US President Donald Trump has abandoned his bid to put a controversial citizenship question on the 2020 census, after outrage from civil rights groups. However, he vowed he would find a way to count immigrants in the US.
Image: Reuters/C. Barria
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US President Donald Trump backed off from his push to ask about citizenship on the upcoming census in 2020 on Thursday, but said he would continue his push to tally non-citizens using other means.
"We are pursuing a new option to ensure a complete and timely count of the non-citizen population," the president told a press conference at the White House.
The move comes two weeks after the Supreme Court blocked the question, saying in their 5-4 decision that the Trump administration's arguments were "contrived."
Trump pushed back, saying last week that he was considering postponing the census or pushing the issue with an executive order, which would have been met with an immediate legal challenge.
On Thursday, Trump said he'd directed federal agencies to count the number of immigrants currently living in the US by using existing databases. Democrats and civil rights groups said they will be assessing the legality of Trump's latest attempt to tally non-citizens.
Critics argued that the citizenship question was geared towards boosting financial and political power for RepublicansImage: picture-alliance/M. Nigro
Why is the US Census important?
It's a major nationwide survey that is carried out every 10 years and is mandated by the US Constitution. It counts the number of people currently living in each US household and asks about each person's sex, race and age.
The census data is key for calculating the number of seats in the US House of Representatives that are allocated to each state. The more populous a state, the more representatives it gets in the lower chamber of Congress.
The data is also used to distribute some $675 billion (€599 billion) in federal spending, including money for law enforcement, public schools, Medicaid benefits and road repairs.
What was controversial about Trump's question?
Civil rights groups and Democrats staunchly opposed including the question, which was removed from the census more than 60 years ago.
Officials with the US Census Bureau said that the question could stop between 1.6 million to 6.5 million immigrants from participating in the survey or answering honestly. That would be particularly the case for undocumented immigrants fearing deportation.
With fewer immigrants taking part in the survey, the population data would have gone down in areas that are more likely to vote Democratic — thereby giving a financial and political boost to Republicans.
Trump argued on Thursday that citizenship data would help states that "may want to draw state and local legislative districts based upon the voter-eligible population." This would make a massive change from the current system of drawing districts based on the total populations of those areas.
Mexican deportees return to home city they never knew
Under President Donald Trump more and more undocumented migrants are being deported. Many of them have spent half their lives in the US. Every week three planes of deportees arrive in Mexico City. Sanne Derks reports.
Image: DW/S. Derks
A bitter arrival
The planes arrive at a special gate at Mexico City airport. These undocumented migrants are deported from the detention centers in the US in handcuffs and put on planes. Twenty minutes before landing they are released.
Image: DW/S. Derks
Illegal alien
George Niño de la Riviera found out he was living illegally in the US when he turned 18 and applied for a job. He was told he did not have a social security number. He was taken to the US by his parents when he was a baby and grew up there. Five months ago he was deported, having spent the last 34 years in America. His four children are living with his ex-wife in Fresno.
Image: DW/S. Derks
A foreign country
Maria Herrera, 27, was deported on April 10. She was waiting for the renewal of her Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) visa when she got involved in a car crash. She was arrested and taken to jail where she was detained for two months, before being deported. She was three years old when she left Mexico — a country that is totally foreign to her.
Image: DW/S. Derks
Starting from scratch
She met George at New Comienzos, a non-profit organization that assists repatriated people, and they started dating. "It's great to have a special friend who went through all of this too," she told DW. Neither of them knew anything about Mexico. While in detention Maria suffered depression and anxiety attacks. Now they're trying to find their way around Mexico City.
Image: DW/S. Derks
Detained and deported
As a result of a fight he had in 2003 with an ex-girlfriend, Diego Miguel Maria, 37, was arrested and then deported in 2016.
Image: DW/S. Derks
"Dump Trump and his wall"
Along with five other recently deported Mexicans, he was able to qualify for funding from the Mexican government to start a textile printing press. They call their brand Deportados and print statements on bags and T-shirts like: "Dump Trump and his wall."
Image: DW/S. Derks
A helping hand
Diego's job won't make him rich, but it allows him time to volunteer and help new deportees at the airport. "I felt so lost when I got through that door. I think it is important to guide those who are in the same shoes," he told DW. The most difficult part was leaving his son behind, who lived with him before he was deported. His ex-wife doesn't allow him to maintain contact with his son.
Image: DW/S. Derks
Starting over
Daniel Sandovan was deported in February, but appears relaxed about it. "In America I could never really invest in a future, because I had no documents. What use is an education if nobody is going to hire? Here in Mexico I have the possibility to start over. I will be able to have a wife and children without fear of losing them," he told DW.
Image: DW/S. Derks
Settling in
Daniel lives in a home for refugees above the Deportados Brand print shop. A pastor in his church organized his initial stay with a 75-year-old woman who picked him up from the bus station in Mexico City. "I stayed [with her] for two weeks, painted the house, and then I contacted Deportados Brand, after I heard that they help migrants in the detention center. Now I live here with two others."
Image: DW/S. Derks
Looking on the bright side
Although most of them do not know where they'll be sent and worry that they could lose everything in a split second, the upheaval doesn't always end badly. "It feels like my life in the States was overshadowed by fear and sadness because of my legal status. Now there's less of a burden, as I am finally free and I feel at home," Maria told DW.
