By Carol Stiffler
When a U.S. Census Bureau worker was on the ground in Curtis recently, word of what he may be doing spread like wildfire.
Some people became convinced the Census worker was there to scope out vacant housing for 1,000 illegal immigrants that will soon be bussed to Curtis. The Curtis and Newberry area has been named a sanctuary for illegal immigrants, the rumor persists. The immigrants will soon take over our vacant housing, churches, and hotels, and will overwhelm our modest resources. This rumor went viral on Facebook, getting shared more than 80 times to date.
That isn’t what’s happening, Census representatives said.
“I can confidently tell you that any Census Bureau workers in the area are not looking for housing for immigrants,” a spokesperson for the bureau said, “as it is not within our scope of responsibilities. Their presence may be for any number of reasons, since we conduct more than 120 surveys a year, many of which involve face-to-face visits with respondents.”
In addition to the well-known decennial surveys, most recently completed in 2020, the bureau gathers civic data to create accurate depictions of the nation’s communities.
One current Census Bureau survey is the American Community Survey (ACS), which targets random citizens in a community to try to understand their financial situation, job commute, disability status, and more. Some homes in the Curtis and Newberry area have recently received ACS letters and questionnaires. By law, this survey must be completed by each recipient.
If a household representative doesn’t complete the questionnaire online, one is sent to them in the mail. If it’s still not completed, a bureau worker will visit the home and attempt to complete an interview asking the questions in person.
On-site visits by US Census Bureau workers for reasons like that could happen in any year, even if it’s not time for a decennial census. The data gained in these surveys and home visits is valuable for government, business, and individual purposes, and the information is anonymized to protect personal privacy.
Concerns about illegal immigration and busloads of undocumented immigrants aren’t necessarily unfounded. The New York Times reported in July that, over the past two years, Texas Governor Greg Abbott sent more than 119,000 illegal immigrants to cities across the United States. Those immigrants were sent to destinations like Chicago, New York, and Washington, D.C.
In February of this year, a bus with 19 undocumented immigrants left the Traverse City area and deposited them in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. They were briefly held by law enforcement before being released. Their whereabouts are unknown at this time.
Church officials in Newberry and Curtis have been fielding questions from concerned members of the congregation, some of whom fear their church will be purchased for immigrants. None of the areas local churches are presently for sale, and local clergy are certain this won’t happen.
Mackinac County Sheriff Ed Wilks said a Census worker raised suspicions in Curtis about six months ago. Wilks got the worker’s name and called the US Census Bureau, where a representative confirmed the man was genuinely employed by the bureau and was in Mackinac County doing survey work.
“The Census doesn’t actually stop,” Wilks said. “It does continue year round.”
Wilks said the worker was tasked to sort out situations where individuals reported to the Census Bureau that they reside in one community but actually live in another.
As for busloads of immigrants coming to Curtis, Wilks is sure that is a rumor—one that was certainly heightened after the recent debate between former President Donald Trump and current Vice President Kamala Harris. Trump repeated an unfounded rumor that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, were eating local pets.
“Nothing has been brought to my attention at this point,” Wilks said about the Curtis rumor Luce County Undersheriff Mike Peters echoed Wilks’ statement.
“I haven’t heard a peep of any of this,” Peters said. “Sounds like a rumor, and I would assume it’s unfounded.”
Newberry Village Manager Allison Watkins said her office hadn’t been contacted about the rumored situation, either.
Information about current Census activity is available at www.census.gov, including a detailed list of what surveys are ongoing, and an explanation for each question asked.
All Census Bureau employees are given an identification badge and will have field equipment with the Census Department logo clearly visible. Badge information can be verified by citizens at the census.gov website, or by calling the U.S. Census Bureau Chicago Regional Office at (630) 288-9200.
Meanwhile, suspicion of Census Bureau employees can make their important work more difficult.
“It does pose challenges to our field enumerators, but our job is also to educate the public,” another Bureau spokesperson said. “We have supporting resources we can share with them so they can look further into the activity.”
