Comcast NBCUniversal today announced that the Center for Latino Progress is the recipient of a $25,000 grant to bolster its efforts around the 2020 census, specifically for its work around developing and staffing a call center to conduct outreach within the Greater Hartford Area community. Given the disruption that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on individuals’ everyday lives, getting people to participate in the 2020 Census online from home is now more important than ever.
This grant is part one of 30 that have been distributed to community organizations and nonprofits around the country as they work to educate communities on the importance of completing the census. Many of these organizations are working diligently in local communities to help ensure everyone is counted.
“It’s going to take all of us — community, corporate, state, municipal and federal partners — working side-by-side to achieve a complete count in the 2020 U.S. Census. I applaud Comcast NBCUniversal for awarding the Center for Latino Progress this grant, which will allow us to better educate hard-to-count populations on the importance of responding to the Census and inform them of its impact on our community for the next decade. To date, more than 96 percent of Connecticut households have already responded to the Census because of our grassroots efforts. This grant will help us to ensure the remaining four percent are counted,” said Connecticut Lt. Governor Susan Bysiewicz.
“We could not be more grateful to Comcast for being a great community partner and committing to the long-term success of Hartford-area residents who will be impacted by the 2020 Census for the next decade,” said Yanil Terón, Executive Director of the Center for Latino Progress. “With their support, the Center for Latino Progress was able to organize teams of inner-city youth to serve as Census Ambassadors, who learned the importance of being counted and helped affect change within their personal networks to encourage a greater response to the Census.”
Center for Latino Progress’ grant is just one way that Comcast is leveraging its unique media and technology assets and programs to inform, engage and mobilize Americans to participate in the census. The Company also produced a suite of public service announcements currently running on NBC and Telemundo stations nationwide. The bilingual announcements were crafted in partnership with the U.S. Census Bureau to reach and engage with all demographics. The PSAs also are hosted on the X1 Census destination page, which answers questions, address concerns, and dispel myths about the census. To reach it, Xfinity customers can say, “2020 Census,” into their X1 Voice Remote.
Additionally, Telemundo, the nation’s leading media company serving Hispanics, has focused its energy to lead its own initiative focused on targeting Spanish-speaking individuals and Spanish-language communities. The Company’s Hazte Contar! (Get Counted!) initiative provides critical information for Telemundo’s audience to help raise awareness of the census process and connects them with local community partners. As part of this initiative, the Company created a bilingual website that answers questions, addresses concerns, and dispels myths about the census. The site platforms also includes a link to the U.S. Census Bureau’s website.
“We know that our communities are focusing on response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but we also understand the importance of educating and empowering people on the significance of participating in the 2020 Census so that all communities are represented,” said Dennis Mathew, Senior Vice President of Comcast’s Western New England Region, which is headquartered in Berlin, Connecticut. “That is why we are proud to support organizations like Center for Latino Progress, who are tackling this undertaking with passion and determination.”
To further support the 2020 Census, Comcast NBCUniversal is reminding individuals that, through the end of the year, anyone can use many of the Company’s Xfinity WiFi hotspots to complete the 2020 Census form for free. Hotspots are open as a result of their comprehensive response to COVID-19. While people should follow the guidance being provided to them by their local authorities for any public or outdoor location, they can review a map of Xfinity WiFi hotspots at www.xfinity.com/wifi. Once at a hotspot, individuals should select the “xfinitywifi” network name in the list of available hotspots and then launch a browser.
In addition to community impact grants, Comcast NBCUniversal Telemundo is also working, through its longstanding Internet Essentials program, to engage local communities and break down barriers of trust to help encourage participation in the 2020 Census. This effort includes a variety of educational and access initiatives, including distributing mailings to 15,000 local and national partners as well as 26,000 households, reaching tens of thousands of low-income families in communities with historically low census response rates.
