The 2020 Census
Let’s work together to ensure that everyone is counted.
Policy Updates
By now, every single household across the country should have received multiple mailers with instructions on how to fill out the 2020 Census. Many community organizations are grappling with how to engage members and families as on-the-ground, door-to-door outreach and engagement strategies — that have proven to be effective in the past – have been halted or modified due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Phone calls, text messages, and media outreach strategies are now being used to get the word out. An accurate count is critical – this crisis underscores the need for policymakers to know who lives in each of our communities to plan for providing resources, especially during times of natural disasters, such as fires, and global health emergencies like the one we are experiencing today.
Check Your Local Response Rate
Use the 2020 Response Rate Map Tool to check the 2020 Census response rates by state, county, city, census tract, congressional district, city, town/township, and tribal community. As of July 19th, 2020, California’s response rate is just over 63%; let’s keep pushing to Get Out the Count!
Learn more with the resource tool kit we have compiled from national and state partners below, as well as the U.S. Census Bureau on reaching hard-to-count populations, including young children, children living with grandparents and communities of color. Please use these and share them with your networks to help Get Out the Count so that all communities, and especially those that are most vulnerable, get the services and supports they need now and in the future.
Thank you for all of your hard work in ensuring that California has a thorough and accurate 2020 Census count count – Let’s Keep Going!
Empowering Pacific Islander Communities (EPIC)
Empowering Pacific Islander Communities (EPIC), a national group based in Southern California, has created a series of PSAs (made with the support of Asian Americans Advancing Justice), to help support outreach to their community members, who are not always geographically concentrated. As such, they need your help in reaching members of the community, who may live in neighborhoods where your organization is already engaged. If you know or encounter community members who may be NHPI, please use and share the below resources, in their native languages, to support them to fill out the 2020 Census:
Marshallese PSA: https://youtu.be/9IdNG2f5kps
Samoan PSA: https://youtu.be/D-d_IXESvyw
Palauan PSA: https://youtu.be/H-3uWt2iLrQ
Tongan PSA: https://youtu.be/KmQmqj3PURE
Hashtags: #CountUsIn2020 #WhoWillWriteMyStory #PasifikaCount
myBlackCounts.org & The California Black Census and Redistricting Hub
Amid a nation in turmoil, uprising, and reflection, the 2020 Census continues to move forward. It represents a meaningful action the community can take to ensure everyone is counted for vital resources today and in the next decade. Community organizations around California have been working for over two years to plan, advocate, and engage policymakers and communities to ensure an accurate count in the 2020 Census. The “Hard-to-Count” populations include communities of color, immigrant populations, language isolated, at-risk or are homeless, people with disabilities, and young children; many communities face multiple factors that may make them less likely to be counted in the 2020 Census. The California Black Census and Redistricting Hub (aka The Black Hub) was formed to maximize participation in the 2020 Census amongst the Black community. California is home to the fifth largest black population in the country, representing over three million people and 8 percent of the state’s population.¹ The Black Hub has created myBlackCounts.org to provide centralized information and resources for community leaders and organizations interested in supporting census outreach efforts in the black community, check out their 2020 Census PSA’s on their Youtube channel.
Below is a list of social media posts to get the word out about the 2020 Census, focusing on the importance of reaching grandparents living with and caring for young children.
Grandparents and Young Children
Grandparents living with and caring for children are a critical population to reach in the 2020 Census outreach campaign. Nationwide, 2.7 million grandparents are raising grandchildren, and about 20% of those earn incomes that fall below the federal poverty line. Kids living with their grandparents had a 39% higher risk of being missed in the last census, and in California, more children are living with their grandparents than in any other state. Nearly half of all children living with their grandparents are under the age of six (47.1%), and adults are always not aware that you need to count every child, related or not, living in your home, including infants. Ensuring all children are counted will mean more resources for families and these resources will enable us to better meet their unique needs.
The following resources are compiled from the Count All Kids Campaign and First 5 Association.
Does your child or grandchild stay at your address some days? Count them on your Census form if they live with you most of the time! If you share custody of them 50/50, count them where they stay on April 1, 2020 . Learn more at 2020Census.gov. #2020Census #CaliforniaForAll
Grandparents, even if a child is living in your household temporarily, they should be counted in your #2020Census form if they have no other permanent home. #CountAllKids
When you count all children in the #2020Census, programs that support families—like health care, child care, WIC, and home visiting—get more of the funding they need. Respond now at my2020Census.gov. #CountAllKids #2020Census
Include any children living at your address on your Census form. When you do, you help ensure that our kids’ schools get the funding they need for the next 10 years. Learn more at 2020Census.gov. #2020Census #CaliforniaForAll
Hey Grandparents! When you complete your #2020Census form, remember that counting young children who live with you benefits kids by increasing funding for schools for the next decade – most of their childhood! #CountAllKids
Asian American and Pacific Islander Community
The following resources were compiled from Census Counts, Count Us In (Asian Americans Advancing Justice) and National Council of Asian Pacific Americans.
The census is critical for funding programs that help AAPI families and children thrive! This #APAHM, make sure to fill out the census today via phone, by mail or online at my2020census.gov #RootedInCommunity #RisingTogether #AAPI2020
Check out https://www.countusin2020.org/nhpi for Chamorro, Chuukese, Native Hawaiian, Marshallese, Samoan, and Tongan census resources! #CountUsIn #PasifikaCount #2020Census #AAPI2020
AANHPIs are not a monolith. Together this community is made up of people of nearly 50 ethnicities who speak more than a hundred languages. Fill out the #2020Census to make sure we are all seen and heard! www.my2020census.gov #CountUsIn #AAPI2020
FYI–if you don’t see a checkbox for your ethnicity on the #2020census, make sure to check “Other Asian” and then write in your ethnicity! (e.g: Hmong, Pakistani, Sikh) Take the Census now at www.my2020census.gov #CountUsIn #AAPI2020
The AANHPI community has lost of hundreds of thousands of dollars in government funding due to underrepresentation in the census. This year let’s band together and fill out the census. Let America know we’re here and we count. #CountUsIn2020
Black Community
The following resources are provided by National Urban League “Make Black Count”, Our Count (Color of Change) and My Black Counts.
Census data determines funding for schools, head start, free childcare programs, school lunches and child medical insurance. Participating in the #2020Census is critical for the future we want our children to see. Show them we care! Take the census now: #MyBlackCounts #KidsCountToo #BeintheCount http://bit.ly/My_2020census
13 million Californians use Medicaid and about two million of them are Black. Let’s make sure those nearly two million people and whoever may need Medicaid in the future are insured! Participate in the #2020census now! http://bit.ly/My_2020census #MyBlackCounts
What happens in the #2020Census will impact our communities for many years ahead. Be sure to tell your friends, community members & loved ones about the #census. Fill it out here Rightwards arrow http://bit.ly/My_2020census #MyBlackCounts #HouselessCountToo
Children under the age of 4 are most often left off of census collection data. This hurts our communities because we aren’t accurately counted. Make sure you count the babies when you fill out your census! http://bit.ly/My_2020census #BabiesCountToo #MyBlackCounts
As #OurCount in the #2020Census nears, we can’t forget that young Black children were undercounted in 2010. The census informs funding for programs like SNAP, CHIP, & Head Start. Spread the word now to ensure families know they must count their kids! www.OurCount.org
Latino Community
The following resources were compiled from by NALEO Education Fund Hagase Contar campaign, Inner City Struggle, and FIRM (Fair Immigration Reform Movement).
No importa dónde nació o su estado migratorio. Si vives en los EE. UU., Debes ser contado. ¡Haz que se escuche tu voz y llena el #Censo2020 HOY! #WeCount
Desde bebés hasta abuelos: ¡asegurémonos de que todos en el este sean contados en el censo 2020! #Elestecuenta #CuentaConmigo #WecountLA
¿Tu hijo o nieto vive en tu dirección? ¡Cuéntalo en tu formulario del Censo si vive contigo la mayoría del tiempo! Si compartes la custodia 50/50, cuéntalo donde se quedó el 1 de abril, 2020. Aprende más en 2020Census.gov/es. #2020Census #HagaseContar
Incluir a nuestros niños en el Censo resulta en más fondos para los programas que los ayudan—como el cuidado médico, las escuelas y el transporte público. Aprende más en 2020Census.gov/es. #2020Census #CountAllKids
Cuando cuentas a todos los niños en el Censo, los programas que ayudan a las familias—como el cuidado médico, el cuidado infantil, WIC, y las visitas a la casa—obtendrán más de los fondos que necesitan. Responde ahora en my2020census.gov. #CountAllKids #Census2020
General Resources
The following resources are provided by Census Counts, UWBA – Bay Area Counts, and I Will Harness.
The #2020Census will determine how our communities are represented in government and how over a trillion dollars in federal funds will be distributed to our hospitals, schools, and more each year. #BeCounted today to secure access to healthcare, education, and accurate representation for our communities. Visit becountednow.com @iwillharness https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=614606682737227
#BeCounted today. Fill out the #2020Census to secure healthcare, education, and accurate representation for our communities. Visit becountednow.com @iwillharness https://twitter.com/i/status/1276153172520771584
For decades, they have undercounted minority communities in the Census. We are seeing the disproportionate impact COVID-19 is having on these communities — from the funding of local hospitals to access to remote education. #BeCounted to keep ALL of our communities healthy and safe for the next decade. Take 10 minutes to take the #2020Census from home today at becountednow.com @iwillharness
Taking 10 minutes to fill out the #2020Census today will determine how many books, computers, meals, and other resources our schools can afford for the next 10 years. Don’t let those funds go elsewhere. #BeCounted today at becountednow.com @iwillharness
Your census response is private, protected and confidential. Respond to the #2020Census today knowing that your information can only be used to produce anonymous statistics & CANNOT be shared with your landlord, immigration or any other gov’t agency -> my2020census.gov
Additional Resources
We encourage you to follow the accounts below to stay up-to-date and re-post their content.
Past Updates
