LULAC Calls Confirmation Historic Of First Latino U.S. Census Director
Nation's Largest and Oldest Latino Civil Rights Organization Hails Appointment of Robert Santos, a Top Latino Statistician with Texas Roots
Washington, DC - The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) applauded the Senate confirmation Thursday of Robert Santos to serve as Director of the U.S. Census Bureau. Santos is a third-generation Mexican-American from San Antonio, Texas. He will lead the agency responsible for providing critical population data to shape the nation's federal policies and programs. Santos became the first Latino appointed to head the Census Bureau in its 119-year history since becoming a federal agency, although the first count of the nation's population dates to 1790.
“Our country saw what happened with the 2020 Census count under President Trump and how he weaponized it against our community,” says Domingo Garcia, LULAC National President. “The Census Bureau and the American people deserve to have someone who is an impartial statistics scientist, instead of a politician interfering with the agency’s important work. We congratulate Robert, who began his journey as a student at a community college in San Antonio, went on to achieve undergraduate and graduate degrees, and then built a 40-year career in policy research. He has pledged to lead the agency with scientific independence and integrity. LULAC looks forward to working with him.”
Santos is Vice-President and Director at the Urban Insitute, a Washington, DC research organization. His bio notes, "His expertise spans quantitative and qualitative research design, sampling, survey operations, and statistical analysis, and his specialty areas include undocumented immigrants and other disadvantaged populations. Santos has worked across a wide range of policy areas, including education, health, immigration and refugees, environmental issues, housing discrimination, travel behavior, and elections.
“Texas LULAC is very proud of Mr. Santos’ stellar career and this appointment because it proves what hard work, dedication, and talent in our community can achieve,” says Rodolfo Rosales Jr., Texas LULAC State Director. “As importantly, his life experience ensures that our country’s Census Bureau will have a career policy research expert as the permanent director. He has pledged not to be swayed by the political winds. His words are a commitment that all Americans can respect and should have, especially when diversity is changing the face of our country. At stake are billions of dollars in federal budget programs as well as making sure we have equal representation in government,” he added.
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About LULAC
The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is the nation’s largest and oldest Hispanic civil rights volunteer-based organization that empowers Hispanic Americans and builds strong Latino communities. Headquartered in Washington, DC, with 1,000 councils around the United States and Puerto Rico, LULAC’s programs, services, and advocacy address the most important issues for Latinos, meeting the critical needs of today and the future. For more information, visit https://lulac.org/