To: The United States House of Representatives and The United States Senate
Don't let Trump rig the Census!
We rely on the U.S. Census so our government can fairly represent all of us -- and so government agencies can base their decisions on data and facts.
We can’t allow a politically motivated question about citizenship skew the results of the 2020 Census, or intimidate any American -- citizen or not -- out of speaking up to be counted.
Why is this important?
Donald Trump's White House is attempting to undermine the accuracy of the 2020 Census, limit representation for communities of color, and politicize it for its own partisan gain. The Trump administration just announced that they will add a question about citizenship, which will skew the results of the 2020 Census, and intimidate any American -- citizen or not -- out of speaking up to be counted.
They've already dramatically underfunded this crucial survey, and are now trying to put a professor working to defend North Carolina's racial gerrymandering in charge of it. Now, they're stepping up their efforts. We must speak out NOW to stop them from rigging the Census.
The Census is supposed to count everyone who lives in the United States regardless of citizenship status -- and this unnecessary question could discourage people from completing the survey and skew the final count. And if that happens, it'd turbo-charge gerrymandering and make our district lines even more unfair than they already are.
The 2020 Census will shape our nation's democracy, public policy and economy for a decade -- and getting it right is absolutely crucial. We already know that people of color, particularly Black and Latino communities in both urban and rural areas, are at an especially high risk of being undercounted by the Census. This change would only exacerbate that worrying trend.
That's why we must speak out NOW to demand that Congress prevent this deliberate attempt to rig the Census to undercount communities of color. Tell your members of Congress to oppose any legislation and/or moves by the Census Bureau to add a question on citizenship or immigration status.