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Michigan
ministers
embrace
new
mission
as
influential
messengers:
promoting
2020
census
Clergy
calling
on
congregants
to
celebrate
‘Census
Sundays’
in every
corner
of the
state
LANSING
– Faith
leaders
across
Michigan
are
uniting
to help
answer
the
appeals
of
leaders
of the
state’s
2020
Census
“Be
Counted”
campaign
who are
looking
to
increase
census
participation
on
Sundays,
which
data
show is
the
lowest-performing
day of
the week
for
responses.“We’re
thrilled
that
ministers
representing
various
and
diverse
religious
communities
throughout
Michigan
are
voluntarily
offering
to use
an array
of
creative
tactics
to
encourage
their
congregants
to
complete
the 2020
census,”
said
Dion A.
Williams,
director
of Gov.
Whitmer’s
Faith-Based
Affairs
Office.
“Pastors,
priests,
imams
and
rabbis
from
Baptist,
Catholic,
Methodist,
Lutheran,
Church
of God
in
Christ,
Islamic
and
Jewish
congregations
are
stepping
up to
make
their
voice
heard
among
their
worshippers
regarding
the 2020
census,
its
significance
and
other
information,”
Williams
said.
“The
goal is
to
ensure
every
Michigan
resident
knows it
takes
only 10
minutes
to
complete
the
census –
but
those 10
minutes
can
improve
local
communities
in every
corner
of
Michigan
for the
next 10
years.”
The new
emphasis
on
ministerial
messaging
comes as
data
from the
U.S.
Census
Bureau
shows
fewer
Michiganders
complete
the
census
on
Sundays
than any
other
day of
the
week,
with an
average
of 4,000
responding
on
Sundays
in 2020.
Over a
six-week
span
since
April
19, for
example,
a
combined
total of
24,000
census
responses
have
come on
Sundays
compared
with an
average
of more
than
65,000
responses
on other
days.
Across
the
U.S.,
the
outbreak
of the
coronavirus
pandemic
has
interrupted
plans to
get as
many
people
as
possible
to
participate
in the
count,
which
determines
how much
federal
money
goes to
communities.
The
outbreak
and
subsequent
orders
by
states
and
cities
to stay
home and
avoid
other
people
came
just as
census
workers
were
about to
ramp up
efforts
to drive
response
rates.
In
Michigan,
nonprofits
and
civic
organizations
directing
census
outreach
efforts
are
pivoting
to
digital
strategies.
Texting
campaigns,
webinars,
social
media
and
phone
calls
are
replacing
door-knocking,
rallies
and
face-to-face
conversations.
But the
change
from
grassroots
tactics
to more
“virtual”
outreach
activities
comes at
a cost:
Experts
say
connecting
with
trusted
community
leaders
in
person
is the
best way
to reach
people
in
hard-to-count
groups
that may
be wary
of the
federal
government.“That’s
why
we’re so
grateful
that
Michigan’s
faith
leaders
are
helping
serve as
trusted
messengers
who can
dispel
some of
the
myths
that
exist
about
the
census
and
provide
accurate
information,”
said
Kerry
Ebersole
Singh,
director
of
Michigan’s
2020 “Be
Counted”
campaign.Several
churches
in the
Christian
community
are
hosting
televised
or
online
praise
breaks
every
Tuesday,
Wednesday
and
Saturday,
as well
as Bible
study,
to draw
attention
to the
census.
“I’m
urging
the
residents
of my
community
to
become
involved
by
mentioning
that the
census
brings
vital
resources
that our
community
needs,”
said the
Rev.
Carnel
Richardson
of New
Prospect
Missionary
Baptist
Church
in
Detroit.
For each
uncounted
person
in the
decennial
census
count,
Detroit
stands
to lose
an
estimated
$5,500
per
person –
or
$55,000
over 10
years –
in
federal
aid,
according
to city
estimates.
Detroit
receives
about $3
billion
in
funding
for
federal
programs
each
year.
Those
federal
programs
range
from
Medicare
and
Medicaid
to free
lunch at
schools,
Head
Start
and
roads.
The
count
helps
set
hospital
funding,
and it
could
determine
how much
of the
coronavirus
vaccine
goes to
communities
once one
is
developed.
“My
church
is in
the
heart of
the city
and
located
in an
area
that is
one of
the
epicenters
of
COVID-19,”
Richardson
said.
“Therefore,
I
continue
to share
with my
congregation
and my
community
that
it’s
more
important
now than
ever to
ensure
everyone
is being
counted
in this
census.”
Detroit
Mayor
Mike
Duggan’s
administration
and
Oakland
County
officials
last
week
teamed
with
such
influential
leaders
as
Bishop
Edgar
Vann II
of
Second
Ebenezer
Church
in
Detroit,
Bishop
Charles
Ellis
III of
Greater
Grace
Temple
in
Detroit
and the
Rev.
John
Tolbert
of
Trinity
Missionary
Baptist
Church
in
Pontiac
to
include
census
information
in more
than
58,000
food
commodity
boxes
that
were
distributed
from
churches
to
indigent
metro
Detroit
residents.Virtual
Census
Sundays
are also
taking
place
within
many
religious
communities.
Census
Sunday
allows
for
those in
the
congregation
to
complete
the
census
for
their
household
and pass
along
any
census-related
information
to
friends
and
family
who may
not be
able to
attend
services.
That
push
will
accelerate
as more
clergy
determine
it’s
safe to
reopen
houses
of
worship
and
resume
public
gatherings
in
compliance
with
orders
by state
and
local
officials.In
addition,
members
of the
Catholic
community
have
sent out
fliers
and
booklets
statewide
with
information
regarding
the
census,
reaching
over
40,000
Michigan
households,
according
to
Michigan
Catholic
Conference
(MCC)
President
and CEO
Paul A.
Long,
who
serves
as a
member
of Gov.
Whitmer’s
2020
Complete
Count
Committee
that is
helping
coordinate
the “Be
Counted”
campaign.“Unfortunately,
research
has
found
that too
many
people –
including
young
children,
those
experiencing
homelessness
or
poverty
and
those in
densely
populated
urban
areas –
are
typically
undercounted,”
Long
said.
“So, we
are hard
at work
identifying
barriers
to
census
participation
and
developing
potential
solutions.”MCC
created
a census
awareness
website
with
free
resources
for
church
bulletins
and
social
media
graphics
for
parishes
to use,
at
www.micatholic.org/2020Census/.
The MCC
resources
were
also
made
available
in
Spanish.
A few
more
examples
of
actions
Long
cited
that
religious
leaders
are
employing
to boost
census
turnout
include
addressing
community
misconceptions,
sharing
information
about
census
confidentiality
protections,
providing
internet
access
or
in-person
visits
to those
who need
it while
maintaining
safe
social
distancing
and
offering
translators
or
materials
in
different
languages.The
“Be
Counted”
campaign’s
Virtual
“7 Day”
Challenge
is
another
popular
event
happening
in
religious
communities
throughout
Michigan,
noted
Bishop
Dennis
J.
McMurray,
Senior
Pastor
of the
Renaissance
Church
of God
in
Christ
of Grand
Rapids.
The
for-fun
challenge
requires
churches
to keep
track of
how many
people
in their
congregation
complete
the
census
during a
specified
7-day
span,
with the
winner
getting
bragging
rights.
“Pastors
are
intentionally
engaging
one
another
and have
developed
accountability
partnerships
to
ensure
that the
Census
2020
initiative
remains
active
in the
pulpit,
the pew
and the
community,”
McMurray
said.
“We all
realize
that our
efforts
today
will
impact
quality
of life
tomorrow.”
The
census
is more
convenient
to
complete
than
ever
before
by mail,
by phone
and –
for the
first
time –
online.
The
census
asks
only
nine
basic
questions:
name,
age,
gender,
ethnicity,
race,
number
of
people
in the
household,
anyone
additional
in your
house as
of April
1, if
you own
or rent
your
home and
phone
number.
Statewide,
more
than 4.3
million
Michigan
residents
are
estimated
to be
hard to
count or
less
likely
to
complete
the 2020
census,
as
measured
by
federal
data on
expected
response
rates.
In 2010,
78% of
the
state’s
population
completed
the
census.
On
Wednesday,
May 27,
the U.S.
Census
Bureau
reported
66.8% of
Michiganders
had
completed
the
census,
ranking
fourth
best in
the
nation.
###
Learn
more
about
the 2020
census
at
michigan.gov/census2020/
and
www.2020census.gov.
You can
also
visit us
on
Facebook,
Twitter
and
Instagram.
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