Bay Area

Alameda County Allocates $1.5 Million Investment In Outreach Funding For Census 2020

Published

4 years ago

November 27, 2019

Clifford L. Williams

Clifford L. Williams

The U.S. Census Bureau’s task of conducting a complete count of the homeless, the disenfranchised and the hard-to-reach population, which constantly relocates, has become a challenge for the Bureau with its goal of an accurate count during the Census 2020.

That task in Alameda County is receiving some assistance from the County Board of Supervisors, who in 2018, established a Complete Count Committee (CCC) and recently awarded $1.5 million for Census Outreach Grants.

“Due to the significant reduction in federal resources for the U.S. Census Bureau to conduct this decennial count of every person living in the United States, the County deemed this local investment imperative in order to attain a complete and accurate count,” said Casey Farmer, executive director of the CCC.

“The Alameda CCC will invest in ‘trusted messengers’ of hard-to-count communities to convey the importance of completing the Census with grants to 115 agencies. These agencies include community-based organizations, health clinics, educational institutions, and houses of worship.”

The CCC is a regional, cross-sector stakeholder working to maximize participation in Census 2020. It will communicate to the public the importance of the Census and provide community partners with information, data, training, materials, and technical assistance for their direct outreach.

“As required by the Constitution, the Census’ objective is to count every single person in the country,” Farmer said. “The Census Bureau will conduct major enumerations operations at shelters and soup kitchens as well as encampments. Alameda County will provide the Bureau with a list of homeless advocates to support the outreach encampment, using messengers from these encampments to assist in the count.”

The CCC convened an Unhoused Subcommittee of key stakeholders including the East Oakland Collective, EveryOne Home, and Saint Mary’s Center, who are collectively advocating that the U.S Census Bureau’s outreach be comprehensive and ensure dignity and sensitivity towards this vulnerable population.

“We also have a number of immigrant communities that feel attacked by the Trump administration and we want to galvanize support from those communities through outreach led by nonprofits and churches,” said Farmer. “Our outreach efforts will include multi-lingual educational workshops, Questionnaire Assistance Centers at all public libraries, Census Weeks at schools, colleges, and more.”

Ultimately, the Census data will be used to allocate approximately $800 billion dollar

s in federal funding as well as to determine each State’s representation in Congress. The 2020 Census can be completed online, by phone, and via a paper form.

To learn more about the CCC, please visit: http://acgov.org/census2020/ or contact Casey Farmer, Executive Director, Alameda County Complete Count Committee at casey.farmer@acgov.org.

Clifford L. Williams

Posts by Clifford L. Williams

Activism

Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

Published

17 hours ago

April 26, 2024

Oakland Post

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Alameda County

DA Pamela Price Stands by Mom Who Lost Son to Gun Violence in Oakland

Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018.

Published

4 days ago

April 22, 2024

Oakland Post

District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones

Publisher’s note: Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018. The photo was too small for readers to see where the women were and what they were doing. Here we show Price and Jones as they complete a walk in memory of Scott. For more information and to contribute, please contact Carol Jones at 510-978-5517 at morefoundation.help@gmail.com. Courtesy photo.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Bay Area

State Controller Malia Cohen Keynote Speaker at S.F. Wealth Conference

California State Controller Malia Cohen delivered the keynote speech to over 50 business women at the Black Wealth Brunch held on March 28 at the War Memorial and Performing Arts Center at 301 Van Ness Ave. in San Francisco. The Enterprising Women Networking SF Chapter of the American Business Women’s Association (ABWA) hosted the Green Room event to launch its platform designed to close the racial wealth gap in Black and Brown communities.

Published

6 days ago

April 20, 2024

Oakland Post

American Business Women’s Association Vice President Velma Landers, left, with California State Controller Malia Cohen (center), and ABWA President LaRonda Smith at the Enterprising Women Networking SF Chapter of the ABWA at the Black Wealth Brunch.

By Carla Thomas

The Enterprising Women Networking SF Chapter of the American Business Women’s Association (ABWA) hosted the Green Room event to launch its platform designed to close the racial wealth gap in Black and Brown communities.

“Our goal is to educate Black and Brown families in the masses about financial wellness, wealth building, and how to protect and preserve wealth,” said ABWA San Francisco Chapter President LaRonda Smith.

ABWA’s mission is to bring together businesswomen of diverse occupations and provide opportunities for them to help themselves and others grow personally and professionally through leadership, education, networking support, and national recognition.

“This day is about recognizing influential women, hearing from an accomplished woman as our keynote speaker and allowing women to come together as powerful people,” said ABWA SF Chapter Vice President Velma Landers.

More than 60 attendees dined on the culinary delights of Chef Sharon Lee of The Spot catering, which included a full soul food brunch of skewered shrimp, chicken, blackened salmon, and mac and cheese.

Cohen discussed the many economic disparities women and people of color face. From pay equity to financial literacy, Cohen shared not only statistics, but was excited about a new solution in motion which entailed partnering with Californians for Financial Education.

“I want everyone to reach their full potential,” she said. “Just a few weeks ago in Sacramento, I partnered with an organization, Californians for Financial Education.

“We gathered 990 signatures and submitted it to the [California] Secretary of State to get an initiative on the ballot that guarantees personal finance courses for every public school kid in the state of California.

“Every California student deserves an equal opportunity to learn about filing taxes, interest rates, budgets, and understanding the impact of credit scores. The way we begin to do that is to teach it,” Cohen said.

By equipping students with information, Cohen hopes to close the financial wealth gap, and give everyone an opportunity to reach their full financial potential. “They have to first be equipped with the information and education is the key. Then all we need are opportunities to step into spaces and places of power.”

Cohen went on to share that in her own upbringing, she was not guided on financial principles that could jump start her finances. “Communities of color don’t have the same information and I don’t know about you, but I did not grow up listening to my parents discussing their assets, their investments, and diversifying their portfolio. This is the kind of nomenclature and language we are trying to introduce to our future generations so we can pivot from a life of poverty so we can pivot away and never return to poverty.”

Cohen urged audience members to pass the initiative on the November 2024 ballot.

“When we come together as women, uplift women, and support women, we all win. By networking and learning together, we can continue to build generational wealth,” said Landers. “Passing a powerful initiative will ensure the next generation of California students will be empowered to make more informed financial decisions, decisions that will last them a lifetime.”