Congressional Oversight & the Census

Jump to today’s actions:

Background

We deserve the freedom to vote. We deserve leaders we choose because they represent all of us. We deserve resources and representation allocated on the basis of an accurate counting of the population. 

The stakes in the 2020 Census are high. Republicans have made no secret of opposing attempts to stop their gerrymandering. The previous administration sought to drop immigrants from the census, attempted to insert a citizenship question to discourage immigrants from participating, and tried to end the census count early. 

Poorer families without access to high speed internet did not have equal access to census forms, and it's unclear whether any attempts were made to count them. The previous administration broadcast and encouraged hatred of BIPOC, immigrant, and poor communities. They gave us no reason to trust that they fully and fairly counted members of those communities.

Although President Biden has accepted the census results, Congress retains oversight responsibility that includes how the census was executed. To restore faith in government and ensure that allocation of resources and representation is fair, we call on Congress to exercise its constitutional responsibility to provide oversight by investigating how the 2020 Census was conducted.

1. Call the Senate.

Script Oregon Senators

SEN. MERKLEY: Portland office: 503-326-3386 | D.C. office: 202-224-3753

My name is [--] and I'm a constituent from [city], Oregon [zip code].

The previous administration gave us numerous causes for concern about census data gathering being thorough and fair. To restore faith in government and ensure that allocation of resources and representation is fair, we call on Congress to exercise its constitutional responsibility to provide oversight by investigating how the 2020 Census was conducted.

SEN. WYDEN: Portland office: 503-326-7525 | D.C. office: 202-224-5244

My name is [–] and I’m a constituent from [city], Oregon [zip code].

The previous administration gave us numerous causes for concern about census data gathering being thorough and fair. To restore faith in government and ensure that allocation of resources and representation is fair, we call on Congress to exercise its constitutional responsibility to provide oversight by investigating how the 2020 Census was conducted.

Script for Republican Senators

D.C switchboard: 202-224-3121

My name is [–] and I’m a constituent from [city], [state], [zip code].

It is in everyone's interest to trust that allocation of representation and resources is fair. Please support Congress' constitutional responsibility to provide oversight by investigating how the 2020 Census was conducted.

2. Call the House.

Script for Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01)

Oregon office: 503-469-6010 | DC office: 202-225-0855

My name is [–] and I’m a constituent from [city], Oregon [zip code].

The previous administration gave us numerous causes for concern about census data gathering being thorough and fair. To restore faith in government and ensure that allocation of resources and representation is fair, we call on Congress to exercise its constitutional responsibility to provide oversight by investigating how the 2020 Census was conducted.

Script for Cliff Bentz (OR-02)

Medford office: 541-776-4646 | DC office: 202-225-6730

My name is [–] and I’m a constituent from [city], Oregon [zip code].

It is in everyone's interest to trust that allocation of representation and resources is fair. Please support Congress' constitutional responsibility to provide oversight by investigating how the 2020 Census was conducted.

Script for Earl Blumenauer (OR-03)

Oregon office: 503-231-2300 | DC office: 202-225-4811

My name is [–] and I’m a constituent from [city], Oregon [zip code].

The previous administration gave us numerous causes for concern about census data gathering being thorough and fair. To restore faith in government and ensure that allocation of resources and representation is fair, we call on Congress to exercise its constitutional responsibility to provide oversight by investigating how the 2020 Census was conducted.

Script for Peter DeFazio (OR-04)

Eugene office: 541-465-6732 | DC office: 202-225-6416

My name is [–] and I’m a constituent from [city], Oregon [zip code].

The previous administration gave us numerous causes for concern about census data gathering being thorough and fair. To restore faith in government and ensure that allocation of resources and representation is fair, we call on Congress to exercise its constitutional responsibility to provide oversight by investigating how the 2020 Census was conducted.

Script for Kurt Schrader (OR-05)

Salem office: 503-588-9100 | DC office: 202-225-5711

My name is [–] and I’m a constituent from [city], Oregon [zip code].

The previous administration gave us numerous causes for concern about census data gathering being thorough and fair. To restore faith in government and ensure that allocation of resources and representation is fair, we call on Congress to exercise its constitutional responsibility to provide oversight by investigating how the 2020 Census was conducted.

3. Take Action.

Demand Justice has launched a multifaceted campaign to urge Democratic Senators and Representatives to co-sponsor and work for the passage of the Judiciary Act of 2021, with the goal of pressuring Majority Leader Schumer and House Speaker Pelosi to bring it up for a vote in the Senate and the House. One facet involves contacting small donors who have contributed to Democratic campaigns urging them to tell the recipient of their donations about the importance of this legislation. To learn more about this campaign and how you can get involved, please click here.

Additional Resources

https://www.courthousenews.com/biden-agrees-to-proper-count-as-census-fight-comes-to-an-end/

https://www.politico.com/news/2021/04/27/census-latinos-count-484846?

https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/2020-census-population-and-apportionment-data-explained

https://www.democracydocket.com/2021/04/how-the-census-decides-your-congressperson/?emci=5462579c-68a8-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&emdi=98dcb798-aba9-eb11-85aa-0050f237abef&ceid=9584085

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