Abstract
This chapter sets forth the legal basis of the U.S. decennial census and the several U.S. national sample surveys, and gives an historical account of the questions on language use, proficiency in English, literacy, and the array of census and survey questions that may be employed to describe ethnicity in the United States.
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Notes
- 1.
Selected statutory uses: as of 2002:
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Older Americans Act—42 USC 3002(27)–(30), 3026(a)(1);
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Public Health Service Act—42 USC 254b(b)(3)(A) and (B), 254 e(b) and (d) and 254f-1;
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Voting Right Act—Bilingual Election Requirements—42 USC 1973aa-1a;
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Equal Employment Opportunity Act—42 USC 2000e.
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References and Suggested Readings
Chiswick, B. R. (1998). Census language questions in North America. Journal of Economic and Social Measurement, 25, 73–95.
Stevens, G. (1999). A century of U.S. censuses and the language characteristics of immigrants. Demography, 36(3), 387–398.
Siegel, P., Martin, E.A., & Bruno, R. (2001). Language use and linguistic isolation: Historical data and methodological issues (pp. 167–190). In Statistical policy working paper 23: 2000 seminar on integrating federal statistical information and processes. Washington, DC: Federal Committee on Statistical Methodology, Office of Management and Budget.
U.S. Census Bureau/J.G. Gauthier. (2002). Measuring America: The decennial census from 1790 to 2000. Washington, DC: U.S. Census Bureau.
U.S. Census Bureau. (1983). Appendix B, 1980 census of population, general population characteristics, Part 1, “U.S. Summary.” PC 80 1–81. Washington, DC: U.S. Census Bureau.
U.S. Census Bureau. (2003). Appendix B, 2000 census of population and housing. Summary: Social, economic, and housing, selected appendixes. PHC-2A.Washington, DC: U.S. Census Bureau.
U.S. Census Bureau. (2010). Subjects planned for the 2010 census and American community survey: Federal legislative and program uses. United States Census 2010: Washington, DC: U.S. Census Bureau.
U.S. Census Bureau. (2014). Chapter 5: Content development process. In American community survey: Design and methodology. Washington, DC: U.S. Census Bureau.
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Siegel, J.S. (2018). Language Inquiries in U.S. Censuses, National Sample Surveys, and Other Collection Instruments. In: Demographic and Socioeconomic Basis of Ethnolinguistics. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-61778-7_4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-61778-7_4
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