Lawyers’ Committee and NDIA vow to press the case forward and close a digital divide that disproportionately harms Black and Brown communities
Last week, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled that a lawsuit can move forward challenging the Trump administration’s termination of a key program under the Digital Equity Act. The ruling comes in light of the government’s concession that it will — as a result of the lawsuit — reinstate the multi-billion dollar grant program intended to bridge the digital divide for underserved communities. At the same time, the court concluded that a provision in the Act that includes “racial or ethnic minority groups” among its covered populations was unconstitutional, making the Act’s goal to include historically underserved communities harder to achieve.
The Digital Equity Act is a $2.75 billion program created to help close the digital divide – the gap in access to technology critical for access and opportunity in education, the economy, and beyond – which historically has a disproportionate impact on Black and Brown communities. The grant program at issue provides funding to nonprofit organizations and government entities to advance this work. Although Congress appropriated funds for this purpose, the administration overstepped its authority, unilaterally terminating the program in its entirety. In October of last year, the Lawyers’ Committee filed suit on behalf of the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) challenging this grant program’s termination, which was just one of many examples of the administration’s hostility to grants and programs it believes are related to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
By rejecting the administration’s attempt to dismiss the case, the decision allows the fight to continue to reinstate the Competitive Grant Program consistent with Congress’ intent to bridge the digital divide for historically underserved communities, which, as a result of the lawsuit, the government committed to the Court that it would do. If reinstated, it could deliver over $1 billion in funding to close the digital divide, which disproportionately harms Black and Brown communities and impacts millions of people nationwide, who have been without equitable and affordable access to broadband and digital support and, hence, have essentially been cut off from jobs, healthcare, housing, and education they need to function.
But by striking down the provision that would best ensure that Black and Brown communities were included and not excluded from this effort, the court made it more difficult to close the digital divide as Congress intended.
Damon Hewitt, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, said, “There’s a reason the late Congressman John Lewis characterized access to the internet as ‘the civil rights issue of the 21st century.’ The digital divide isn’t just a technology gap, it’s a civil rights issue. Without meaningful access to technology, people across the country are cut off from healthcare, education, jobs, housing, and social services. These are lifelines for millions of Americans leaving veterans, people with disabilities, rural, low-income and disproportionately Black and Brown communities further behind in a race that is often stacked against them.
“Yesterday’s decision keeps alive the fight to restore more than $1 billion in funding that Congress enacted to close that divide, and that matters. But we disagree with the portion of the ruling striking down the provision that would have made this work more impactful. There is nothing unconstitutional about Congress passing bipartisan legislation to close the digital divide that racial and ethnic groups, which includes many Black and Brown communities, disproportionately experience in our country. A race-conscious policy that redresses real harm is lawful and constitutional. Striking these words from the statute will not make racial disparities disappear, it will only make them harder to address. The Lawyers’ Committee will continue this fight, in this case and beyond, because the communities we serve cannot be left on the wrong side of the digital divide.”
Gillian Cassell-Stiga, senior counsel at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, said, “We are deeply disappointed that the court has struck a statutory provision specifically intended to ensure that Black and Brown communities are served by digital access programs. The racial contours of the digital divide are real and must be addressed. We will continue to press this case, and we will continue fighting until every community is connected.”
Angela Siefer, executive director at the National Digital Inclusion Alliance, said, “We believe that inclusion is neither illegal nor unconstitutional. This is why NDIA will continue to do what we have always done: fight for a future of full inclusion, ensuring that digital equity is a reality for all. We are proud to have pushed to keep the Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program alive. This crucial program provides communities across the country not just with access or technology, but the skills, confidence, and pathways necessary to fully participate and thrive in our digital age.
“Yesterday’s ruling comes amid ongoing attacks on efforts to close the digital divide. In 2025 the Lawyers’ Committee filed an amici brief at the U.S. Supreme Court in support of the FCC’s Universal Service Fund – a $4 billion subsidy program which supports broadband infrastructure and Internet access for underserved communities, schools, libraries, and health providers. The Lawyers’ Committee recognizes delivering on the mandate for universal service requires addressing racial disparities. Black and Brown communities will be left behind in the race to invest in AI and digital technologies without these critical equity programs designed to address historic barriers to inclusion.”
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About the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law: Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, formed in 1963 at the request of President John F. Kennedy to mobilize the nation’s leading lawyers as agents for change in the Civil Rights Movement. Today, the Lawyers’ Committee uses legal advocacy to achieve racial justice, fighting inside and outside the courts to ensure that Black people and other people of color have the voice, opportunity, and power to make the promises of our democracy real.
About NDIA: The National Digital Inclusion Alliance advances digital equity by supporting community programs and equipping policymakers to act. Working collaboratively with a community of more than 2,000 Affiliates, NDIA combines grassroots community engagement with technical knowledge, research, and coalition building to advocate on behalf of people working in their communities for digital equity. For more information, visit digitalinclusion.org.
