2010 U.S. Census Form Coming in March 15-17

A Call to Action for Every Burmese in the U.S.: “Be Counted.”

The U.S. government counts the population every 10 years and uses Census data to allocate federal funds. Census data also guides local decision makers in important community planning efforts, including where to build new roads, hospitals, and schools.

Your Census questionnaire should arrive in the mail during the period of March 15-17, 2010. Be sure to take a few minutes to complete the 10-question Census questionnaire and encourage your friends and family to do the same.

Census Facts:

♦The U.S. Constitution requires the federal government to count the population every 10 years.

♦Responses to the 2010 Census questionnaire are required by law.

♦All responses are used for statistical purpose only, and all are strictly confidential.

♦Everyone residing in the United States – in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands – is included in the 2010 Census.

Completing the 2010 Census Questionnaire: Simple and Safe

• The 2010 Census questionnaire asks only a few simple questions of each person – name, relationships, gender, age and date of birth, race, and whether the respondent owns or rents his or her home. This simple, short questionnaire takes just a few minutes to complete and return by mail.

• Currently, the Burmese population in the United States is unknown. Due to a lack of data   collected by the year 2000 U.S. Census, the Burmese people have been neglected, over-looked, and hard-to-reach. As a result, both the BCCC and U.S. Census Bureau have formed a partnership to obtain a complete count for the Burmese (Myanmar) population and improve access to community resources that benefit the Burmese (Myanmar) American Community in the United States.

What does Burmese mean?

• Burmese in general means everyone who is a descendent from current Burma or Myanmar.According to this definition, all ethnic groups and tribes who originated from the country Burma or Myanmar are included.

The Census is the picture we draw of ourselves.Let’s work together with unity to achieve the mission statement of 2010 Census, “Achieving a complete and accurate 2010 Census is in our hands”.This is a once in a decade chance for our voices to be heard. Please join us in helping our community be counted.

“Yes, We Can Count!”