Last month, the Trump administration made it clear that the 2020 census would include a question regarding citizenship.  The administration claimed that the new citizenship question was added to make sure that key sections of the Voting Rights Act were being upheld.  The block-by-block census data could identify communities under threat and the Justice Department, headed by Jeff Sessions, could keep an eye on those vulnerable communities.  The administration argued that it was nothing for community or civil rights organizations to worry about.

The census is constitutionally mandated in order to ascertain the number of people living in the country.  Using that information, representation can be apportioned, congressional districts can be drawn, federal funding can be issued, states can make long-term plans.  But the census is important because it one of the ways that the state “sees.”  That is, government officials at local, state, and national levels do not personally know every single constituent or person living in their district, city, state, or country.  It is impossible for them to know something or anything about everybody, yet these officials must.  In order for highly organized states to function, they must know key aspects about the populations they encompass. The census, a series of questions asking individuals to describe themselves and their families, is one of the many ways governments know their populations (others include social security numbers, driver’s licenses, birth certificates, death certificates, tax returns, etc.).

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