Norcross, GA, June 27, 2019 — BREAKING NEWS: No Citizenship Question on the 2020 Census – the Fight Continues

For Immediate Release Thursday, June 27, 2019 Contact: James Woo, Marketing & IT Manager. jwoo@asianamericansadvancingjustice-atlanta.org

Norcross, GA - Today, the Supreme Court of the United States announced its decision that the Commerce Department is required to provide an honest reason for its decision to include the Citizenship Question on the 2020 Census survey. For now, the question has been blocked. But the fight is not over.

“Today’s Supreme Court’s decision means that we must stand up even louder and demand that the federal government ends its attempts to include the Citizenship Question on the 2020 Census form. We all must be counted, regardless of immigration status or documentation. The failure to count every single individual—regardless of immigration status—would have devastating effects across this country, establishing an unconstitutional precedence that would damage the relationship between the Census Bureau and communities across this country” stated Jerry Gonzalez, Executive Director of GALEO.

A full and accurate count is vital for the future funding of the state of Georgia. Census data remains a critical factor in funding healthcare, social services, infrastructure, and education among communities in the United States. The question to include a citizenship question would have had disproportionately impacted immigrant communities, resulting in unfair civic and political representation. “Achieving an accurate Census count in 2020 will keep our state on the right track towards a fair redistricting process in 2021. We need accurate census data in order to ensure progress towards greater voting rights in Georgia as well. We demand that the Commerce Department gives up this effort to suppress our communities’ power and allow the Census Bureau to proceed with printing the form, without the Citizenship Question” stated Karuna Ramachandran, Deputy Director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice - Atlanta.

Asian American Pacific Islander and Latino community organizations and leaders are galvanized and ready to push out a broad outreach and education effort for 2020 Census. The GA AAPI and Latino Census Complete Count Committees (CCC) convene community leaders, faith groups, business owners, media, and youth to collectively strategize on how best to reach our Hard to Count (HTC) communities of Georgia. Historically, people of color, especially immigrant people of color, children 0-5 years old and those living in rural areas are among the hardest to count communities in Georgia.

Gigi Pedraza, Executive Director of Latino Community Fund states, “Today’s decision gives us hope that our communities will be accurately counted and fairly represented in the 2020 Census. The removal of the citizenship questions, for now, also removes one formidable barrier to community participation towards a full count in this state we all call home. Make no mistake, we have a great deal of work to do in order to achieve this goal. But our communities will not be deterred. Every one of us will be counted.”

Census advocates and leaders of the Georgia AAPI and Latino Census Complete Count Committees will provide full statement to the press today. Details are as follows.

WHO:
Esther Lim, Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Atlanta
Hillary Li, Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Atlanta
James Woo, Asian American Advancing Justice – Atlanta
Pabitra Rizal, Center for Pan Asian Community Services, Inc.
Jackie Chen, Chinese Complete Count Committee
Maria Peck, Latino Community Fund
Harvey Soto, GALEO

WHEN:
Today, June 27, 2019 at 1:45 PM EST

WHERE:
Asian Americans Advancing Justice - Atlanta 5680 Oakbrook Parkway, Suite 148 Norcross, GA 30084

CONTACT:
James Woo, jwoo@advancingjustice-atlanta.org, 404.585.8446 Jerry Gonzalez, jerry@galeo.org, 678.691.1086

Asian Americans Advancing Justice - Atlanta (Advancing Justice-Atlanta) is the first and only legal advocacy nonprofit dedicated to the civil rights of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders in Georgia and the Southeast. Our mission is to protect and promote the civil and human rights of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders in Georgia and the Southeast through policy advocacy, legal services, organizing & civic engagement, and impact litigation.

Center for Pan Asian Community Services, Inc Center for Pan Asian Community Services(CPACS) is a private nonprofit located in Atlanta, Georgia. Our mission is to promote self-sufficiency and equity for immigrants, refugees, and the underprivileged through comprehensive health and social services, capacity building, and advocacy.

Georgia Association of Latino Elected officials (GALEO) - GALEO’s mission is to increase civic engagement and leadership of the Latino/Hispanic community across Georgia.

The Latino Community Fund (LCF Georgia) supports Latinx-serving nonprofits in Georgia with advocacy, program development, technical assistance and grant making. Our mission is to be a catalyst for investment, collaborative work, and positive narrative with and within the Latinx/Hispanic Community in Georgia.