What's the Census Got to Do With It?

Campaign 2020 is centered around the theme of Arts and Cultural Education as a Fundamental, Civil, and Human Right.

This right has been increasingly difficult to safeguard as schools and governments around the world grapple with COVID-19 — a pandemic that has challenged traditional teaching methods and classroom content. Several cities, states, and even countries have made the decision to eliminate arts education this year due to budget constraints and the complications caused by the virtual learning environment. 

Unfortunately, COVID may not be the only thing with the potential to negatively impact arts and cultural education in the US before 2020 is over. (And, no, I’m not talking about the November election.)

What is the US Census? 

The 2020 Census is a headcount of every living person living in the US, including residents of its five island territories. In the US, this headcount occurs every ten years. 

The goals of the Census (and every census, really) are fairly straight forward. 

  1. Make sure you count everybody. 

  2. Make sure you count everybody once. 

  3. Make sure you count people where they are. 

Basically, the bottom line is to be as accurate as possible to avoid coverage bias. Accuracy at the national level as well as at the local level is essential because these numbers have some lofty implications for the next ten years. 

Not only is the data used to determine representation in Congress, but it is also used to determine the equitable distribution of government funds to support everyday services and systems like highway infrastructure, public transportation, education, housing assistance, and much more. 

In other words, the ten or so minutes it takes to fill out the document online, by phone, or by mail are well worth it to ensure that you and your needs are represented. 

2020’s Impact on the Census

Even when the process isn’t marred by controversial questions or occuring during an election year, implementing a census can be a daunting task. This is especially true in 2020 as COVID-19 and natural disasters continue to impact data gathering strategies. 

Consider a couple who has moved out of their apartment in an urban center because their employment situation changed and they no longer had the ability/saw the need to pay rent for an apartment that was 15 minutes away from the office. Who is to say that the reminders will reach them or that their location data will be captured accurately as a result?

Consider a family who was forced to evacuate their home due to a hurricane in the Southeast or a fire in the Pacific Northwest. As a result of leaving their home, they likely no longer have access to reliable internet or their mail. Depending on the security of their area, it’s also likely that the census takers are not going to be conducting their typical follow-ups, but even if they were, that family may not be there. Who is to say that this family will be counted, or better yet, who is to say that where they are counted will be reflective of where they end up as a result of being displaced? 

The Census’s Impact on Arts, Culture, and Education

In 2015, more than $675 billion USD was awarded across the US using Census data. Of those funds, nearly $11.4 billion USD in Special Education funds and over $8.5 billion USD in Head Start funds were awarded. Hundreds of millions of dollars were also awarded to specifically support initiatives in rural areas. 

Aside from these directly influenced instances, the Census can impact the distribution of funds and resources due to the mandates of certain government entities. For example, the National Endowment for the Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts are both required to distribute upwards of 40% of their annual budget to state and territory agencies and councils. The breakdown of this value is largely determined on a per capita basis.

Understanding the importance of the Census process and the need to have an accurate count of the individuals in their communities, artists in California, New York, Pennsylvania have turned the census into inspiration for their gallery exhibits, digital toolkits, social campaigns, and individual works to encourage participation and educate communities about its past steeped in exclusionary systems. 

Whether or not this will be enough to change the forecasted miscounts remains to be seen, but it’s empowering to see artists engage in another realm of civic advocacy.  

The deadline for the US Census is September 30. Response rates, by state, currently range from 89.1% to 99.8% of the population. 

Additional Resources:

Learn more about the US Census and the ways in which it impacts communities by digging into the following resources: