Planned Parenthood of Southern New England Hosts Virtual "Get Out the Count" Event on National Census Day, April 1
Contact: [email protected]
For Immediate Release: March 31, 2020
Virtual event will train community activists to help ensure everyone is counted in the 2020 census
(New Haven, CT) – On National Census Day, Wednesday April 1, Planned Parenthood of Southern New England (PPSNE) will host a virtual training at 6:00 p.m. to connect supporters, volunteers, and community activists to “Get Out the Count” activities to ensure everyone is counted in the 2020 census. The virtual event is open to the public and will be hosted in English and Spanish—participants must sign-up in advance to receive the link to join. (Spanish registration form available here).
During the event, participants will learn the basics of the 2020 census, play census trivia games for prizes, and break into small group discussions to share ideas about how to encourage members of the community to get counted—all conducted virtually from home. Attendees will be invited to participate in remote phone and text banks and virtual canvass events and learn how to use social media and digital organizing to reach their families, friends, and members of their networks to explain why completing the census is so important.
“Census data is used to make critical decisions that affect all our lives—determining where to spend billions of dollars in funding for social services and shaping our political voice at all levels of government. Our patients and our communities deserve a fair, accurate census count to ensure they get the representation and resources they deserve for the next 10 years,” said Gretchen Raffa, senior director, Public Policy, Advocacy and Organizing at PPSNE.
“Our virtual training will give our supporters the tools they need to get more involved in grassroots ‘Get Out the Count’ efforts across our communities in Connecticut and Rhode Island. This National Census Day event will help connect our supporters and our community partners in this time of social distancing and inspire people to take action today to secure our future,” Raffa stated. “The COVID-19 public health crisis demonstrates how our communities are struggling to access needed services, including health care. The census is our opportunity to make our voices heard and make sure our communities get their fair share of resources.”
Every 10 years, the census counts every person living in the United States, regardless of their immigration status. Yet, members of many communities go undercounted, especially Black and Latino/a/x people, members of the LGBTQ+ community, immigrants, youth, and single, female-headed households. Because census data is used to allocate federal funding for health care and social service programs, undercounting means many communities won’t get the resources they need—setting people back for decades to come.
The quickest, safest, and easiest way to get counted is to complete the census online at my2020census.gov. The U.S. Census Bureau has extended the self-count period from July 31 to August 14, 2020 in response to the COVID-19 public health crisis. Individual census responses are protected by federal law, and the census will never ask respondents for social security numbers, personal financial information, or immigration status.
Anyone interested in joining the National Census Day virtual event on Wednesday, April 1 at 6:00 p.m. can register in English or Spanish. To learn more about the census, visit plannedparenthood.org/census or census.gov.