Important: The #2020Census is one of the most urgent civil rights issues facing the country — and right now, every person in America has the opportunity to help ensure the count is fair and accurate for all communities. This thread explains how (plus some background). 1/ The Census Bureau has invited the public to comment on the #2020Census, including the questions that will appear on the form. That means the American people can speak directly to the Trump administration about its misguided actions to undermine the integrity of the 2020 count. 2/

Five years ago, five justices on the Supreme Court invalidated key provisions of the Voting Rights Act that for decades protected voters in states with pernicious histories of voting discrimination. Don't forget what happened in the immediate aftermath of this appalling decision:

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by @civilrightsorg view original on Twitter

Within 24 hours of the decision, the conservative justices prompted a deluge of voter suppression legislation. Texas and Alabama announced plans to plow ahead with restrictive and previously blocked voter-ID laws. Weeks later, N.C. passed its monster voter suppression law.

BREAKING: DOJ docs prove that Kobach and Bannon are behind Census citizenship Q. Kobach emails say he talked to Sec Ross “at the direction of Steve Bannon.” In email, Kobach proposes specific language for the citizenship Q, says it’s essential” and “needs to be added to census.”

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by @hansilowang view original on Twitter

Also in these docs is internal memo from@Chief Scientist at Census Bureau to Sec Ross from Jan 2018: adding citizenship Q “is v costly, harms the quality of census count, and would use substantially less accurate citizenship status data than are available from admin sources.”

For more than 3 decades, we've enacted sentencing policies that are racially and ethnically biased and have contributed to incarceration on a scale that exists nowhere else in the world. Decades of past experience have shown that we cannot punish ourselves out of this crisis. 1/

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by @DrugPolicyOrg view original on Twitter

Unfortunately, the Trump administration is using the same broken playbook on criminal justice. They're seeking a decidedly punitive approach to America’s drug problem – one that seeks to increase already disproportionate sentences for drug offenses & employ the death penalty. 2/