Opening Remarks
“Blacks in America are having a conversation with the broader society and with government about the delivery of and access to basic essentials – from healthcare and education, to economic opportunity, justice, and democracy. As we’ll discuss on this and other panels today, access to technology is an important part of that conversation – because the lack of it is part of the problem, and increasing access to it is a critical part of the solution. Technology has an important role to play in ameliorating or disrupting the various forces that “divide” Black America from the rest of America. By having that conversation today, we hope to create awareness among our ICT-sector peers about the contributions being made by Black Americans to this industry. Perhaps most ambitiously, we want to inspire the next generation of Black Americans. This industry can only work for Black Americans when more Black Americans work for the industry – as business managers and executives, technologists, innovators, and yes, even lawyers. …”
— Rudy Brioche, VP and Policy Counsel, Comcast Corporation