Why the Underfunded 2020 Census Is a Civil Rights Issue
The census is in a quandary at the level of the horn . The ten-year census, which is conducted once every ten years for the size of the American population, is severely underfunded. And what if it is underfunded? Many people don’t get counted, so they don’t get what they need, including hospitals, schools, roads, emergency services, health care, social services – the census figures are the starting point for allocating more than $ 600 billion. federal funding every year.
The census should not be political, just as redistribution of districts (which depends on the number of censuses) should not be political. And yet it is clear that this is the case – the party may well want to freeze the census of money in order to deliberately underestimate certain groups of the population, such as minorities, immigrants or people with low incomes.
Robert Shapiro, who oversaw the 2000 census when he was undersecretary of commerce for economic affairs, said: “There is consensus criticism of the accuracy of the 2020 census. Whether deliberately or not, this administration and the Department of Commerce seem determined to allocate insufficient funds to conduct an accurate census. Everyone who has come across this understands that this is exactly what is happening. “
So what can we do? I spoke with a couple of census experts to get a citizen’s guide to getting the census back on track.
Call your representatives
Necessarily. You probably already knew about this, but: contact your representatives now and ask them to make sure that the funds allocated for the 2020 census are sufficient.
Connect with Civil and Immigrant Rights Groups
Insufficient funding for the census means that the outreach and advertising efforts that needed to start earlier this year have stalled. Without a major push to inform people about the census and warn them that it is nearing zero, “hard-to-count” communities – minorities, immigrants, low-income people and people living in so-called “subtle” or unconventional housing – miss …
Shapiro said, “The best way to fight back [is] to contact major civil and minority rights organizations and say, ‘You have to pressure members of Congress to provide sufficient funding.’ I watched the decade census and know how the right pressure can affect members of Congress. “
You can and should write to your congressman, but it is more effective if the Civil and Human Rights Leadership Conference or UnidosUS gets involved . These groups are already doing ongoing advocacy and will know what their members can best do to help.
Meet Your Regional Census Office
Terry Anne Lowenthal, who was director of human resources for the House of Representatives Subcommittee on Census and Population from 1987 to 1994 and on President Obama’s 2008 and 2009 census transition team, says: “Establish lines of communication between civic leaders in your community and in your region. census bureau. “
Not sure where your regional census is located? This is how it is . Note that there are six regional census offices; at the moment, the game should be 12.
Call your mayor
Shapiro notes: “The other people who need to be activated are the mayors of large cities in almost every district in the country. Most of these cities are home to significant numbers of Hispanics and African Americans [and other] minorities, and these mayors will have nominated people for the census. ”
The business community also has a strong interest in an accurate census – Target doesn’t want to misplace a new store based on erroneous population numbers. So if you are a member of the National Association of Realtors , please contact us. In fact, most civic, business and advocacy groups are interested in an accurate census.
Meet LUCA
Lowenthal, an expert on all census matters and now advising the Governance Conference, says: “Make sure your jurisdiction (ie city, county, etc.) is participating in the Census Address Update or LUCA program that has already started … already, either directly or through the state. “
So what is LUCA? Lowenthal says: “This is the leading group (to use the hurricane analogy) in preparing the fields for the census. It provides state, local and tribal governments with the ability to verify their neighborhood addresses under strict confidentiality laws — an accurate list of addresses and accompanying maps are the backbone of a good census. If, when the census begins, the address is not on the main address file, not only can the census miss [these people], the Census Bureau will not know what passed them. LUCA is the cornerstone of a good census. “
In July, all state, local and tribal governments were eligible for the LUCA program and have until December 15th to register and assign their LUCA relationship.
So how do you know? Call your mayor, county governor, your governor. Continue your investigation. Lowenthal says: “If you work for a community organization that works with populations that are harder to quantify, ask how you can help, especially with housing for poor visibility.”
Get the word
Lowenthal says: “Help educate your community about the importance of a good census through letters to the editor or a column in the guest newspaper, and through newsletters from organizations (churches, social societies, etc.).”
Lobby of the new director of the Census Bureau
John Thompson, the former director, abruptly resigned at the end of June and the position was not filled, leaving only the acting director in the office. Lowenthal says: “Write to your senators and ask them to convince the president to quickly appoint a qualified, experienced and impartial census director and confirm this candidate if he / she really meets the requirements for the position.” Lowenthal notes that timing is of the essence: in 2018, the Census Bureau will begin field trials of new methods to ensure accurate counts. Without a sufficiently experienced person at the helm, these tests may be delayed or insufficiently reliable.
Create and participate in your CCC
Does your jurisdiction have a full account committee? If not, start. “Call on the highest elected official in your municipality, county or state to establish a full accountability committee by early 2018 and help ensure that the full range of public interests is represented on the committee, including faith, philanthropy, business, and industry. , communities of color, immigrants and ‘linguistic minorities’, children, the elderly, people with disabilities, veterans, low-income families, etc., ”says Lowenthal. The Census Bureau works with these state and local governments to help them set up these committees and provide useful reference material. There is currently insufficient funding for these partnerships, but state and local governments can act on their own.
The good news is that most people want a good census because they at least want their own communities to be accurately counted. And the new poll also shows that the public is in favor of eradicating politically motivated fraud based on census data. Americans may be more enlightened about the census than their counterparts.