The 2010 Census has to become totally inclusive by identifying Transgender, Bisexual, Lesbian and Gay people. Yes, people will have to out themselves but for those of us living in the margins we have to have a voice.Statistically, Transgender people are an unknown. If known, I suspect the numbers would be shocking and a wake up call.
by Will O'Bryan....The 2010 U.S. Census probably won't secure as profound a place in history. It may nonetheless have some impact on the future of American society, with a particular nod to gay Americans.Just how great a nod is open to debate.From Darlene Nipper, the D.C.-based deputy executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force: "I think it's a big step. I hope our community will not underestimate it."On the other hand, Mara Keisling, executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE), working out of the same Thomas Circle office building as Nipper, has a different view."It in no way counts LGBT people. It doesn't even pretend to count trans people," she says. "I don't think we're making much progress at all from 2000."........While Keisling's NCTE and Nipper's Task Force are both part of the large number of organizations making up the Our Families Count coalition -- with much of the work fueled by research from Gary Gates of The Williams Institute, UCLA School of Law -- officially launched last month and pushing for LGBT visibility in the census, the Task Force itself has launched a project a bit more radical: Queer the Census.Despite Nipper's upbeat assessment of the 2010 tally, the Queer the Census (queerthecensus.org) literature is decidedly less optimistic."It's crazy -- the U.S. Census Bureau wants an accurate count of everyone in the country -- but there's no question in the survey that asks if you are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender," reads the welcome message on the Queer the Census website. "LGBT people are basically invisible….".....
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