Pilsen looking to be completely counted for the 2010 Census
Jaime Guzman
Published: February 1, 2010
On February 6th there will be a press conference announcing the COMPLETE COUNT COMMUNITY campaign, led by the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR). It is an attempt to educate people in various communities about the 2010 Census and the importance of taking part in it. Sarahy Knapp has been hired by The Resurrection Project to work with ICIRR and their efforts in the Pilsen community. Knapp will be leading the outreach efforts in Pilsen and says that, “we want people to feel comfortable with the fact that their answers for the Census are protected by law.”
Knapp has already started the door knocking campaign with the help of some volunteers. Knapp says that people are still skeptical about the security because of their legal status “One lady said, 'NO I can’t. I don’t have papers,'” says Knapp, who then proceeded to ask the woman if she has children in public schools. When the woman replied yes, Knapp then explained the importance of being counted for the sake of community resources that are dependent on the amount of people living in a neighborhood.
ICIRR has partnered up with 15 other organizations, including Muslim and Chinese groups, and is targeting populations that had less than a 15 percent response rate for the 2000 Census. In Pilsen, The Resurrection Project and Mujeres Latinas en Accion will be taking the lead. Knapp is assembling a team to work until the end of March.
To learn more about the 2010 Census and the COMPLETE COUNT COMMUNITY campaign please email Sarahy Knapp at sknapp@resurrectionproject.org or call 312.850.4017 ext. 110.
The campaign looks to achieve a 65% response rate. People will be getting a form in the mail that needs to be filled out and it must include the information for the head of the household. Spanish versions will be available. If the form is not filled out and mailed back by April 1st, Census workers will begin a series of visits, up to 6, in an effort to ensure participation. After that, they will begin asking neighbors about your household. According to Knapp “they’re going to be very aggressive this time around.”
The press conference on the 6th of February will be at Casa Morelos | 2015 S Morgan - 10:30am.
Posted in Community Organizations
