Washington, D.C. March 6, 2020. As Mexico prepares to include the self-identification question for its Afro-descendant population for the first time in its 2020 census, various Afro-Mexican organizations have launched the campaign “#AfroCensoMX”, which seeks to encourage all black, Afro-Mexican and Afro-descendant people living in Mexico to resoundingly say “Yes” to self-identification in the 2020 census later this month.

The campaign is being promoted by the Mexican organization COPERA (the Collective to Eliminate Racism in Mexico), with the backing of the Kellogg Foundation and the support of various civil society organizations in Mexico. The purpose of the campaign is to highlight the significance of self-identification for the Afro-Mexican population, which will allow for accurate statistics to be documented on population head count, density, location and living conditions, and will help produce relevant policies that resolve the issues that these communities face, to guarantee their rights and status of equality.

The International Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights is working hand in hand with COPERA and Afro-Mexican leaders to promote a clearer statistical representation of the Afro-Mexican, Black and Afro-descendant population.

We invite you to find out more about the campaign on the website: https://afrocenso.mx/ and to join this initiative with the hashtag #AfroCensoMX.