CALL TO ACTION!
In
the 1990s, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) put out a
notice asking for public comment on the changes to racial and
ethnic reporting. They received over 600 letters from people like
you who wanted to see some changes in Multiracial reporting.
That was considered a very influential number of
responses at the time.
Now the Census Bureau is asking for comments for
the 2030 census. The more, the better! We each need
to write letters to the Census Bureau. The deadline
for letters is November 15, 2022, but the sooner, the
better. The time has come for all the Multiracial
activists and advocates to give our input to the
Census Bureau.
You can write a personal story if you’d like to or just
send in our sample letter below or combine the two.
They are looking for comments on every race and
ethnicity, so feel free to write about any of the races. We
did not get everything we wanted beginning with the 2000
census, so now is the time to write to influence the 2030 census.
We are stakeholders and advocates and deserve to be heard. You can get further information at
https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade/2030/2030-census-
main.html
When you have written your letter, email it to: DCMD.2030.Research@census.gov and include
“FRN Response” in the subject line. Please contact Project RACE at
projectrace@projectrace.com if you have any questions. We would also love to see your letters
by including Project RACE at projectrace@projectrace.com as a BCC contact on your email.
Thank you for your participation in this important matter.
SAMPLE LETTER
Date
U. S. Census Bureau
It is my understanding that you are soliciting comments from the public regarding race and
ethnicity on the 2030 census. I consider myself a stakeholder in the census and would like to see
some necessary changes to the United States Census.
Although we now can choose two or more races, we still do not have a true Multiracial category.
An answer along with the other races should be included, which is “Multiracial: Write in two or
more races.” Words are important. Self-identification on the 2030 census was an improvement,
but the Multiracial population is not always certain of the place they belong on the census.
The instructions should be changed to make them more understandable. Instead of this: Mark (X)
one or more boxes AND print origins, they should read:
Mark (X) one or more boxes. Biracial and Multiracial people can mark (X) as many boxes
as necessary AND print origins.
This improvement would not disturb any comparisons to previous census numbers and would
also lessen the number of people who just skip to “Some other race,” which has become a
catchall category. It is extremely important to Biracial and Multiracial individuals that we clearly
see the words Biracial and/or Multiracial being used. Thank you.
Sincerely,