[New York News\Census 2020]
Jose Higuera Lopez, deputy director of CUNY’s Mexican Studies Institute: “The upcoming Census 2020 faces the great challenge of reaching out to traditionally undercounted populations. Among others, Latinx, Asian and Black communities have been historically undercounted in the census. It is crucial to take steps to inform these communities of the significance of being counted, and its impact on public policies and the allocation of resources for years to come.”
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This week Lehman College will launch its “Make the Bronx Count Campaign” this Wednesday.
April 1 may be more than five months away, but the Lehman College Community is already gearing up for Census Day 2020—that’s when the U.S. Census Bureau begins its once-a-decade population count that will determine how the federal government distributes more than $675 billion in federal funding to states and local communities, such as the Bronx.
As part of a broader effort by the Bronx 2020 Census Complete Count Committee to increase the number of residents participating in the Census next year, the College will launch its “Make the Bronx Count” campaign, an initiative that includes a series of community events, free and open to the public, where members of the College community and broader Bronx community can get their questions answered about the Census as well as apply for Census jobs—the Bureau currently has thousands of job openings across the country that it needs to fill in order to get an accurate a count as possible.
The first event, “Making Sense of the Census,” is scheduled for 11 a.m., Wednesday, Oct. 30, at the Monroe and Rose D. Lovinger Theatre on the College’s campus. Panelists include a representative from the U.S. Census Bureau, Maria E. Matos; Assemblyman Marcos A. Crespo; Jose Higuera Lopez, deputy director of CUNY’s Mexican Studies Institute; and Lehman sociology professor Jennifer Laird. While the event is free and open to the public, those interested in attending are encouraged to RSVP to [email protected], in order to ensure their seats as the event is expected to sell out.
“The U.S. Census is not solely a population count, it’s a population count that determines where, how, and to whom billions of dollars in federal funding is allocated and how congressional districts could be redrawn,” said Lehman College President Daniel Lemons, who will also be speaking at the event. “Lehman College’s Make the Bronx Count campaign seeks to inform not just our College community, but also the broader Bronx community, of which we are a part.”
That’s important in a county ranked No. 4 in New York State’s list of “hard-to-count” counties. Hard-to-count communities often include those with young children, and are composed of non-English speakers, racial and ethnic minorities, residents with low incomes, those who identify as LGBTQ, undocumented immigrants and community members experiencing homelessness, according to the Census Bureau.
“The upcoming Census 2020 faces the great challenge of reaching out to traditionally undercounted populations,” said López, one of the event’s panelists. “Among others, Latinx, Asian and Black communities have been historically undercounted in the census. It is crucial to take steps to inform these communities of the significance of being counted, and its impact on public policies and the allocation of resources for years to come.”
The panel will provide an overview of what the census is, why it’s important, how the government uses the information it collects and what the agency does to maintain respondents’ confidentiality—a known fear among hard-to-count communities. However, by law, the Census Bureau cannot release any identifiable information to anyone, including any government agency, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the FBI, CIA or the Department of Homeland Security. The information may only be used to produce statistics. It’s how those statistics are used that College officials want to drive home to Bronx residents and Lehman students alike.
“The census has a direct impact on our students and how they are represented in the House of Representatives, state legislature and city council,” said Elin Waring, interim dean of the Lehman College School of Natural and Social Sciences. “An undercount means that we end up underrepresented in those bodies. The census also helps us understand vital issues such as changes in the age makeup of the population so we know whether we need more elementary schools or more support services for the elderly. We also learn about the amount of homelessness and which neighborhoods are growing and which are shrinking which helps with planning services.”
In addition to federal funding, the population count may redraw congressional district lines, which are also based on county populations. New York could lose two congressional districts in 2020, according to a 2018 study conducted by Election Data Services, a political consulting firm specializing in redistricting, election administration and the analysis and presentation of census and political data.
“Making Sense of the Census” is the first of multiple Lehman College “Make the Bronx Count” campaign events. The Census Bureau representatives will return to campus Nov. 12 and Dec. 2 to recruit students and other College community members for census jobs. Other events will also be scheduled in the new year.
