Sunday Read: Covid-19 takes the spotlight away from the US Census

If not for the coronavirus pandemic and the anti-Asian hate spawned by it, the US Census currently underway would be the big story in the Asian American and Pacific Islander community.

When Census Day arrived, the official launch of the Constitutionally mandated tally, it was buried under the daily news about the rapid spread of the virus, number of cases and how many have died.

Because of the social and economic impact of the virus changing the way we go about our lives, the Census count has taken a back seat in the efforts by community groups to spread the word about how important the count is.

No one planned on a once-in-lifetime global pandemic. Years of planning of going out door-to-door went, well, out the door. Instead the community groups the Census was depending on for that personal touch have moved to other strategies to reach out. 

Telephone banking and text-a-thons have replaced door knocking. The cities hard-hit by the coronavirus like New York City have moved their advertising campaign for the subways to TV and online ads.

The Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus sent a letter Tuesday to the Census Bureau, urging it to pump up paid outreach advertising and address long wait times at census call centers, among other things

Typically, the door-to-door efforts have played a key role in remnding much of the public to fill out the questionnaire. But without extensive physical outreach, Democrats and voting rights advocates warn the result could be an undercount of populations that can’t be easily reached online — including low-income households, immigrant and minority communities and homeless individuals.

The AAPI communities made up largely of first-generation immigrants, have historically been difficult to count due an inherent distrust in government.

In Queens, NYC, which has a large AAPI population, just 1 in 4 people have so far completed the Census survey, so far, according to Chuck Park of the MinKwon Center for Community Action

“We are concerned the count will remain low due to illness in the family, loss of life, loss of income, loss of a job, and fear of losing one's home, which all make over-the-horizon thinking and civic participation ever the more daunting," said Annetta Seecharran, executive director of Chhaya Community Development Corporation,one of the community nonprofits reaching out to the New York City AAPI.

A study done by AAPI Data found that only 55 percent of Asian American said they were extremely, or very likely, to fill out the census form, compared to 69 percent of white respondents, 65 percent of Latino respondents and 64 percent of black respondents, respectively. 

That same study found that 41 percent of Asian Americans said they were concerned that the census would be used against them, compared to just 16 percent of white respondents.

Because the coronavirus has affected outreach, the Census Bureau has extended the response deadline from August 15 to Oct. 31. The Census plans to reactivate field offices June 1. 

Census Bureau Director Steven Dillingham and Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, whose department oversees the Census Bureau, said they are seeking approval from Congress to delay the deadline for delivering state population counts used for apportionment — the process of carving up congressional districts — from the end of this year to the end of April 2021.

The Census results will affect our political representation, the disbursement of $1.5 trillion of federal funds for our physical infrastructure, education, social services and health. The collected data will have impacts on our job opportunities, career advancement, housing and how we are valued and seen in the marketplace.

As of Saturday (April 25), slightly less than 53% of the households have answered the 12-question Census form online or by phone. A paper questionnaire will be mailed to those who haven't answered.

AAPIVote, which produced the accompanying videos, is also providing language assistance is available for some languages. The online questionnaire and telephone assistance are available in Spanish, Vietnamese, Korean, Russian, Arabic, Tagalog, Polish, French, Haitian Creole, Portuguese, and Japanese.

In addition, the nonprofit, one of several contracted with the Census to conduct outreach within the AAPI communities specifically, will launch a media advertising campaign working with over 175 local AAPI ethnic press across the country to promote census participation. This is to fill a gap that is left by the U.S. Census who is only advertising in certain markets in Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Japanese and Filipino ethnic press.

April 1 is Census Day; log-in, linkup and be counted

Today, April 1, is Census Day, officially launching the effort to count every person in the United States.

The tally mandated by the US Constitution has always been a difficult task but it is even trickier in today's environment of fear and uncertainty partially created by the conranavirus sweeping across the US and partially created by Donald Trump's racist rhetoric and policies  that gives bigots permission to openly express their racist beliefs. 

Many US residents -- especially in immigrant-dominated ethnic groups such as the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities -- suspect that their answers to the census count will be used against them, according to an Urban Institute survey released in February. 

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• Campaign directed at AAPI communities
• AAPI communities among the hardest to count
• A question of identity for Filipino Americans

The survey of 7,694 people conducted in December found that around one-third of adults are concerned that their answers to census questions will be shared with other agencies or used against them in some way.

“We’re conducting this census in a very challenging climate where there’s a great deal of mistrust in how answers are going to be used,” said Michael Karpman, a research associate at the Washington, D.C.-based institute.

Historically, Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities have been undercounted, resulting in missed federal funding for the states and counties in which they reside impacting their communities with the loss of programs that benefit schools, hospitals, local transportation, public works and more. 

“We want to remind everyone that participating in the Census is required by the government. We understand the concern on everyone’s mind to remain healthy and for that reason, it’s best to respond online, over the phone or by mail as soon as invitations are received,” said June Lim, demographic research project director for Advancing Justice-LA.

“Simply follow the instructions in your preferred language to answer the nine questions. Amongst other languages, you are able to complete the Census online or by phone in Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Tagalog, and Vietnamese," Lim advised. "The Census Bureau has printed visual language guides available in 59 language options and video guides to completing the Census online in 63 languages.”

The Urban Instittute survey found that more than two-thirds of respondents erroneously thought there will be a question about citizenship, despite a June Supreme Court ruling striking down that question. The census doesn't ask the immigration status of the respondents. Almost half of people in families including immigrants think their answers will be used to find people living in the country illegally, despite federal laws preventing such use.

The report also learned that despite the suspicion of the census, 69% of immigrants would take part in the dicennial headcount. That still leaves 31% would not likely respond to the questions asked by the Census and remain uncounted.

The Urban Institute survey correspond with an earlier survey done by the US Census Bureau that found among ethnic groups, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders were the most concerned about the possible misuse of the data collected by the census.

Community outreach efforts began in 2019 and will continue leading up to today, Census Day through August 14, 2020, when the count will be complete. The census was originally scheduled to be completed in July, but due to the coronavirus pandemic has been extended to end in August.

“We do want people to know that all responses that are given, no matter who you are, are protected by law. We cannot share information with any agency, not with immigration, not with law enforcement.," said Filipina American Ivy Daulo, the partnership specialist of the Census Bureau,. "We cannot share this information with landlords. This does not affect any benefits that a family may be receiving. We want to emphasize that again, all information that is given to the Census Bureau is protected by law.”

An in-language public service announcement available in approximately 20 Asian and Pacific Islander languages (including English) is set to debut in April along with digital flyers, posters, and user-generated content amplified through social media networks of local small businesses, faith-based organizations, community centers, and more.

“When you visit 2020census.gov you can type in the language like Tagalog or Ilocano on the top right. And you can find all the different types of language support that we offer. But we do have Tagalog support on the form, and also our internet option, as well as our phone option. They have live representatives that can also speak Tagalog.”

The Census Bureau also added material for Ilocano speakers, another dialect of the Philippines, which has eight major dialects but 170 in total.
For more information on the importance of Census 2020 outreach to the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities and other key facts and statistics, visit Count Us in 2020 – a Census resource hub hosted by the Asian American Advancing Justice affiliation, a collaboration of five leading organizations advocating for the civil and human rights of Asian Americans and other underserved communities to promote a fair and equitable society for all, together with Empowering Pacific Islander Communities, and their collective partners.