The above maps, created by students at Jordan High School, suggest the patchwork nature of digital access across LA-area schools and homes. Some students attend classrooms with 5 or more computers ‘wired’ to the Internet, while other students study in classrooms that have no computers. Some students log onto personal e-mail accounts from home, while other students must, in the words of Roosevelt High’s, Armando Soriano "scramble" to locate computers for use within their community. As is the case throughout the nation, students in Los Angeles’ low-income communities of color have less access to the Internet than students in predominantly White and affluent areas.

This issue of Teaching to Change LA argues that these differences matter. We take exception to the view set forth by Michael Powell, Bush’s Chairman of the Federal Communication Commission, that the "Digital Divide" is much like the "Mercedes Divide"—an inevitable and benign feature of our consumer economy. Computer access is not a luxury item. Rather, it is a precondition for educational opportunity and democracy in 21st century Los Angeles.

Parents and students alike recognize the importance of computer access to educational opportunity. Emma Street, a parent at Hosler Middle School, reasons that since "everything is being computerized," the city has an "obligation to see that all [its] children" are prepared for the "technological age." Dorsey High 11th grader Genell Denise Price, views computers as an essential tool for fulfilling her college preparatory curriculum.

Wired schools do not, by themselves, insure educational opportunity or meaningful civic life. Parents, students, and educators must advocate for the democratic use of computers. For Lynwood community liaison Mary Johnson, this means that computers housed at public schools should be available for use by parents and students. According to the Community Coalition’s Eva Castillo, students need to use the web as part of their political education, including learning how politicians and city departments are, and are not, serving the needs of the local community. For UCLA's Jane Margolis, young men and young women, of all races and classes, must have the opportunity to "invent, design, and create" computer technology. Such a digital democracy promises a better future for all of Los Angeles. As Carmen Gómez, a fourth grader at Inglewood’s Woodworth Elementary puts it, "Eso es mi sueño."

Digital Divide Summit On June 7th, 150 students and ten parents from nine Los Angeles area schools attended Teaching to Change LA's Digital Divide Summit. Representatives from each school made a short presentation offering their definition of the "Digital Divide" and suggestions on how to bridge this divide. Additionally, a panel of community members and researchers answered questions posed to them by the summit participants.