Testimony of Gilberto Amaya before the DC Council

March 26, 2019

Honorable Members of the DC Council; Ladies and Gentlemen: Good morning.

My name is Gilberto Amaya, and I am a member of the National Advisory Committee on Race and Ethnicity (NAC) for the US Census Bureau, but I am also a member of the Afro-Latino community, and it is in that capacity that I appear before you today. I am not representing NAC.I am here to testify in favor of Mayor Bowser proposed budget of $2.5 million for the DC census efforts to ensure a complete count. This is of great importance for us in the Afro-Latino community because of the current invisibility of Afro-Latinos as a distinct segment of the larger Hispanic population. Our population is considered among the “hard to count populations” by the Census Bureau and, as such, our communities are missing on the benefits including policies, representation, investments and services—health, education, housing—associated with being counted; our living conditions and specific needs are often not known; and our potential contributions ignored.

Our indicators are lost within the averages created for the larger Hispanic population, while—like in Latin America—we can be found at the bottom of the socio-economic ladder. Our populations are poor and vulnerable. A recent article from the Census Bureau reporting lower levels of poverty among Hispanics may not be applicable to Afro-Latinos, whose indices may be similar or lower than those for African-Americans.In Latin America, the Afro-descendant population is estimated at about 150 million, or about 30% of the total population of the region. In the United States, according to research by the Census Bureau, only 2.5% of respondents to a survey self-identified as Black/Hispanic.

According to the National Survey of Latinos carried out by the Pew Research Center in October of 2014, with a sample of 1,500 Hispanic adults, 24% self-identified as Afro-Latino, when asked the question directly, which is closer to the reality in Latin America. However, the survey also highlighted a high level of confusion between race and origin. Current figures represent a significant undercounting of Afro-Latinos in the country. We are concerned that the lack of clarity regarding the question on race and ethnicity, along with other challenges including online filing of Census forms to save resources at the Census Bureau, and a question regarding citizenship, will make it more difficult to ensure participation of already hard to count communities.

This will become a hindrance to achieving a complete count in the 2020 Census. We believe that appropriate financing can help overcome these challenges by allowing for special outreach efforts to our communities through targeted special messaging and imaging to promote greater participation, and the necessary follow up to achieve the commitment by the District to social and racial equity “the District must continue to ensure that the most vulnerable populations are counted and that District Policies continue to support the diversity that makes DC great.” A special outreach effort will require a greater financial commitment.Finally, I would like to mention the International Decade of Peoples of African Descent: Recognition, Justice and Development (2015 - 2024) proclaimed by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 2013. The important pillars of the Decade cannot be fulfilled in the absence of specific data, and this begins with an accurate and complete counting in the Census.

The District has the opportunity to become a leader in addressing the Afro-Latino issues in the 2020 Census and beyond by working with partners like Sustainable Development and Climate Change (SUDECC) and other organizations like La Union DC, DC Afro-Latino Caucus already doing great work within the Afro-Latino community of the District. The Afro-Latino population is estimated at 73,000 individuals with high concentrations in Columbia Heights, Adams Morgan, U Street and Mt. Pleasant, in Wards 1 and 4. The Afro-Latino organizations are interested in collaborating with the census efforts of the Complete Count Committee of the District of Columbia as trusted voices in their respective areas of operations.

Thank you very much for the opportunity. I would be pleased to answer your questions.