Latinos, Blacks, Native Americans undercounted in census, again
2 Min Read
Once again, the United States deprives its people of color of their basic rights through undercounting its black, Latin, and Native American population, leading to discrimination in terms of the allocation of federal funds.
-
People of color have been undercounted again in the US census
Black people, Native Americans, and Latinos were undercounted again during the 2020 national census, the director of the US Census Bureau said Thursday, highlighting another racial disparity in the United States.
"Today’s results show statistical evidence that the quality of the 2020 Census total population count is consistent with that of recent censuses. This is notable, given the unprecedented challenges of 2020," Census Director Robert L. Santos said.
But the results, he said, also included some limitations - "the 2020 Census undercounted many of the same population groups we have historically uncounted, and it overcounted others."
Census Bureau data estimates that some 19 million people were omitted in the national tally of the US population, which includes people not counted in the census others missed by census enumerators.
Read: Black History Month: Black oppression in the United States
The significance of these undercounts stems from the fact that they determine the amount of federal funds the government will allocate for these communities' schools, public housing, hospitals, Medicare, highway construction, and recreation centers. Accurate counts also affect these communities' political representation in Congress.
The census takes place once per decade, and it attempts to count every person who resides in the United States.
The results determine how the government should allocate and distribute about $1.5 trillion in annual spending for 216 federal programs in total.
The process is a representation of how taxpayer money will be spent - who gets it and the amount that states receive. The money is distributed among states, and thereon forward the state divvies it up among local levels to counties, towns, and villages.
The 2020 census paints a "vivid portrait of our nation's people," noting that Census officials and staff would explore the over and undercounts further.
