25,000-member NYC Bar urges city to guarantee WiFi in homeless shelters

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In a letter, the New York City Bar Association urged Mayor Bill de Blasio and DSS Commissioner Steve Banks to establish broadband internet inside city shelters. Photo via nyc.gov

In a letter, the New York City Bar Association urged Mayor Bill de Blasio and DSS Commissioner Steve Banks to establish broadband internet inside city shelters. Photo via nyc.gov

By David Brand

An organization representing 25,000 New York City attorneys has joined a chorus of advocates urging the city to guarantee WiFi inside homeless shelters and bridge a digital divide exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In an Aug. 14 letter to Mayor Bill de Blasio and Department of Social Services Commissioner Steve Banks, the New York City Bar Association said limited internet service and substandard technology restrict access to school, work, remote medical appointments and job searches. 

A lack of reliable internet and internet-enabled devices also prevent people from finding and securing a home, especially with COVID-19 limitations on in-person apartment viewings, the bar association said.  

“Allowing the lack of access to remain unaddressed is unacceptable, especially as our communities continue to deal with the pandemic and access becomes an urgent issue of public health,” the letter states.

A total of 54,791 people — including more than 18,500 children — stayed in a Department of Homeless Services shelter on Aug. 20, according to the agency’s most recent daily census. Black and Latino New Yorkers make up the vast majority of shelter residents.

A lack of internet access has complicated classwork for children in shelters since the Department of Education closed school buildings and moved work online in March. 

The NYC Bar Association specifically recommends making reliable WiFi available to all shelter residents while providing internet-capable computers and tablets and BlueTooth printers. 

A lack of reliable internet access has driven a so-called “digital divide” in New York City and limited opportunities for low-income New Yorkers who cannot get online consistently.

Nearly half of New York City’s low-income households lack access to broadband internet, the city reported in January. In the Bronx, more than one-third of all residents lack at-home connectivity.  

In July, de Blasio committed to speeding up the city’s “Internet Master Plan” — a roadmap for expanding WiFi — by establishing broadband service in all public housing complexes by January 2022

“Accelerating universal broadband access will make our city healthier, safer, and more equal,” de Blasio said at the time.

The NYC Bar’s Social Welfare Committee praised the plan but said the initiative still leaves out thousands of people in need, particularly New Yorkers experiencing homelessness.

Access to technology is  “one essential service which could reduce the length of residents’ stay and facilitate their exit into permanent housing,” they said. 

“New York City has long been a leader in ensuring that its homeless residents have access to shelter, and these times demand that the City now lead the way in providing technology access to its shelter residents.”

A spokesperson for the Department of Homeless Services said the agency has partnered with other city officials, including the Department of Education, to expand access to the internet for shelter residents.

“Giving our families and children an opportunity to succeed has been our top priority from day one — and in these extraordinary times, this mission is more important than ever,” the spokesperson said. 

“From the start of this pandemic, DHS has worked closely with partner agencies, including the Department of Education, to bring LTE-enabled learning tablets to families in shelter citywide, and we remain committed to doing everything we can to increase internet access where we can, working with providers and Agency partners at every step of the way."