Digital Redlining: The Relevance of 20th Century Housing Policy to 21st Century Broadband Access and Education

Abstract

Broadband is not equally accessible among students despite its increasing importance to education. We investigate the relationship between broadband and housing policy by joining two measures of broadband access with Depression-era redlining maps that classified neighborhoods based in part on racist and classist beliefs. We find that despite internet service provider self-reports of similar technological availability, broadband access generally decreases in tandem with historic neighborhood classification, with further heterogeneity by race/ethnicity and income. Our findings demonstrate how past federally-developed housing policies connect to the digital divide and should be considered in educational policies that require broadband for success.

Digital Worlds and Our Folding Realities: Implications for Qualitative Inquiry

“…While limited or no telecommunication infrastructure in rural areas has long been a concern for policy makers, low-income, Black and Brown families and individuals in urban or suburban neighborhoods also lack the economic resources to access the internet. Skinner et al (2021) explored the overlap between differential access to the internet and the much earlier public "redlining" policy, which highlights the association between the previous place-based discriminatory and segregation practices and the contemporary digital inequality beyond the urban/rural divide. Drawing on critical race theorists' conceptualization of "geography of opportunity" (de Souza Briggs, 2005;Green et al, 2017;Squires & Kubrin, 2005;Tate, 2008) and attending specifically to education, Skinner and co-authors (2021) noted that internet access is part of this spatial inequality and contributes to the unequal distribution of educational resources and opportunities.…”

Telehealth and Health Equity in Older Adults With Heart Failure: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association

“…87,88 For instance, due to structural racism, companies intentionally omitted some neighborhoods from broadband internet development, and these areas were charged higher costs for slower internet. 89 The structural and social determinants of health are critical to address within the health care setting (eg, screening for broadband or device needs among patients to connect them to existing services), and in partnership with other social service agencies, community organizations, telecommunication companies, and policymakers, as well. 90…”

Examining online education at tribal community colleges

“…This article explores challenges and potential opportunities for expanding online education at tribal colleges. Although online education helps support college access for marginalized student communities, Indigenous communities disproportionately face deficits in access to broadband services (Skinner et al, 2022) and students of color, generally, benefit from increased support in self-paced online courses and programs (Ortagus, 2018;Shea & Bidjerano, 2014).…”