Don’t slash our census: CAJ

The Canadian Association of Journalists is calling out the Harper
government to scrap plans to weaken the census. In a press release the CAJ writes:

“The mandatory long form census produces a wealth of independent, reliable, in-depth data for journalists and for the public. It allows journalists to follow immigration, poverty and housing trends, cover local elections more effectively, test the effectiveness of government programs and uncover stories Canadians might not otherwise see.

” “Journalists use census data every single day to give context to news stories and help Canadians understand their communities,” CAJ president Mary Agnes Welch said. “Doing away with the mandatory long form will effectively kill a source of information that makes governments more accountable and citizens better informed. This  will be a blow to democracy.”

“The CAJ is calling on Industry Minister Tony Clement to reverse his decision to make the long form census voluntary.”