsay"weneedtoworktowardsasocietywhereeveryonecanwalk"whichisless-realis:candmoreobnoxious)
(click)andthereareposi:vemessageapproachesyoucanmake,likethisoneabouttheNYCMTA.Heyifyouputinanelevator,ithelps
alldifferentkindsofpeople.Thisencouragesmorebuyinanddecreasesthe"otherness"ofthedigitallydivided."You'renotbadat
computers.Computersarebadatworkingwithyou"
Credit: Justice Ender on Flickr
Social model of disability
AndsowhenIthinkaboutremovingbarriers,some:mesIthinkaboutliteralones(ifsomeonecan'tuseatouchpadGIVETHEMA
MOUSE)butsome:mesthefigura:veones.
Aconstruc:onIfindhelpfuliswhatiscalledtheSocialModelofDisability(linksonthelinksheet).Whichiscontrastedtothemedical
modelofdisability.Thatis,thisguy'sissueisNOTthatheisusingawheelchairtogetaround,thatisjustafactabouthim.Thisguy's
problemisthatnoonemadethiswalkwayaccessibleinthesnow.It'sasocialproblemwhichneedsasocietalsolu:on.Notamedical
one(whereyoumightsay"weneedtoworktowardsasocietywhereeveryonecanwalk"whichisless-realis:candmoreobnoxious)
(click)andthereareposi:vemessageapproachesyoucanmake,likethisoneabouttheNYCMTA.Heyifyouputinanelevator,ithelps
alldifferentkindsofpeople.Thisencouragesmorebuyinanddecreasesthe"otherness"ofthedigitallydivided."You'renotbadat
computers.Computersarebadatworkingwithyou"
Solookingatanothersocial-modelangle.Learningtechislikelearningtodrive.It'sathingmostpeoplecando.It'sathingmostpeople
do.Somepeoplecan't(money,health,access)andthereareworkaroundsforthem.Somepeoplewon'tandthosesameworkarounds
willworkforthem(andit'stheirchoice,notmine).BUT,nearlyeveryonewhomakesachoicenottodriveunderstandsthesocialcostsof
not-driving.(Chrisstory…)Peoplewhoareimpactedbythemedicalmodelofdisability,forexample,usuallyknowthat'shappening.The
sameisnottrueforpeoplewhoaredigitallydivided.
Theydon'tknowenoughabouttechnologytoknowtheyarebeingexcluded.ThecostsofremainingofflineareoPenhidden,oratleast
theyarerightupun:lyourtownfloodsandtheonlywaytointeractwiththegovernment'sFederalEmergencyManagementAgencyis
throughawebpage.Awkward.Weknowthisinthelibrarybecausewefrequentlyseethesepeoplestruggling.
IntheUSyoucanmaybegetasocialworkertohelpyouapplyforfoodstampsbutnotsomuchforcomple:nganonlineda:ngprofile.It
becomesasocialissue,people'slackofconnec:vity,whetherit'schoiceornotachoice.Itisolatesthem.
Phil Agre
A computer is a means to an end. The person you're helping probably
cares mostly about the end. This is reasonable.
“
Realis:cally,youandIviewcomputersastools.Digitally-dividedusersviewcomputersasobstacles.
What is needed?
Andthoseobstaclesfeellikeonestheycan'tscalethemselves.Pewlookedatofflinepopula:onsandaskedthemwhattheywouldneed
togetonline?Somedidn'tcareto,somedidn'twantto,somedidn'tknow(Iamhavingahard:methinkinghowthatconversa:onwent)
butmostwouldneedhelp.Theycan'tgetonlinealone.Asthedigitaldividehasbeenshrinkingthispieceofthepiegetsbigger.They
needhelp,theyneedourhelp.
Email is Internet 101. We need to get people to 202, fast.
WhenIwasinlibraryschool,myfavoritethingwashelpingpeoplelearntechnology.Ihelpedpeoplegetemailaccountsusingrocketmail
andmailexciteinthelatenine:es.IfiguredI'ddothatforafewyearsand…everyonewouldhaveemailandthenwecoulddealwith
moresophis:catedtopicslikeonlineprivacyorwhattodowhenEquifaxgetshackedandlosesthedataofmostoftheadultsinyour
country.IlaughathownaiveIwas.I'ms:llsigningpeopleupfortheirfirstemailaccountsin2018.Butpeoplemoveattheirownpace
andyoucanonlytrytomaketheironlineexperiencesengagingandposi:vesotheymightwanttohavemoreofthem.
Phil Agre
Your primary goal is not to solve their problem. Your primary goal is to help
them become one notch more capable of solving their problem on their own.
“
Becausethatiswhatwecanworkon.Ican'tmakeemailworkmuchbeNer(thoughIcanshowyouhowtoblockthoseannoyingads,
makethefontbiggerandmakeadistribu:onlist)Icanempower.Icaninclude.Helppeopleseethemselves.Helpthemfindtheirpeople.
Becauseinruralareasespecially,orforpeoplewhoareotherwiseisolatedfromtheirreal-lifecommuni:es,onlinespacesand
interac:onscanhelppeoplesolveproblems.Andhelpingpeoplesolvetheirownproblemscanhelpthembemoresociallyincluded,less
divided.
Hereareafewquickexamples.
Problems like…
shopping
SoIdon'tthinkanyofthesewillbetotallynoveltoyou,butIjustwanttorunsomeofthesedown.Ihelpsomeonelearntousea
computereveryweek.HerearetasksIhelpthemwith,barrierstheymaynotevenknowtheyhave,thatsolvetheirproblems.
Peoplewhoareofflinepaymoretobuythings(fewerdiscounts,moredifficultcomparisonshopping),aremoreatriskwhenbuying
things(gegnginacarinthewinter)andhavefewerchoiceswhenbuyingthings.
Problems like…
shopping working
Jobapplica:onsevenfor"offline"jobsareoPenonlineorrequireattheleastaresumeuploaded."Vocrehab"helppeopleretrainfrom
beingloggersorcarpenters.HelpingthemgetajobatHomeDepotislargelyjustteachingthemhowtofilloutapplica:ons.I'msureyou
seethesefolksinyourlibraries.Helpingpeoplewithcomputershelpsthemgettowork.
Problems like…
shopping working meeting people
Da:nghasmovedonline.Nowifyouareprimarilyanofflinepersonyoumightbelookingforanofflinepersonandyetmanysocialand
networkingopportuni:eseitherhappenen:relyonlineorarefacilitatedbytheonlineworld—facebook,socialmedia.It'simportant
whenwetalkabouttheseonlineengagementopportuni:estoexplainthatnotonlyisthishappening,muchofitisNORMATIVEnow.
Notyourthing?Fine.Butit'sanormalthing.It'simportanttosetthatexpecta:on.Ithelpspeoplebelessisolated."Youcouldsolvea
problemthisway"
Problems like…
shopping working meeting people civics
Andasthingsbecomenorma:ve,expecta:onsofhowpeopleareexpectedtointeractwiththeirgovernmentsarealsonorma:ve.When
ItalktolibrariansinMaine,forexample,theytalkabouthowonethingthatgetsdigitallydividedpeoplemo:vatedtogetonlineis
MooseLicenses.Havingsomethingappealingandmo:va:ngisalotbeNerthanhavingyourfirstonlineexperiencebewhenyourhouse
isunderwater.
Problems like…
shopping working meeting people civics learning
andthenwegetthingsthataren'tproblemsnecessarilybutmorelikeopportuni:es.Thereareatonofwayspeoplecanself-directedly
learnonlinefromKhanacademyorLynda.comorUniversalClasstomyfavoritelocalpas:me,watchingtractorenginesrunningand
learningtotunethemup.Researchisindica:ngthatmuchmoreofpeople'slearningwillbetakingplaceonline.
Problems like…
shopping working meeting people civics learning
Thislastone,though,thisiswherethingsaregoing.HowmanypeopleherehavelearnedathingbywatchingYouTubevideos?Ilearned
ukulele,Ilearnedhowtofixmycar'sbackseatwhichwasn'tfoldingdown,Ilearnedhowtoputmyhairinabun.Seriously.
Digital readiness
Skill Trust Use
+ =
digital readiness: whether people have the skills to use information technology, as well as the digital literacy tools to
help people determine whether the online information they access is trustworthy.
Thisisimportantforthelastpart,whatIsome:mescallthelastdivide:theconceptofdigitalreadiness.Withlots,many,most,learning
opportuni:esshiPingtoonlinespaces,peopleneeddigitalreadinesstotakeadvantageofotheropportuni:es.Weshouldunderstand
thisissue.Peopleneedskills(mouse,vision,reading)aswellastrust(trustintheirownabili:estodiscern,trustinthemselvesnotto
makemistakes)inordertobecomfortableandhappyempoweredpeople.Andthisistrickyinaneraofseriousbullshitanditsno
wonderpeoplehavetroublewiththispart.
Myjobasalibrarianin2018istohelpyoubedigitallyready,orhelpotherpeopletobe.Andthisislessaboutlearningtouseamouse
andmuchmoreaboutlearningtoteachyourselftheskillsyouneed.
library usage as indicator
Thegoodnewsis….Peoplewhoareusinglibrariesarepeoplewhoarealreadyprimedtousetheinternetforlearning.Wecanusethis
plamormtohelpthemusethelibrariestolearntotrust(orwhatnottotrust)
library usage as indicator
!!!
Thegoodnewsis….Peoplewhoareusinglibrariesarepeoplewhoarealreadyprimedtousetheinternetforlearning.Wecanusethis
plamormtohelpthemusethelibrariestolearntotrust(orwhatnottotrust)
Helpingpeopletrust,teachingthemtotrust,intheirownskills,intheirabili:estodiscerntherealfromthefake,thecrediblefromthe
fraudulent,withusandeventually…withoutus,iswherethenextstagesofdigitaldividemi:ga:onisgoing.
Thebadnewsis,people'strustisshaky,especiallylately(andespeciallyintheUS)
Everyone is part of it.
Andoneofthethingtheresearchpointsustoaboutdigitalreadinessanduptake(andthisistrueforclimbingoutofanumberofsocial
problemsgenerally,peoplejustoutofprison,domes:cviolencevic:ms,traumasurvivors)isthatthemoresuppor:vetheirENTIRE
NETWORKis,thebeNerofftheirabilitytogetoutoftheirbadsitua:ons.Nowlackofbroadband/connec:vityisnotnecessarilyabad
situa:onliketheseothers,butitdoesimposestructurallimita:onsonconnec:vity,inclusionandaccessthatweshouldbe,andare,
workingagainst.
Phil Agre
Take a long-term view. Who do users in this community get help from? If you focus on building that person's skills, the skills will diffuse to everyone else.
“
Sincewestoppedbeingaroomfullofbooks(thoughwearethat)we'vemovedmoretowardsbeingconduitsfordifferentthings.
Electronicinforma:on,skillbuilding,communitystewardship.Nowwe'regegngintoamorenebulousroleof,amongotherthings,
incen:vizingpar:cipa:on,calmingfears,andbecomingthetrustedsource/allyamongatonofpeoplewhoarejusttryingtosellyou
somethingorwhoaretellingyouthatyoudon'tbelong.
BecausetherearesomebarriersI'mnotinaposi:ontoremove—peoplewhoworryabouttheirci:zenshipstatus,orwhoheartheir
electedleaderstalkingsmackaboutthem,orwhohavehealthinstabilityandworryabouttheirfuturehealthcare—butIcan,usingthe
socialmodelofthedigitaldivide,explaintothemthatit'snottheirfault,thatit'stech'sjobtomeetthem,andit'stheirrighttoaskfor
beNerwebsites,beNeronlineexperiences,andbeNertreatment.
Ian Clark — Journal of Radical Librarianship
In the post-Snowden digital landscape there is an additional element to this skills divide to consider — the divide between those who can navigate the internet free from state and corporate oversight, and those who cannot.
“
Becausethedivide,especiallynow,isperniciousbecausepeoplewholacksavvinesswithintheirtechenvironmentareincreasingly
preyeduponbyit.Andifwewantourpatrons,andourselves,tobecomefullyrealizedhumanci:zens,weneedtogivethemasmany
toolsastheycanhandle,toachievecompetencyandcapacityforwhatcomesnext.
Thisisnotgiveapersonafish,thoughthatispartofit(thetech,thebroadband).
Thisisnotteachapersontofish,thoughthatispartofit(theskills,theprac:ce).
Thisishelpingsomeonenotbeafraidofthewater,showingthemagoodspotwherethefisharebi:ng,andguidingthemthroughtheir
firstfewfishingtrips.MaybeaskingthemhowitwentaPerwards.Inacomputerway.Digitalreadiness.
Thereisbeautyintechnology,notjustina"hotchips"waybutinthewayitcanbringustogether,helpuslearn,helpusbecomewhowe
wishtobe.
- Phil Agre
Knowledge lives in communities, not
individuals.
“
AsIsaidearlier,it'snotjust"Holdthemouselikethis"anymore.Thosemessageshavebeenintheaethersincewe'vehadmice(1984).
They'reimportantbutthey'renotenough.
Wenotonlygivepeopleaccesstotheinforma:ontheywant(andneed)butwealsoimproveandstrengthentheiraccesstotheir
communi:es.Andthatiswhathelpsimprovedigitalreadinessandhelppeoplebecomemorelike…themselves.Thedigitaldividehurts
everyone.Andthedigitaldivideisn'tpeoplenotknowingthings,it'sasocialproblem.Andlibrariesnotonlyhelpsociety,weAREsociety
(forbeNerorworse)andwecanhelpbreakdownbarriersforthedigitaldivided.
