John,

Late yesterday, the U.S. House passed xenophobic anti-immigrant legislation 206-202 that would require the U.S. Census Bureau to ask citizenship questions in future censuses.¹ This would have a chilling effect on immigrant participation in the census, creating a massive undercount of people in communities throughout the country.

This bill is unconstitutional because it runs contrary to the 14th Amendment, which requires the apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives to be based on a count of “the whole number of persons in each state.”

Such questions in the census would result in the undercounting of millions of immigrants―the majority of whom are lawfully in the U.S. In fact, it is estimated that such a question would risk excluding 5.5 million children who are U.S. citizens, but have at least one undocumented parent.²

This undercount of millions of people will also impact the allocation of $2.8 trillion in federal assistance to states, local communities, and families annually.

We need to make sure this bill never gets a vote in the U.S. Senate. Donate today to help keep the pressure on the Senate to squash this right-wing legislation that is nothing more than a political attack on vulnerable communities.

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Together, we’re pushing back against xenophobic legislation that harms immigrants for pure political gain.

Dominique Espinoza
Policy and Strategic Partnerships Manager, Coalition on Human Needs

¹ Roll Call 193 | Bill Number: H. R. 7109
² Immigration reform can keep millions of mixed-status families together

-- DEBORAH'S EMAIL --

John,

The U.S. House is preparing to vote today on a xenophobic bill that, if passed, would result in a massive undercount of immigrants in the U.S. census. This unconstitutional attack on immigrants would impact the apportionment of seats to the U.S. House. But that’s not all.

By adding a citizenship question to the U.S. census, this right-wing bill would create an environment of fear for immigrant and mixed-status families, resulting in a massive undercount of immigrants in communities across the country, impacting the allocation of $2.8 trillion in annual federal assistance.

It would also exclude up to 5.5 million children from the census who are U.S. citizens, and who have at least one undocumented parent.¹ That’s why we’ve already sent more than 15,000 messages to Congress, urging them to oppose this bill.

Donate today to power our efforts and help keep the pressure on both the House and Senate to reject a xenophobic citizenship question in the U.S. census.

Most immigrants in the U.S. are here lawfully, and all immigrants pay taxes―whether they’re sales taxes or income taxes, or both.

We’re demanding Congress see this legislation for what it is: a cruel and callous way to inflict harm on vulnerable communities for an assumed political gain.

Power our efforts opposing this unconstitutional bill that attacks immigrant communities.

If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your secure donation will go through immediately:

Thank you for your support in fighting for vulnerable people and communities.

Deborah Weinstein
Executive Director, Coalition on Human Needs

¹ Immigration reform can keep millions of mixed-status families together