Black Intel

Two girls bridging the digital divide.

As I sit in a Starbucks sipping on some cool water trying to beat the heat, I am thinking about what I can possibly write to add to the collective at theblackintel. I remember times when I would go to a cafe to get some work completed and I would be the only Black person in the place with a laptop. I felt like a lone ranger. But its understandable why I always felt comfortable with a laptop by my side. Simply put I am a “GEEK” and proud of it! I had the opportunity to go to a school that provided computers for use starting in the first grade. Instead of playing on the playground waiting for my parents to pick me up, I would spend time in the computer lab playing Oregon Trail, Where in the World is Carmen San Diego and a graphics program whose name escapes me. I have been around computers all of my life my parents are both programmers.

Not everyone is born with the same opportunities that I have been blessed with. So its understandable why many of the times I would find myself in a cafe hell even many of my college courses and be one of few black faces I seen that knew their way around a pc. The other night I found myself in a grocery store buying some french bread to top of my dinner for the night. As I was leaving the store I noticed a kiosk which had a pc in it. As I walked closer I noticed that it was a computer for people to complete a job application. I thought to myself wow you need to learn how to use a computer just to fill out a job application these days. The world is moving at break neck speeds as it gears itself up for “The Technology Age.” I just hope that my brothers and sisters are ready for this change. When we are at a time when places like McDonald’s don’t even accept paper applications anymore its time for us to make sure that the digital divide is shortened before more people are left behind.

While people have their things to say about social networking sites like Myspace and og site Blackplanet if they weren’t used as a way to meet others you thought were attractive that you would never meet due to location they served as a way to get people on a computer. Some people even had to get familiar with html codes just in case they wanted to custom design their page/profile. If not for providing hours of entertainment from stories of my friends traveling to a location just to meet a girl who didn’t look anything like their profile picture it at least got my friends interested in the various uses for a computer other then accessing the Internet. In short social networking sites have helped to bridge the digital divide that was more prevalent at the beginning of the new millenium. As the world moves technologically forward we need to build on this momentum in order to keep up and keep current with our society. Technology isn’t just allowing us to do more its creating a world where location isn’t a factor. We need to build on this opportunity because I don’t see technology moving backwards anytime soon.

The coffee shop I am in now not only has me but there are three other black cats sitting tapping away at their keyboards. It seems like the number of people that can use a computer for uses other then a paper weight have gained in the Black community! This leaves a feeling of happiness in me to know that my people aren’t shunning the use of technology but are actually grasping and embracing it. Its 2009 and if you think that are society is plagued by social media networks, technology and the like you haven’t seen nothing yet. We are just in the infant stages of “The Technology Age.”

Bridging the Digital Divide!