Here in the Big Apple, the New York City Census 2000 Office of the Mayor is preparing for this historic event. Many have already projected that the number of minorities, more specifically Latinos, will surpass the number of White Americans that have taken residence here in the United States. However, the Census feel otherwise. According to recent trends, they are expecting the lowest participation of any previous census, that New York will lose money because of it, and that New York will also lose representatives in Congress. Unlike California which will probably gain some,' said Stevenson.
Social services run the risk of losing millions of dollars in funding.
So the big push by Census 2000 is around representation and social services provided, because often the population that is missed or not counted are ones using those services the most,' stresses Stevenson. Often, as Stevenson breaks down, the barriers to many completing the Census forms are things like, 'distrust of the government and questions around complete confidentiality. Important to note, the Census Bureau is not allowed to give any information to any Federal, state or city agency, and they are protected by the Constitution. Other interesting efforts being made include the creation of programs like Census In The Schools. The Census In The Schools project works with the Interagency Task Force, a coalition of every city agency and regional census office.