Tony Wilhelm, previously at the Tomas Rivera Policy Institute and now with the Benton Foundation, recently noted that "while more Latinos are now using the Internet, the gap between Latino users and the general population is dramatically increasing." In short we are losing the battle to provide access to the Internet for Latinos.

Recent legislation and foundations have begun to provide resources for schools and libraries to begin and continue work in communities across the United States. The impact of these resources in bridging the digital divide needs to be closely monitored and evaluated.

REFORMA's contribution to ALA's Goal 2000 is an important step in working together with the American Library Association. This kind of work needs to be extended by working with other policy advocates such as the Benton Foundation, the Libraries of the Future and others. Collaborating with policy and research entities like the Tomas Rivera Policy Institute at Claremont and the Center for Virtual Research at UC Riverside can also extend it.

Lillian Castillo-Speed, a REFORMISTA from UC Berkeley, recently remarked that we need to think about Latinos and the Internet in much the same way we thought about the development of Latino collections. We need to make sure that we have the books on the shelf and that we have the proper delivery system to access those books. There is a need to make sure new digital books on Latinos are being generated and placed in new digital libraries and we need to promote the development of relevant tools. Gary Lawrence, a library administrator within the University of California, noted that many of our old tools need reworking. He noted that now is the time for diversification of tools and the promotion of diverse efforts. REFORMA has rich resources to contribute to these areas, including the work of the Information Technology Committee, the National Reforma Website Virtual Work Team, and the work of many of its members.

The social aspects of these new technologies are crying out for dialog. For example, when we speak of "cookies", "agents" and "bots" we need to consider, Whose agents are they anyway? And what information will they gather and how might they increase the risk for already at-risk populations like undocumented workers?

And then quickly approaching is digital television with all of its promises and problems. Who will have access? What are the possibilities? Will there be a public digital educational channel? Will this new medium serve as a vehicle to integrate other digital services?

Because of REFORMA's unique position as a national organization that is involved with literacy, information, libraries and underserved populations, it is important for REFORMA to develop an Information Policy Agenda that would represent the organization's position with respect to these issues. Carlos Rodriguez, Chair of Information Technology Committee, has generously made time for a beginning discussion at the REFORMA ITC Committee to be held in New Orleans.