An Accurate Measure: Questions Shaping the Census
By Ainsley Gill and Medha Nagasubramanian, 9/16/2020
Depriving Minorities of Representation: The Politics of Incorrect Counting
The under-representation of minority populations in the U.S. Census is not a new issue. In fact, this phenomenon has historical roots going all the way back to the drafting of the United States Constitution with the Three-Fifths Compromise, in which the government counted each slave as only 3/5ths of a person for tax and representative purposes in the House of Representatives. Although the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 put an end to slavery and this practice, the contents of the compromise are still not obsolete. The United States government has continued to undercount minorities, as many face difficulties in accessing the census forms.
Currently, roughly half of our nation’s children are non-white, and our nation is expected to become majority-minority, where a majority of the population is formed by minority groups, by 2044. However, the undercounting of minority groups persists, resulting in fewer resources and funding for the communities that need them the most. Vanita Gupta, the president and CEO of The Leadership Conference Education Fund, predicts that the 2020 Census will undercount roughly 4 million people, mostly minorities, while simultaneously overcounting those who are affluent and white. The black community is the most severely undercounted population, with the government undercounting black children at 5 times the rate of their white counterparts. Despite an overall reduction in undercounting since 1990, the rate of undercounted black people (4%) remains constant, indicating a more fundamental flaw with the system. Latinxs, Native Americans, and Pacific Islanders are also significantly undercounted populations.
Historically, there have been many reasons contributing to the under-representation of minorites, the largest of which is a lack of access. Minority communities often have more difficulty accessing the Census Bureau, causing them to be increasingly undercounted. Additionally, the 2020 Census has numerous other factors specific to this year that will result in more severe undercounting than usual. First, the Coronavirus pandemic has made some of the methods most frequently used by the Census Bureau, such as door-to-door visits, dangerous. Door-to-door visits were formerly the best way to access underprivileged and isolated communities. Another factor that will increase undercounting this year are budget cuts. The Trump administration has made budget cuts to the bureau that have crippled its abilities to receive accurate counts. The lack of funding for the bureau meant that the organization was unable to effectively test before it began the process of conducting the census, meaning that many flaws in its system were not corrected. Additionally, because much testing occurs in minority communities, any errors will significantly affect this portion of the population. Another way the American executive branch has crippled the census accuracy is through President Trump’s proposition of a citizenship question on the document. Although the inclusion of this question was ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, the mere possibility has caused significant fear within households with undocumented immigrants, causing many to not participate in the census, and leading many to interpret this question as an attempt by the government to ensure minorities remain under-represented.
While the census may seem an insignificant bureaucratic chore, this is far from the truth. When the Founding Fathers wrote the decennial census into the Constitution, they intended for the acquired information to be used for resource allocation, as it is today. Indeed, Forbes estimates that responses to the census direct about $675 billion worth of federal funding into public services like schools and roads currently, demonstrating that the census has a very direct effect on American lives. By some calculations, the amount of funding for an area based on the census can be more than $4,000 per person. When millions of minorities are systematically undercounted, it deprives them of the resources they need. Due to the various other factors influencing the 2020 census, this is likely to be the greatest under-representation of minorities in recent history, making federal resource allocation even more unequal and unjust. Especially considering the nation’s majority-minority trend, this problem must be fixed soon in order to provide minority communities with the necessary resources to ensure their safety and welfare.
The under-representation of minority populations in the U.S. Census is not a new issue. In fact, this phenomenon has historical roots going all the way back to the drafting of the United States Constitution with the Three-Fifths Compromise, in which the government counted each slave as only 3/5ths of a person for tax and representative purposes in the House of Representatives. Although the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 put an end to slavery and this practice, the contents of the compromise are still not obsolete. The United States government has continued to undercount minorities, as many face difficulties in accessing the census forms.
Currently, roughly half of our nation’s children are non-white, and our nation is expected to become majority-minority, where a majority of the population is formed by minority groups, by 2044. However, the undercounting of minority groups persists, resulting in fewer resources and funding for the communities that need them the most. Vanita Gupta, the president and CEO of The Leadership Conference Education Fund, predicts that the 2020 Census will undercount roughly 4 million people, mostly minorities, while simultaneously overcounting those who are affluent and white. The black community is the most severely undercounted population, with the government undercounting black children at 5 times the rate of their white counterparts. Despite an overall reduction in undercounting since 1990, the rate of undercounted black people (4%) remains constant, indicating a more fundamental flaw with the system. Latinxs, Native Americans, and Pacific Islanders are also significantly undercounted populations.
Historically, there have been many reasons contributing to the under-representation of minorites, the largest of which is a lack of access. Minority communities often have more difficulty accessing the Census Bureau, causing them to be increasingly undercounted. Additionally, the 2020 Census has numerous other factors specific to this year that will result in more severe undercounting than usual. First, the Coronavirus pandemic has made some of the methods most frequently used by the Census Bureau, such as door-to-door visits, dangerous. Door-to-door visits were formerly the best way to access underprivileged and isolated communities. Another factor that will increase undercounting this year are budget cuts. The Trump administration has made budget cuts to the bureau that have crippled its abilities to receive accurate counts. The lack of funding for the bureau meant that the organization was unable to effectively test before it began the process of conducting the census, meaning that many flaws in its system were not corrected. Additionally, because much testing occurs in minority communities, any errors will significantly affect this portion of the population. Another way the American executive branch has crippled the census accuracy is through President Trump’s proposition of a citizenship question on the document. Although the inclusion of this question was ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, the mere possibility has caused significant fear within households with undocumented immigrants, causing many to not participate in the census, and leading many to interpret this question as an attempt by the government to ensure minorities remain under-represented.
While the census may seem an insignificant bureaucratic chore, this is far from the truth. When the Founding Fathers wrote the decennial census into the Constitution, they intended for the acquired information to be used for resource allocation, as it is today. Indeed, Forbes estimates that responses to the census direct about $675 billion worth of federal funding into public services like schools and roads currently, demonstrating that the census has a very direct effect on American lives. By some calculations, the amount of funding for an area based on the census can be more than $4,000 per person. When millions of minorities are systematically undercounted, it deprives them of the resources they need. Due to the various other factors influencing the 2020 census, this is likely to be the greatest under-representation of minorities in recent history, making federal resource allocation even more unequal and unjust. Especially considering the nation’s majority-minority trend, this problem must be fixed soon in order to provide minority communities with the necessary resources to ensure their safety and welfare.
Where’s MENA: The Addition of a Long-Debated Racial and Ethnic Question on the US Census
This year, millions of Americans will fill out the U.S. Census, a crucial process that plays a large role in determining the allocation of government funds for schools, hospitals, roads, public works and other vital programs. The data collected by the census includes the names, ages, race, and ethnicity of each person living at the same address and their relationship to the person filling out the census. The setup of one question in particular was the source of some debate leading up to the finalization of the 2020 Census.
The Census Bureau had been considering whether to add a “Middle Eastern or North African” response category to the question on race. This population has been included under “white” on the Census since the Office of Management and Budget determined all Middle Easterners to be white for classification purposes in the late 1970s. Advocates for the addition of the category feel that their identities would be more accurately reported and represented in census data if the “Middle Eastern or North African” response were available on the 2020 Census.
Leading up to their decision, the Census Bureau conducted thorough research to determine the best format for the 2020 Census. Individuals with Middle Eastern and North African heritage were comprehensively surveyed through focus groups by the Census Bureau, and major analysis was done on the race and ethnicity portion of the census. This report did conclude that "it is optimal to use a dedicated 'Middle Eastern or North African' response category" as a part of the 2020 Census questionnaire. However, following this release of this result, the Census Bureau received comments from "a large segment of the Middle Eastern and North African population" advocating that the “Middle Eastern or North African” response category be implemented as an option for the bureau’s ethnicity question, rather than the originally considered race question. In a panel discussion on the 2020 Census, New York City’s Chief Demographer, Joseph Salvo, discussed these comments, emphasizing that there were thousands of comments submitted to the Federal Office of Management and Budget that were taken into account prior to this decision. As a result, the Census Bureau ultimately determined that the “Middle Eastern or North African” response category will not not be included in any form on the 2020 Census, opting instead to further explore the implications and probable results of including it on a future Census.
Karen Battle, chief of the Census Bureau’s population division emphasized, "We do feel that more research and testing is needed," at a public meeting on 2020 census preparations in early 2018. The option of including the “Middle Eastern or North African” response category as a part of the ethnicity question had not been previously researched by the Census Bureau, and, as re-affirmed by Census Bureau representative Mike Friedrich, further research is necessary before the potential category can be considered for implementation on the census.
The extensive research and the comments submitted by the American people were carefully considered by the Census Bureau as they made their decision. Ultimately, ensuring that the census can accurately gauge the full extent of the Middle Eastern and North African population is important because from the data, the United States government can best account for their interests and needs when dividing up federal funding. The additional research-specific to the “Middle Eastern or North African” response category’s implementation on the ethnicity question is crucial. Overall, due to the lengthy research process, the MENA question will not be included on the 2020 Census. However, the Census Bureau is still open to additional racial and ethnic questions. Thus, one can reasonably conclude that a MENA question will appear on a future census, and, in the end, better represent the American demographic.
This year, millions of Americans will fill out the U.S. Census, a crucial process that plays a large role in determining the allocation of government funds for schools, hospitals, roads, public works and other vital programs. The data collected by the census includes the names, ages, race, and ethnicity of each person living at the same address and their relationship to the person filling out the census. The setup of one question in particular was the source of some debate leading up to the finalization of the 2020 Census.
The Census Bureau had been considering whether to add a “Middle Eastern or North African” response category to the question on race. This population has been included under “white” on the Census since the Office of Management and Budget determined all Middle Easterners to be white for classification purposes in the late 1970s. Advocates for the addition of the category feel that their identities would be more accurately reported and represented in census data if the “Middle Eastern or North African” response were available on the 2020 Census.
Leading up to their decision, the Census Bureau conducted thorough research to determine the best format for the 2020 Census. Individuals with Middle Eastern and North African heritage were comprehensively surveyed through focus groups by the Census Bureau, and major analysis was done on the race and ethnicity portion of the census. This report did conclude that "it is optimal to use a dedicated 'Middle Eastern or North African' response category" as a part of the 2020 Census questionnaire. However, following this release of this result, the Census Bureau received comments from "a large segment of the Middle Eastern and North African population" advocating that the “Middle Eastern or North African” response category be implemented as an option for the bureau’s ethnicity question, rather than the originally considered race question. In a panel discussion on the 2020 Census, New York City’s Chief Demographer, Joseph Salvo, discussed these comments, emphasizing that there were thousands of comments submitted to the Federal Office of Management and Budget that were taken into account prior to this decision. As a result, the Census Bureau ultimately determined that the “Middle Eastern or North African” response category will not not be included in any form on the 2020 Census, opting instead to further explore the implications and probable results of including it on a future Census.
Karen Battle, chief of the Census Bureau’s population division emphasized, "We do feel that more research and testing is needed," at a public meeting on 2020 census preparations in early 2018. The option of including the “Middle Eastern or North African” response category as a part of the ethnicity question had not been previously researched by the Census Bureau, and, as re-affirmed by Census Bureau representative Mike Friedrich, further research is necessary before the potential category can be considered for implementation on the census.
The extensive research and the comments submitted by the American people were carefully considered by the Census Bureau as they made their decision. Ultimately, ensuring that the census can accurately gauge the full extent of the Middle Eastern and North African population is important because from the data, the United States government can best account for their interests and needs when dividing up federal funding. The additional research-specific to the “Middle Eastern or North African” response category’s implementation on the ethnicity question is crucial. Overall, due to the lengthy research process, the MENA question will not be included on the 2020 Census. However, the Census Bureau is still open to additional racial and ethnic questions. Thus, one can reasonably conclude that a MENA question will appear on a future census, and, in the end, better represent the American demographic.
