It’s time to provide broadband access and connectivity for all South Carolinians

Since the COVID-19 pandemic spread to South Carolina, we’ve witnessed that when social distancing forces us apart, compassion defies distance.

But with the right tools opportunity can also defy distance.

The coronavirus has amplified a critical gap — and that is broadband access and connectivity throughout this state.

Unlike other crises we’ve faced, this pandemic has affected everyone particularly in underserved and remote areas. We are all now acutely aware of how access to the internet affects the quality of life. And with virtual access to learning and health care having been significantly accelerated over the past two months, one thing has become clear:

Broadband internet access is not a luxury anymore — it is a necessity.

Here are some stark facts:

▪ One in four South Carolina homes and businesses in rural areas lack internet speeds considered even minimally acceptable.

▪ There are 140,000 homes in South Carolina — representing nearly 500,000 people — that have no broadband internet access at all.

▪ There are more than 30,000 students across South Carolina who have not been accounted for since statewide school closures were implemented — because there is no remote or digital way to check in with them.

Prior to the pandemic thousands of jobs in South Carolina went unfilled because of a lack of ready, trained candidates. Now we have a truly unique chance to get tools into the hands of South Carolinians who have lost jobs, face transportation challenges or have never had access to higher education.

Now we can now empower them with opportunities to be trained, retrained or educated in the fields and industries that will determine South Carolina’s future.

As the world slowly emerges from this pandemic, we must recognize the new reality of our virtual society; access to broadband is access to knowledge — and no access to broadband is no access to knowledge.

We can’t make the most of South Carolina’s opportunities if we’re not able to connect to everyone in the state. We must do better. And we must do it differently.

Over the past several weeks we have been able to speak with elected officials from both sides of the aisle, and we are very heartened that there is bipartisan consensus across our delegation that we must fight for greater broadband access and connectivity in South Carolina.

We would like to see this same sense of commitment at the state level as the Accelerate SC team plans the reopening of South Carolina — and as our leaders determine how to effectively deploy nearly $2 billion in stimulus dollars.

Investing in broadband — including not only internet access but also broadband connection — will pay dividends for South Carolina that will go well beyond the actual dollars invested.

It will lead to genuine economic development for South Carolina, and new and meaningful opportunities for South Carolinians in education, training, health and entrepreneurship.

It’s time to move forward together with the broadband tools that will allow opportunity to defy distance.

James McLawhorn Jr. is CEO of the Columbia Urban League. Sara Fawcett is CEO of United Way of the Midlands.

This story was originally published May 8, 2020 at 12:30 PM.