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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Caitlin Cassidy

‘I felt I had no choice’: why Deborah did her schoolwork using the shopping centre wifi

Deborah Botende
Deborah Botende, 26, often had to walk to the library to use computers and find reliable internet access. Photograph: Jamila Filippone

A Westfield shopping centre isn’t an obvious place to get homework done. But for Deborah Botende, it was one of her only options.

Botende grew up in foster care in Brisbane and had no internet access at home. Throughout high school, she would stay back after her retail shift to use the shopping centre’s wifi – completing her schoolwork on a secondhand laptop.

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