WASHINGTON, DC – Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, released the following statement in response to the Supreme Court’s decision to hear the challenge to the Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross’s decision to add a citizenship question to the 2020 Census:
“The facts in this case are extremely strong and we are confident that the Supreme Court will issue the right ruling in this case. The record in these cases provide overwhelming evidence that the administration’s goal in adding a citizenship question was to discourage and deter immigrants and communities of color from participating,” said Kristen Clarke, President and Executive Director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. “At the end of the day, the censuscount stands as one of the most critical constitutional functions our federal government performs and this administration has taken extraordinary steps to jeopardize the possibility of achieving a full and fair count. The Commerce Department’s addition of the citizenship question runs contrary to the constitution and conflicts with data provided by Census Bureau scientists that makes clear that an undercount would be the inevitable result. The administration’s claim that the citizenship question is needed to help enforce the Voting Rights Act is not only false but fully at odds with an administration that has proven hostile to minority voters at every stage.”
The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law has mounted a challenge to the administration’s decision to add the citizenship question to the 2020 Census.
About the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, was formed in 1963 at the request of President John F. Kennedy to involve the private bar in providing legal services to address racial discrimination. Now in its 55th year, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law is continuing its quest to “Move America Toward Justice.” The principal mission of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law is to secure, through the rule of law, equal justice for all, particularly in the areas of criminal justice, fair housing and community development, economic justice, educational opportunities, and voting rights. Learn more at Lawyerscommittee.org.
CONTACT: Derrick Robinson, Director of Communications, Drobinson@lawyerscommittee.org, (202) 662-8317
