Tuesday, November 24, 2020

Life as a Census Enumerator


Many have asked what my time with the Census was like; this article, though lengthy, is WORTH YOUR TIME. It doesn't matter what side of the aisle you sit on..  If you or someone you know failed to respond to the Census whether by mail or by a trusty Census worker, as the article points out, it is "like walking past a $5 bill everyday for a decade" that is close to the amount of funding your state, city, or town stands to lose. That isn't all though, as we see with states like Alabama possibly set to lose a seat in the house. 

Maybe by 2030 we will all understand how impossible but important something so traditional and created so far back in history is still a very real part of the fabric of our federal existence. If you don't want to provide the door to door census takers the needed information, MAIL IN YOUR Questionnaire by April 1st. Even then understand they may be at your door to verify a neighboring property or home has been vacant, abandoned,  or whatever the situation may be. 
  
Missing 1% of the count may not sound important but as we see the data come piling in and start to lose the funding for vital community services, watching it sent to other vital areas that showed a significant rise in population, when businesses look at these tallies and decide not to build or operate in a specific area because the data showed a dramatic drop in a particular age group, remember how important the Census still is. That even flawed, it holds a great importance, so important it was a job held by US Marshall's and still today has the option to be punished by law for refusing to comply or assist Census workers. Your community may be hit hard and then again, it may benefit you. I have no clue the results and how they stand to change our lives. I just know it will. 

 I personally know more than 50 people (which is a very small picture as thousands were doing the same as us, just in a different part of the country, battling wildfires, a pandemic, violent and dangerous dislike of our very existence for the oath we took) who stopped our lives to provide the most accurate and honest count of the communities we were assigned, working 10-12 hours a day 10-20 days straight. Traveling and working door to door through hurricanes, record wildfires, civic unrest, huge partisan complications, high political frustration and government mistrust, All i can say now, as I see all the fighting, court cases, and congressional meetings, I am confident I did the very best and honest job that I could possibly do.

It is frustrating to see the comments and bashing of this census. Because I know that so many of us set out to do a job, took an oath, and stood behind those to make sure we did our very best. To make sure the data the NRFU agents provided them, was honest, exact, and correct to the very best of their ability.  

So PLEASE take the time to read this article, start educating yourself, your kids, your family and friends that the Census is VITAL to us all. Schools, hospitals, community outreach programs, and just about every business operates based on population and it is important to make sure EVERY SINGLE PERSON COUNTS! Even all those ancestry programs rely heavily on your responses. I for one am proud to know that 70+ years from now, my future generations will know we migrated from Alabama from the 2010 and 2020 census data. They will have an accurate and descriptive idea of our family and where we were during this time in history.  
Article link below. (Great read)
 

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Warzone

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