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We're Counting On You r Answer The Census
By Joyce E. James
It is time again to take a cen
sus count of the many millions
of Americans in our country.
This year 'Census Day' starts
April 1, 1980.
Taken every ten years, cen
sus figures are important
because they influence
political representation and
the allocation of Federal and
State monies to programs that
can benefit our families, neigh
bors and communities.
In a recent speech by former
Secretary of Commerce
Juanita Kreps to the U.S. Con
ference of Mayors, she said:
"It is vital that you make the
census count part of your per
sonal agenda, beginning now.
This single event may have
more to do with how (com
munities) are treated in State
Houses and in Congress
during the next decade than
any other single activity in
which you are engaged. Help
us get out the count the way
you would get out the vote."
1980, A VERY IMPORTANT
YEAR FOR BLACKS
Calling 1980 a very im
portant year for Black people,
Eugene Baker, president of the
National Association of Black
Manufacturers urged Blacks to
stand up and be counted in the
1980 census.
In making the appeal, Baker
said that census figures will be
used to allocate over 50 billion
dollars in Federal, State and
local funds for numerous
programs that directly affect
Black Americans, including
programs dealing with
education, employment,
health, housing, and economic
development.
To promote public
cooperation with the 1980 cen
sus, mayors and other chief
elected officials throughout
the nation have been asked by
the Bureau of the Census, U.S.
Department of Commerce to
establish voluntary Complete
Count Committees. Their task
is to develop ways of
promoting the census and the
importance of a complete
count to the community.
Among suggested activities
committee members can per
forms are making speeches
on behalf of the census,
distributing census promo
tional posters and flyers,
urging other citizen groups
to support the census, and
translating census promo
tional materials into other
languages where needed.
New York, Baltimore, New
Orleans, Phoenix, and Detroit
have already established Com
plete Count Committees. It
was the successful Detroit ex
perience with a similar
citizens' group during the 1970
census that prompted the Cen
sus Bureau to adopt the idea
nationally for the 1980 census.
Twenty-three Complete
Count Committee technicians
have been hired to advise local
governments on setting up the
committees. They will be
stationed in the Bureau's 12
regional census centers. They
are Atlanta, Boston, Char
lotte, Chicago, Dallas, Den
ver, Detroit, Kansas City
(Kan.), Los Angeles, New
York City, Philadelphia, and
and Seattle.
1980 census, a new program
giving cities a chance to
request 1980 census statistics
for neighborhoods has been
announced by the Bureau of
the Census. The new
program—Neighborhood Sta
tistics Program—emerged in
response to the recent rise of
neighborhoods as officially
recognized areas. The new
program will provide a wealth
of data useful to neighborhood
leaders, city planners, and
others.
These statistics on the
socialeconomic characteristics
of neighborhood populations
can be used in applications for
federal and other programs,
such as community develop
ment block grants, and to for
mulate programs needed by
the neighborhoods. The
Bureau will prepare guides bn
the use of the data, develop
case studies to show how to
apply them to neighborhood
problems, and conduct
workshop sessions for data
users.
Many people are wary of
giving out information they
consider personal, but census
information is confidential. By
law, no other agency—in
ternal revenue, welfare,
police, immigration, landlord,
FBI, etc., can have access to
your personal information.
Census information is used
only for statistical purposes.
The 1980 census will be
taken largely by mail. Each
housing unit in the
nation—estimated at 86
million—will receive a census
questionnaire on Friday,
March 28. Depending on in
structions, householders will
be asked either to complete the
questionnaire and mail it back
in a postage-free envelope on
Tuesday April 1, or to keep
the answered form until a cen
sus taker picks it up.
“* Smoking
By Tamara Macon
Americans who were per
suaded not to smoke by health
warnings about cigarettes are
gaining an average of two ex
tra years of life.
Today's smoker lives an
average of three months
longer than those before the
warning, because the lower tar
and nicotine level of the newer
"light cigarettes" are' less
hazardous according to a
federal report by the Federal
Trade Commission.
Smoking is one of the
human race's more curious
and paradoxical habits.
Maryland Laster, 43-years-
old, admits smoking since high
school some 26 years ago.
Maryland says she's "sorry she
ever took to tobacco and
warns her offspring not to
follow her mistake".
Smoking is supposed to kill
the taste buds, but Denise
Field, 22, a college student,
says that "after enjoying her
meals she must enjoy a cigar
ette or two".
Denise also notices that
when she consumes alcohol
she has a tendency to smoke
more. These smoking, habits
persist for several reasons.
Smoking is both physiolo
gically and psychologically
addictive—facts that can be
verified by hundreds of thou
sands of regular smokers who
tried to quit and failed to do
so.
People light-up cigarettes
when they feel nervous,
bored, under pressure, but
most of the time, relaxed and
content.
Both Maryland and Denise
started smoking because of
pressure, peer pressure.
"During that time that was the
thing to do", they said. But
now they smoke to relax them
selves and satisfy their taste.
Many of those .who, haven!t
quit, even though it's a known
fact that smoking contributes
to cancer, have turned to
"light cigatettes" with less tar
and nicotine. These new light
cigarettes haven't helped the
decrease in tobacco smoking,
a health surgeon stated but,
only gives smokers an excuse
for not quitting and teenagers
an excuse to start.
Donald Wilson, just turning
17-years-old says he started
smoking the new light cigar
ettes a year ago. His reason
for starting is left unanswered.
The only answer given is why
he started with the light
cigarette "I figured that I
would have a better chance
not getting cancer", Donald
said.
Inspite of all the excuses
smoking continues to cause
respiratory diseases and can
cer.
The percentage of death
rates caused by cancer are
down compared to the per
centage during the 1950's and
1960's studies and doctors
state.
A True Companion
By Susan J. Ashe
The American Black has
forever remained the nation's
largest minority holding
many of the problems of
racial discrimination and
poverty in his lonely black
palms. But the black race
will soon have another com
panion, the Hispanic, to
share his discomforts with.
The growth of the Hispanic
population reflects a nation
that has been well docu
mented in Time and News
week magazines. For the past
five years American residents
of the Hispanic origin have
increased in number by
fifteen percent. The predic
tion is that within the next
ten years, Hispanics will be
come the nations largest mi
nority. The United States
already receives over 2,000
illegal aliens each year, and
of that 2,000, fifty percent of
them are of the Hispanic
origin.
Hispanics initially were
drawn to New York, Miami,
Atlanta, San Francisco and
other large cities in search of
jobs. As they established their
new homes, relatives and
friends followed, increasing
the Hispanic population and
eventually producing the
second largest minority—
soon to be the first.
Betty Smith, resident of Los
Angeles, - California com
ments, "A large number of my
friends on the job and off are
Hispanics. I'm constantly
meeting Hispanics everywhere
I go."
San Francisco, Los Angeles
and San Diego all located in
California are largely affected
by the Hispanic race. One of
the main faults is that Mexico
borders California and the
border patrol is constantly
slacking in their efforts.
Many people don't realize
that at the present time,
Hispanics make up the coun
try's second largest minority,"
explains Carey McWilliams,
author of Spanish Speaking
People of the United States.
All this could cause a
serious problem. The Atlanta
Journal states, "The unem
ployment rate has tremen
dously risen." Where Blacks
could once get a job, being a
minority, the Hispanics are
filling these large corporations
minority quoatas.
Another problem is the
language barrier. "A classic
example of this relates to the
police department," said
Micheal Rivas, Supervisor of
Field Operations. As the story
was told, a Hispanic man was
trying to explain that nothing
was wrong to the police officer
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