Supreme Court Leaves Citizenship Question Off 2020 Census For Now
- Contact
June 27, 2019—Washington, D.C.—Today, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a much-anticipated decision in the census citizenship question case, Department of Commerce v. New York, finding that--for now--the citizenship question cannot appear on the 2020 Census. Chief Justice Roberts’ opinion affirmed the lower court’s finding that the Department of Commerce’s stated reason for adding the citizenship question was false. Under the Court’s ruling, the Department of Commerce may try again to add the question, but it must provide a different, well-reasoned explanation for the addition.
Asian Americans Advancing Justice, an affiliation of five civil rights organizations, responds with the following statement:
“The 2020 Census is our chance to get resources for our children’s schools, health services, road improvements, affordable housing, representation in federal, state, and local elections, and bringing in new businesses that will serve our communities for the next ten years.
The U.S. Constitution requires that every person living in the United States is counted, but allowing the citizenship question to appear on the census form would mean we would have to work harder to make sure our Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander and undocumented community members are counted as equally as everyone else. Census data are critical to our futures and following generations.
The citizenship question was designed to keep our communities from answering the 2020 Census and to rob our communities of the valuable resources and services we deserve. Today we refuse to be silenced and refuse to be made invisible.
We call on grassroots organizations and individual community members to help make sure everyone is counted in the 2020 Census. We only get one chance for the next ten years to get it right. The real fight for our fair share starts now.”