Today, April 1, is National Census Day. There's certainly a lot of pain and uncertainty in the world right now, and Equality North Carolina is hoping to cut through the noise and help you understand why the Census is so important for LGBTQ folks and other marginalized groups.

If you have already completed the short questionnaire, thank you, and please encourage your family and friends to do the same. The questionnaire only takes a few minutes and asks for basic information (age, sex, race, type of housing, etc.) for all people living in your household, including young children. You can complete the questionnaire online at www.My2020census.gov, by mail or over the phone at 1-844-330-2020.

Although the Census doesn't explicitly ask about our sexual orientation and gender identity, it is still critical for us to be counted on the 2020 Census. We need to be counted so our communities can get access to federal funds for programs like SNAP, Medicaid and public housing, have representation in our state, local, and federal government and enforce our civil rights.

The National LGBTQ Task Force has put together a handy guide to answer all of your questions here. We'll also be sharing videos and information on our Facebook and Twitter in the coming weeks in order to help get the word out about the importance of the 2020 Census.

For our trans and gender nonconforming family: The Census includes a question about "sex," but provides only two responses: male or female. Some people – especially nonbinary people – may decide not to respond to the sex question because it doesn't allow them to self-identify their gender appropriately. This could be the best choice for you, but leaving questions blank increases the likelihood that someone from the Census Bureau will follow up with you to complete the missing answers. If the Census Bureau doesn't or can't get in touch with you, Census statisticians will "impute" a response -- meaning they'll guess what the answer is and fill it in on the survey. While advocates continue to push the Census Bureau for more gender options, we want you to be able to make an informed choice about how to respond.

Completing the Census is part of how we build power to change the Census moving forward! It's on all of us to make sure that our communities are counted.