Blanca Soto: Did you know southwest Kansas is a hard-to-count community?

Under counting is particularly common in Latino communities, which presents a problem for towns in southwest Kansas like Garden City and Dodge City, where according to census data, Latinos account for more than 60% of the population. Under counted minorities, such as Middle Easterners, East Africans, Asians and of course Latinos, list language barriers, fear, confidentiality concerns and a distrust of our government as pressing concerns that keep them from participating in the census.
Many Latinos residing in southwest Kansas who are hesitant of participating in the census feel that sharing personal data with anyone from the government means worrying what might happen to their information or themselves.
Considering what is at stake for southwest Kansas, local organizations aggressively are working to ensure an accurate count.
(Read more: News – The Garden City Telegram)