The Leadership Conference’s Center for Civil Rights and Technology Denounces Trump’s Rollback of Digital Equity Act

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: [email protected]

WASHINGTON — Alejandra Montoya-Boyer, senior director of The Leadership Conference’s Center for Civil Rights and Technology, issued the following statement in response to President Donald Trump’s announcement that he intends to end $2.75 billion in Digital Equity Act grant funding: 

“At a time when access to high quality, affordable internet is essential to attaining good-paying jobs, quality health care, educational and economic opportunities, and so many more critical goods and services, the last thing any president should do is cancel a program that helps individuals across the country get connected.

“By ending the lawful and bipartisan Digital Equity Act passed by Congress, President Donald Trump and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick are abandoning their responsibility to the more than 24 million people who lack access to quality broadband in the United States, including veterans, people who live in rural areas and on tribal lands, communities of color, and low-income individuals. Digital equity means that everyone has equal access to the technology they need to thrive.

“Instead, this administration appears poised to twist broadband funding into a $20 billion-dollar giveaway for Elon Musk’s Starlink, offering communities internet that is neither affordable nor reliable. Members of Congress should be deeply alarmed that their authority is being undermined yet again.”

The Center for Civil Rights and Technology (Center) is a joint project of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and The Leadership Conference Education Fund. The Center, launched in September 2023, serves as a one-of-its-kind hub for advocacy, education, and research at the intersection of civil rights and technology policy.

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 240 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.

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