I have to confess, I LOVE the Census. I think it's an amazing undertaking, and the idea of getting even just a little bit of info on everyone in this entire country has always been intriguing to me. I remember during Census 2000, I still lived at home with my parents and I hounded them constantly about how important the Census was. I watched with glee when they finally filled it out - even a section just about ME! I counted!
Now, obviously, like all American endeavors, the Census is not perfect. This year's race section is particularly confusing and offensive. What to do if you are a Latin@ who identifies as neither "Black" nor "White" but just Latin@? The use of the word "Negro" and "American Indian" are certainly not welcome by most people. I'm glad to see so many Asian nationalities listed and honored for their unique cultures, but then what do people of an African nationality do? "African" as a generalized term is not even offered.
Even so, the Census is important, and they're trying to improve. This year, for the first time, folks like me living with an "unmarried partner" (read: gaymos in stable relationships co-habitatin') were acknowledged. It felt really good to watch my partner check those boxes for us. (Me! I counted!) I can't wait to see the numbers on how many of us there are making happy homes together. That's our Census envelope in the photo above. We sealed it with a sticker from CREDO Mobile and the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force that asks the Census Bureau to start allowing people to identify as LGBTQ/Ally and demands that we "Queer the Census!"
As you've hopefully already heard, the Census is an important tool in our democracy because it:
#1 Determines Federal funding amounts for your area for transportation, housing, and the rest of what the government does.
#2 Determines how many representatives your state gets in Congress.
#3 Gives an accurate picture of what the US looks like. For example, are "minorities" really in the minority? Perhaps not...
It's #3 that scares the crap out of right wing tea partiers like Glenn Beck (see Colbert explain below), and they're calling for "real patriots" to refuse to fill out the Census. But, here's the catch - see #2, above. Tea partiers not getting counted in the Census = tea partiers not being counted for congressional redistricting. Fine! But for this to work, the rest of us have to participate.
You have three more days to get counted! Mail in that form by Friday or a Census Taker might come a-knockin. And I'm sure you'll agree, we have other things we could spend those tax dollars on.
| The Colbert Report | Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |||
| United States Census 2010 | ||||
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i know i've told you about this, but i hate the census. i hate being counted. i hate having a voice or recognized power.
ReplyDeletejust kidding.
what i hate is having to check a box for race, which i don't believe exists.