The Fly Jock Tom Joyner stopped at the Wal-Mart SuperCenter on South Tryon Street in Charlotte yesterday to help spread awareness about the U.S. Census. His stop was part of a 14-city bus tour that he and the rest of the Tom Joyner Morning Show are making to cities across the country to encourage people to be counted in the 2010 Census.
“”I’m using my microphone and national audience to raise awareness for the 2010 Census specifically to the African-American community,” says Joyner. “Since the last Census count our community has been disproportionately affected by hurricane displacement along the gulf coast and housing foreclosures across the country. My listeners need to know how important it is now more than ever that they respond to the Census so our community can get the dollars they need to support them, wherever they may be.”
The only civic event that includes every person in the country, the Census is the basis for America’s representative democracy, ensuring that Congress is fairly reapportioned every 10 years between the states. Census counts are also used to redraw state and local legislative boundaries so that political representation is fairly distributed across their changing populations. Asking just 10 questions and taking about 10 minutes to complete, 2010 Census forms began arriving in 120 million mailboxes across the nation on March 15th. Participating in the census is required by law for everyone living in the United States and all census responses are confidential. The census mailing package includes a cover letter, the 2010 Census form and a postage-paid return envelope.
The Census efforts of the Tom Joyner Morning Show are being supported by its parent company REACH Media, Inc. as well as the NAACP, the National Urban League, the National Action Network, and the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation.
