A photograph from California exemplifying the “digital divide” as millions of school students head back into the virtual classroom has been going viral.
Two little girls were pictured sitting cross-legged on the sidewalk outside a Salinas Valley Taco Bell, accessing the eatery’s free WiFi to do their school work. The photo has reignited a debate about access to technology.
![Two children outside a Taco Bell in Salinas, Calif., using the free WiFi to do schoolwork. (Courtesy of Luis Alejo/Twitter)](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimg.theepochtimes.com%2Fassets%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F09%2F04%2FTaco-Bell-WiFi.jpg&w=1200&q=75)
“Every student from preschool through college should have free access to reliable WiFi, especially now,” she continued, posing a question to her followers: “What can we do as a community to pull together for students who need something as simple as WiFi in order to succeed?”
The photo depicts the girls sitting together on the sidewalk facing two Taco Bell servers, who have exited the eatery to investigate; one stands, while the other has squatted down to meet the young students at eye level.
![(Illustration - George Sheldon/Shutterstock)](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimg.theepochtimes.com%2Fassets%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F09%2F05%2FIllustration0.jpg&w=1200&q=75)
He also explained that there are thousands of other kids in the community who face this predicament. “In Salinas, there’s a lot of homes and a lot of parents who don’t even know how to use computers or how hotspots work,” he continued.
However, the girls in the photo were quickly identified by the Salinas City Elementary School District (SCESD), and a solution was forthcoming; they were both gifted hotspots and shown how to use them, allowing them to attend classroom instructions from their home.
Richard Gebin, SCESD’s public relations officer, claimed that the district is in “full distance learning mode” and has distributed a grand total of 8,245 Chromebooks and 1,500 hotspots to date, with an additional 2,500 hotspots waiting to be sent.
In her post, she also urged others to “reach out to their community and help students in your area.”
![(Illustration - Brian A Jackson/Shutterstock)](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimg.theepochtimes.com%2Fassets%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F09%2F05%2FIllustration1.jpg&w=1200&q=75)
According to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for matters related to information and communication technologies, an estimate of 46.7 percent of the global population was living without an internet connection at the end of 2019.
![(Illustration - Andrey_Popov/Shutterstock)](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimg.theepochtimes.com%2Fassets%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F09%2F05%2FIllustration2.jpg&w=1200&q=75)
“Technology is so critical and we cannot view it as a luxury,” Alejo implored, speaking to CNN; “it’s a necessity of life, it should be seen as a utility like water, electricity, and gas.”