OPINION: YOU CAN HELP GET OUT THE CENSUS COUNT

I just got off phone with about 50 people I’ve never met and it felt great.

Last week, the Amherst League of Women Voters asked for volunteers to phone bank to help the 2020 Census. I signed up for this morning’s session and “bumped into” some familiar local faces on a Zoom call. We received a brief training and then started calling Massachusetts residents to encourage them to fill out their census forms. It was easy to do and it was terrific to be able to take positive action at such an uncertain time.

The goal of the calls is to reach historically undercounted populations and is run by Massachusetts Voter Table (MVT) and Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition (MIRA). The organizers explained that while affluent, mostly white communities tend to have high response rates to the Census, many people are frequently left out, particularly in hard-to-count census tracts. These include immigrants, children aged 0-4 years, people of color, low income households, single female-headed households, renters, and mobile young adults.  

Amherst is known to be a difficult census tract, with many people not being counted resulting in lower federal funding. The Amherst League of Women Voters points out that Amherst is the 9th-hardest community in Massachusetts to count due to the large college student population and other difficult-to-count residents including young children, seniors, non-citizens, immigrants, and the homeless.

The Census instructs respondents to report where they live most of the time as of April 1, a date when college students would normally be living in Amherst.  Although these students typically do spend the majority of the year in Amherst, it is unclear whether the current closure of three institutions of higher learning due to the pandemic will have a significant impact on how (or whether) individuals will respond to this question and how that will affect the town’s population data and any revenue tied to that key number.  

Here’s where you can help.  

Phone banks are currently being held virtually on Tuesdays, between 11am and 1pm, and Thursdays, between 5 pm and 7pm, although days and times may shift based on how many people are being reached. Click here to sign up for a shift. You will be contacted by the folks at MIRA or MVT.  They are looking into creating a calling list that targets the Amherst area.  

My phone bank experience was very positive. The organizers coordinated more than 20 volunteers ranging in experience from novices to seasoned canvassers. They made it very easy to participate and remained available throughout the session to address any problems and answer questions. You will need a computer/internet and a phone.

Even if you aren’t able to participate in a phone bank, please respond to the Census either online, by phone (844-330-2020), or by mail (forms should be arriving at people’s homes now).