Could you step away from the keyboard? This weekend,
Philly Tech Week (PTW) curator Tayyib Smith, in conjunction with
KEYSPOTS, asked the tech community and everyone else in the city to participate in a
41 hour digital fast beginning Saturday April 21 at 3 p.m. No computer. No email. No social media. No mobile apps (those participating in
Philly Startup Weekend get a fast pass). The fast ended when PTW began, with
breakfast on Monday (April 23) at 8 a.m.
Brandon Shockley, a content associate at
Mighty Engine, did his best to participate in the fast, but couldn't make it even a quarter of the way. "
I can't say I was successful, despite my best efforts. I cracked," reports Shockley. "The internet is habit forming. I made it about 7 hours, and then had to go back to the safety of my inbox."
Nearly half of Philadelphia lacks basic computer skills and internet access, according to Smith, who did make it through an internet free weekend in which he says he stopped himself 15 or 20 times from reaching for his phone and computer.
In the lead-up to Philly Tech Week, Smith, founder of
215mag and
Little Giant Creative, called attention "to the 41% of Philadelphians who still don’t have basic computer skills and Internet access, which essentially means a lack of basic opportunity." Smith curates this year’s Access and Policy track for Philly Tech Week.
"One of the biggest dangers to the people in our city who can’t communicate digitally is the risk of being underrepresented in media, government, and culture," says Smith, who notes that a new discourse is being developed, the language of programming, and it seems to him as if a monolithic group of people are explaining that language, disproportionately affecting minorities. "That’s why the first step is closing our city’s digital divide is raising awareness of this issue."
Smith hopes the fast will help publicize KEYSPOTS, an initiative of the Freedom Rings Partnership, that offers over 80 public computing sites where residents can get free internet access and training. "Do nothing and support our efforts," reads a banner on the website. Well, not totally nothing. In the next few days, Smith encourages connected people to spread the word about the fast via Facebook, Twitter and email. And then shut it all down.
Source: Tayyib Smith, Digital FAST, Brandon Shockley, Mighty Engine
Writer: Sue Spolan