U.S. Census 2010 and Pakistani community

By Jehangir Khattak, March 11, 2010

Preparations are in full swing for the Census 2010. The Census Bureau has launched its most expensive three-phase media campaign in its history. In the first stage, informational ads were released to the press, in the second stage motivational ads are sent out, and the third stage call for action ads will go into newspapers, magazines and electronic media outlets across the country. People are being informed about the importance of Census through these campaigns. They are being reminded that participation in the census is not just an obligation to their community, but it's the law.

Millions of households across the nation will receive the census forms, carrying 10 questions, by 18th of this month. The Census Bureau says it won't take more than 10 minutes to fill the form; however, those 10 minutes will have impact for the next decade on their neighborhoods since the data is used for the allocation of $400 billion in development funds. Not only this, it can also lead to re-demarcation of electoral constituencies, which could increase the number of seats in the state legislatures as well as the U.S. Congress. The biggest concern for the Census Bureau is an undercount.

Some pro-immigration groups have started doing politics over the Census as well, with some advocating that one way to force the Administration to fulfill its promise of comprehensive immigration reform is to boycott the Census. Same is true for undocumented immigrants who are shy to come out of the shadows and be counted. A widespread fear haunts the undocumented immigrants that the Census Bureau could share their information with immigration authorities, which in turn could jeopardize their future in this country. Several advocacy groups, along with the Census Bureau, have targeted immigrant communities with the message that the Bureau does not share its data with any other government departments. Even the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has come up with a categorical statement in recent days indicating that the PATRIOT Act – which gives the government sweeping powers for access to personal information of the people – does not apply to the Census, thus DHS cannot have access to census data. But despite all these explanations and assurances, the Census Bureau and advocacy groups report that suspicions amongst undocumented immigrants remain deep seated.

Immigrant communities have paid a heavy price for this ill-founded suspicion of government and the resultant undercount. A visit to the public schools in the neighborhood of these communities reveals the extent of this suffering, where enrollment is far higher than the intended capacity. It's not just the schools that are reeling under the pressure of overcrowding. The civic infrastructure is also crumbling under the pressure of having to service undercounted and unregistered population.

The main reason for this sorry state of affairs in such neighborhoods is the paucity of funds for education and physical infrastructure, which are allocated on the basis of population figures drawn from Census data. Thus, those who shy away from participating in the Census cost their neighborhood very dearly in terms of development and civic amenities. The undercounting also affects the communities socially, economically and politically, since Census data play a critical role in the formulation of policies in all these spheres of life.

Little wonder that when the Pakistani-American community complains of lack of political weight in the mainstream politics, it conveniently forgets that it is also facing a very serious undercounting problem. The Pakistani community in New York knows that its population here is in the tens if not hundreds of thousands, but in the Census Bureau figures, its number is just a few thousand. Once again, the level of indifference towards the Census among Pakistani Americans is so high that the Census Bureau has designated it as a "hard-to-reach" community.

It appears as if Pakistani community organizations are not realizing the gravity of the situation and are unwilling to play a role in mobilizing the community. Regrettably few Pakistani activists or organizations are visibly doing anything in this regards. So far there is only one Pakistani community organization – Council of People's Organization – that has shown responsibility and activism to mobilize the community for the Census. Though encouraging, this is not enough to overcome the community's undercount problem.

The Pakistani community's indifference towards the Census 2010 will hurt the community in the long run. Participation in Census 2010 is not just an obligation that each Pakistani American owes to the community, it's a national duty. Are Pakistani-American community organizations cognizant of the importance of the task before them and ready to do it? Apparently not. But there is no choice. If they don't swing into action and convince the community to fully participate in the Census now, they will become instrumental in making their community invisible, which will be nothing less than a crime.