The City of Portland, in partnership with the U.S. Census Bureau, today released two locally produced Public Service Announcements to encourage Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) households to fill out their 2010 Census forms. Portland is the only city in the nation to produce a public service announcement in partnership with the U.S. Census Bureau to conduct outreach to the LGBT community about the Census and changes to its format.
The project raises awareness of how the 2010 Census will count LGBT households. Concerned that these communities might not be targeted in traditional Census marketing, former Census Bureau Partnership Specialist, Niva Bennett, reached out to the Mayor’s office—the only government office in the region with a liaison to the LGBT community, Clay Neal.
“Each year, about 4.5 billion dollars are expended in Oregon based on federal Census data,” said Mayor Sam Adams. “Accurately counting our LGBT community means Portland will receive its fair share of targeted federal funds to support LGBT-related programs and services.”
Initially, representatives of the Mayor’s Office and the U.S. Census Bureau collaborated to produce the videos through the Bureau’s Partnership Support Program, which paid for Kurz Design & Productions to produce the two spots (in addition to in-kind donations from Kurz Design & Production.) The PSAs, April Snapshot and Boxed In can currently be viewed by the public and downloaded from YouTube.
“I’m proud of our messaging and its effectiveness,” said Niva Bennett. “We were able to produce a campaign for a community that otherwise might have been left out.” The PSAs underscore that the Census is about how the individual identifies, not how other people identify them.
A release party will be held at the Q Center (4115 N. Mississippi Ave.) on March 18, 2010 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Attendees will include Mayor Sam Adams, Multnomah County Commissioner Deborah Kafoury, the filmmakers and the PSA cast and crew. All are welcome to attend this free, family-friendly event.
“It’s all about ownership,” said Michael Kurz, PSA director. “The Census questionnaire enables people to own their identities.”
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CONTACTS:
Roy Kaufmann
Office of Mayor Sam Adams
503-823-4799
roy.kaufmann@ci.portland.or.us
Andrew McIlrath
Partnership Specialist, U.S. Census Bureau
503-507-0491
andrew.p.mcilrath@census.gov
