New Yorkers can submit public comment until August 7th
NEW YORK, NY - Today, the New York Counts 2020 coalition held a press call to provide an update on efforts to combat the Trump administration’s attempt to add a citizenship question to the 2020 Census. The New York Counts 2020 Coalition is comprised of more than eighty organizations engaged in litigation, community outreach, education, and advocacy.
The Attorney General is suing the administration, and last week a federal judge denied the Trump administration’s request to dismiss New York v. Department of Commerce, thus allowing the lawsuit to move forward.
On June 6th, the New York Immigration Coalition filed a related federal lawsuit in the Southern District of New York in conjunction with the ACLU and four other immigrant rights groups. The suit challenges the Trump administration’s plan to include a citizenship question on the 2020 census, by adding an intentional discrimination claim.
The public can submit comments to the Federal Registry here to oppose the question until August 7th.
“New York’s 4.4 million immigrants will be counted regardless of Trump’s attempts to keep us down. New Yorkers are not going to lose a dime or our voices to D.C.” said Steven Choi, Executive Director of the New York Immigration Coalition.
“As we’ve argued, the Trump administration’s plan to demand citizenship status as part of the Census is unlawful – and it would potentially cause a huge undercount that would threaten billions in federal funds and New York’s fair representation in Congress and the Electoral College,” said New York Attorney General Barbara D. Underwood. “I’m proud to lead the coalition of Attorneys General, cities and localities, and the bipartisan U.S. Conference of Mayors in this suit. We won’t stop fighting to ensure that the federal government fulfills its responsibility of a full and fair Census.”
“The limited record produced so far confirms what we've known all along: Adding a citizenship question to the citizenship question isn't about getting an accurate count of citizens and it certainly isn't about better Voting Rights Act enforcement. It's a badly disguised effort to marginalize immigrants of color and their communities by diminishing their political representation and fair share of public resources. New Yorkers continue to stand firmly against this act of intentional discrimination,” said Perry Grossman, Senior Staff Attorney at NYCLU Voting Rights Project.
“We need to knock this untested question off the Census survey. Otherwise, it will depress response rates and reduce the accuracy of what we know about ourselves and our communities. The census is a pillar of our democracy and if we get it wrong it will distort political power and the funding of our communities for the next decade,” said Shamier Settle, co-chair of New York Counts 2020 Communications Committee; Policy Analyst, Fiscal Policy Institute.
“Right now, the Census Bureau is holding a public comment period―asking for our feedback on whether or not the citizenship question should be added to the Census. We must encourage people to submit a comment. We’ve created an infographic to make it easier for people to understand the Census and are translating it into different languages. This is our chance to have our voices heard,” said Christine Zhuang, co-chair of New York Counts 2020 Communications Committee; Communications Manager, Charles B. Wang Community Health Clinic.
"This administration does little to hide its intention to make all Latino immigrants vanish. Every undocumented immigrant is a priority for deportation; every documented immigrant who commits a minor infraction is under threat of deportation; and even naturalized citizens are subject to reopening their grant of citizenship. Inserting an unnecessary and untested citizenshipquestion into the decennial census at this late date is obviously part of the strategy to make us disappear. And it undermines the American value of inclusivity, setting the country back by decades. It has to end here,” said Jorge Vasquez, Associate Counsel at LatinoJustice PRLDEF.
"An accurate census ensures our state and democracy are working as it should. The citizenship question is a purely politically motivated barrier designed to reduce response rates that will disproportionately affect immigrant communities. An undercount in the 2020 Census could mean the loss of billions in federal funding for the public schools, hospitals, and housing services immigrant communities need, and MinKwon will do everything in its power, working with our allies and partners, to ensure the government conducts the 2020 Census fairly and our community members are counted." said John Park, Executive Director of MinKwon Center for Community Action.
"The citizenship question will hit the low-income immigrant communities of New York the hardest. These communities endure factors and attitudes beyond their control, are underserved and already face many barriers to opportunities. The question will adversely affect their participation in the census which in turn will result into diminished resources and opportunities for them that place them on the fringes of society." said Rajju Malla-Dhakal, Executive Director of BACDYS.
"54% of Chinatown residents are foreign born. Many will be reluctant or afraid to answer a questionnaire that asks are 'Are you a U.S. citizen?'. We will end up with an inaccurate count of the number of residents living in our community. The citizenship question does not belong in the decennial census questionnaire" said Mae Lee, Executive Director of the Chinese Progressive Association.
“An accurate count provides our communities with the funding and resources that they need to be independent and productive members of society." said Noha Mahmoud, Digital Organizer of Arab American Association of New York.
“The Census will drive how Asian Americans, immigrants and people of color are represented and resourced for an entire decade, so if we want it to be done fairly and accurately, we must remain vigilant about fighting against the citizenship question.” said Carlyn Cowen, Chief Policy and Public Affairs Officer at the Chinese-American Planning Council.
In addition to holding public forums and panels to educate immigrant New Yorkers on the 2020 Census, the coalition released a series of information graphics in several languages.
Background
On April 3rd, the New York Attorney General’s office filed a lawsuit– New York v. Dept of Commerce– in the Southern District of New York to stop the Commerce Department from demanding citizenship information on the 2020 Census. The lawsuit argues that adding a citizenship question to the 2020 Census violates the law and reverses seven decades of precedent without a factual basis.
Currently 19 Attorneys General, a number of cities and counties, and the bipartisan U.S. Conference of Mayors have joined the New York Attorney General’s lawsuit. On May 25, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit. Judge Furman on July 3rd stated it was “unlikely he would dismiss the case in its entirety” and granted the AG’s office request for additional discovery, resulting in the federal government recently releasing new documents.
On July 26th, Judge Furman ruled against the Trump administration’s request to dismiss New York v. Department of Commerce, and will allow the lawsuit to move forward.
On June 6th, the New York Immigration Coalition filed a related federal lawsuit in the Southern District of New York in conjunction with the ACLU and four other immigrant rights groups. The suit challenges the Trump administration’s plan to include a citizenship question on the 2020 census, by adding an intentional discrimination claim.
The New York Immigration Coalition, together with over eighty partners, has formed New York Counts 2020, a coalition to counter the expected impact of the citizenship question on the 2020 census. The addition of a citizenship question will stoke unnecessary fear in immigrant communities and could result in a significant undercount, particularly already under-counted racial and ethnic minority groups. With immigrants constituting nearly 1 out of 4 New Yorkers, an undercount in the 2020 Census will have catastrophic consequences – costing all New Yorkers political power and billions of dollars in federal funding for key services.
The New York Counts 2020 coalition includes:
Academy of Medical and Public Health Services
ACCESS WNY
ADL and 67th Precinct Clergy Council
African Services Committee
American Immigration Lawyers Association - New York Chapter
Arab American Association of New York
Asian American Federation
Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF)
Association for Better New York
Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development (ANHD)
Bangladeshi American Community Development and Youth Services (BACDYS)
Bronx Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc
Brooklyn Public Library
Catholic Charities, Archdiocese of New York
Catholic Migration Services
Center for Law and Social Justice, Medgar Evers College
Charles B. Wang Community Health Center
CHHAYA CDC
Chinese-American Planning Council
Chinese Progressive Association
Christopher Rose Community Empowerment Campaign
Cidadão Global
Citizens' Committee for Children of New York
Citizens Union Foundation
Common Cause NY
Community Legal Advocates of NY
Community Voices Heard
Cooper Square Committee N-NORC
Church Women United in New York State
Desis Rising Up and Moving
Digital Equity Laboratory, The New School
EducatedVoter.net
Emerald Island Immigration Center
Engage New York
Fiscal Policy Institute
Forestdale
FPWA
Garifuna Coalition USA, Inc.
Health and Welfare Council of Long Island
Human Services Council
Indivisible Nation BK
Indo-Caribbean Alliance, Inc.
Interfaith Assembly on Homelessness and Housing
Japanese American Social Services, Inc.
Jewish Community Relations Council
Korean Community Services of Metropolitan New York
LatinoJustice PRLDEF
Literacy Assistance Center
LiUNA Local 78
Masa
MinKwon Center for Community Action
Mixteca Organization, Inc.
Movement for Justice in El Barrio
NAACP-New York Branch
NALEO Educational Fund
New America
New York Alumnae Chapter, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
New York City Employment and Training Coalition
New York Housing Conference
New York Immigration Coalition
New York Legal Assistance Group
New York State Council on Children and Families
NMIC
Nobody Leaves Mid-Hudson
OCA-NY
Opportunities for a Better Tomorrow
Planned Parenthood of New York City
Pratt Center for Community Development
Russian Speaking Community Council of Manhattan and the Bronx, Inc.
SEIU32BJ
Sisters of St. Joseph of Rochester
Sunnyside Community Services
SUNY Rockefeller Institute of Government
Tiny Panther Consulting
Treatment Action Group
Queens College, CUNY/Social Explorer
Queens Library
UJA-Federation of New York
United Neighborhood Houses
Vision Urbana, Inc.
Volunteer Lawyers Project of Onondaga County
Wayne Action for Racial Justice
Worker’s Center of Central New York
YMCA of Greater New York
Young Invincibles
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