Libraries Support Lifeline as Important Step on the Path to Digital Equity

When Benjamin Franklin created the first lending library in America almost three hundred years ago, he established an institution committed to letting loose the transformational power of knowledge. To this day, public libraries stand committed to the principle that information should be available to all, regardless of where you live, how much you earn, or when you were born. Increasingly libraries provide some of that information online, through free access to e-books, original documents like the New York Public Library’s high-definition scan of Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence, and even software that you can borrow virtually through the Kansas City Public Library. All of these efforts depend on affordable, accessible Internet service. The recently announced Lifeline reforms will provide support to low-income individuals who struggle to balance an Internet subscription with other monthly necessities. This home broadband access is a crucial step toward bridging the digital divide.