A civil rights attorney filed the complaint this week on behalf of two Detroit residents. He says AT&T's business practices in Detroit and its surrounding suburbs amount to redlining -- denying services or raising prices based on the racial or ethnic makeup of an area.
The attorney, Daryl Parks, asks the Federal Communications Commission to hold an investigation and hearing and fine AT&T for violations of the Telecommunications Act and Communications Act.
Parks filed a similar complaint in August about internet access in Cleveland. He said he plans to file more FCC complaints about AT&T's business practice in other cities and states.
AT&T officials reject the claims. In a prepared statement, Joan Marsh, AT&T's chief regulatory and external affairs officer, said the company's "commitment to diversity and inclusion is unparalleled." She said "investment decisions are based on the cost of deployment and demand for our services."
The FCC complaints come at a time when the digital divide has captured the attention of policymakers and advocates. Internet access and speeds have grown in importance as more people turn to the internet for job searches, homework, health care and banking.
Earlier this month, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai spoke about how he'd like companies to receive tax breaks if they install high-speed internet in areas with limited or no connectivity.
Parks, who filed the two complaints to the FCC, said he's found the inequity of internet speeds striking, especially in major metropolitan areas like Cleveland and Detroit. In some parts of Cleveland, for example, he said some residents have sluggish speeds even though they live blocks from the Cleveland Clinic, a top-tier hospital system. He said the telecom giant could close that gap, if it chose to.
"There are some commodities we ensure people have," he said. "We don't give people inferior water service if they live in the wrong area. We don't give people inferior electric service if they're living in the wrong area."
Parks previously represented the family of Trayvon Martin, the black teen who was shot and killed by George Zimmerman in 2012, and the family of Michael Brown, the black teen shot and killed by police officer Darren Wilson in 2014.
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