Advocating for an accurate census is an act of faith. It is an affirmation of the God-given dignity and worth of every person. It is an important step toward making sure every individual has access to the social services they need and representation in the electoral process. Educating for and promoting an accurate census is one way we can act for justice in these challenging times.
Most households received their invitation to respond to the 2020 Census in March. 48.1% of households have already responded to the 2020 Census. That means 51.9% of our current population have not yet completed the 2020 Census. Our primary interest and responsibility as people of faith to make certain everyone is safely and accurately counted.
Here is how you and your congregation can help.
1. The best way for people to respond is still online. Please encourage your congregations, if able, to respond online following the instructions via the form they received in the mail. If someone wants to reply and hasn’t received anything in the mail, they can go online and complete the census. 1. Folks can also fill out the census on the phone. More detailed information on filling out the census is available here with information in 13 languages. ( full link: https://2020census.gov/en/ways-to-respond.html
2. Host a zoom tutorial on filling out the census. The National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) has some helpful guidance in English (here) (full link: https://hagasecontar.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Census-form-instructions-NEF-03092020-Final-1.pdf) and Spanish here (full link: https://hagasecontar.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Census-form-instructions-NEF-SPAN-Final-3-26-20.pdf) You can host your own “how to” webinar, town hall, or Facebook/Instagram Live sessions to review the form with your congregations.
3. Join with us in advocating for transparency in the 2020 Census count. (full link: https://p2a.co/SICvfUy) As we move forward, the Census must be agile and flexible, committing to new ways of counting hard to reach populations. COVID highlights the very need to make sure that we count every person in every community. Since the Administration has been less than forthright in their management of the census thus far, we are calling on Congress to take an aggressive oversight role. This advocacy can be done by emailing, calling, or writing your member of Congress. You can also write an opinion piece calling for a fair and accurate count.
There is still time to complete your census questionnaire if you have not already done so. You can respond using one of three options: online, by phone, or by mail.