Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi Hosts Unity Breakfast in Palatine, IL
PALATINE, IL – This week, Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi (IL-08) hosted the Unity Breakfast, bringing together leaders of the 8th Congressional District including State Representatives Michelle Mussman and Diane Pappas to discuss the importance of the 2020 census.
"The census is a fundamentally democratic institution as it allows our government to make allocations based not on wealth, or property, or influence, but based on a simple headcount," said Congressman Krishnamoorthi. "Undercounting in the census is a phenomenon that hits underserved populations the hardest, but ultimately the consequences of undercounting affect us all. As Americans, we believe that everyone counts. That means we must do whatever it takes to make an accurate count and prevent anyone from falling through the cracks."
At the event, Theresa Le, Partnership Specialist at the Chicago Regional Census Center discussed the three "S"s of the census: Significant, Simple, and Safe. She emphasized that by law your responses cannot be used against you. "The information you present to us is safe and secure – the Census Bureau does not report to any law enforcement agencies – no ICE, no DHS, NO one."
Shalini Gupta discussed the role of faith leaders and called on "all organizations: community, faith-based, government, and media organizations to spread the message, to make those in hard to reach communities aware of the benefits of the census."
Today the strength and legitimacy of the census are under attack. In an effort to instill fear in immigrant populations, there have been repeated attempts, at the national level, to illegally add a ‘citizenship question' to the 2020 census. But the Supreme Court ruled that such a question would be unconstitutional. Therefore there will be no ‘citizenship question' on the 2020 census. Participation in the census is a fundamental right and Congressman Krishnamoorthi along with Senator Durbin, wrote to the U.S. Census Bureau Director urging him to take all measures necessary to ensure a full and fair count in Illinois.