US Census: Make Black Count

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 Make Black Count! was adopted as the slogan in 1970 and remains the rallying cry as we prepare for the 2020 Census campaign. Why is this rally cry still significant today?

• Because 50 years later, the Black population remains undercounted in the decennial census and underserved in the United States of America.
   
• Because billions of dollars in federal funds for housing, education, transportation, and healthcare to the Black community are lost each year due to the Black undercount in the once a decade census.
   
• Because Black and Brown children are undercounted by the Census at more than twice the rate of white children, denying our neighborhoods and communities their fair share of resources to meet the needs of our children.
   
• Because the mass incarceration of Black men in America is nothing more than prison-based gerrymandering designed to suppress the Black vote and rob our communities of fair political representation in the halls of Congress, as provided by the U.S. Constitution.
   
• Because the 2020 Census is less than a year away, and communities of color live in a more hostile and divided America than ever, that diminishes the importance of Census participation due to public fear and distrust of the government.
   
• Because not participating in the census affects the Black population for generations, not just a decade--from the lifetime appointments of federal judges who do not reflect our interests, to the United States Electoral College whose purpose is to elect the President and Vice President of the United States.

We are a strong, resilient people who will not be marginalized and erased from this country by not participating in the 2020 Census. 

The United States is a big, complicated place with a political, demographic, and economic landscape that is evolving so rapidly. As a country, we must pause to take stock each 10 years to answer the questions: who are we as a nation, where do we reside, and what are the essential demographic elements that define us as a people, (i.e., race, ethnicity, gender, age, etc.). The US Census is mandated by our Constitution and is the foundation of our democracy built around the concept of fair and equitable political representation and, as we evolve as a nation, civil rights protections under the law; housing, voting rights, education, among them.

This year, March 2020, most people residing in the United States will receive a postcard from the U.S. Census Bureau directing them to complete their 2020 Census form online. This will be the first internet-based Census in our country’s history. Although, the internet based form is the preferred method for Census participation, both telephone response and paper questionnaires remain available options for persons without internet access. 

The first deadline for submitting completed Census forms is on Census Day, April 1, 2020.