We were honored to serve as the fiscal agent and backbone for the Census Equity Funders Committee of Oregon (CEFCO) and the affiliated Oregon Census Equity Fund (OCEF). OCEF was a private-public pooled fund of $9.6 million to support Oregon’s Hard-to-Count Campaign, We Count Oregon.
The We Count Oregon campaign (the first Black, Indigenous, and People of Color led campaign in the history of Oregon statewide campaigns) designed a multi-pronged strategy, in partnership with existing social justice organizations as well as community ambassadors, to make the connection between participating in the Census and money, power and representation. The collective effort resulted in a 2.3% increase in the overall self-response rate in Oregon for 2020 compared to 2010. Oregon’s tribal communities represented the highest level of undercount in 2010, but in 2020 we saw a 7.94% increase in Oregon’s tribal self-response rate. The success of these efforts are seen in the resulting data showing an increase of Oregonians who identify as BIPOC or multiracial.
Thanks to the work of We Count Oregon and CEFCO, Oregon will receive a 6th congressional seat and we now have a more accurate representation of Oregon’s increasingly diverse communities.