National LGBTQ Task Force: Everyone Deserves to be Counted in the 2020 Census

Yesterday, the Trump administration stated it is adding a citizenship question to the 2020 Census.

Washington, DC, March 27, 2018: The following statement can be attributed to Rea Carey, Executive Director, National LGBTQ Task Force:

The announcement last night that the Trump administration is adding a citizenship question to the 2020 Census is another methodical step in its attempt to silence immigrants and cast them into the shadows. The Census is a constitutionally-mandated process that directs billions of dollars in federal funds and determines our representation in Congress. If a citizenship question is added to the form it will do irreparable harm to the core concept of a fair and accurate 2020 Census count. The Census Bureau's own research concluded that adding this untested question will cause depressed response rates. That is the opposite of what we need. Everyone in America – immigrant, LGBTQ, urban, homeless, etc. – deserves to be counted.  The Census impacts everything from the boundaries of our school districts to the enforcement of our civil rights; we can't afford the consequences of this decision.

The National LGBTQ Task Force works to secure full freedom, justice, equality, and equity for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people. For over forty years, we have been at the forefront of the social justice movement by training thousands of organizers and advocating for change at the federal, state, and local level. www.thetaskforce.org