File #: 23-1387    Version: 1 Name: A RESOLUTION REQUESTING A MEETING OF THE COOK COUNTY LEGISLATION AND INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS COMMITTEE TO DISCUSS ASIAN AMERICAN AND MENA DATA COLLECTION
Type: Resolution Status: Approved
File created: 2/3/2023 In control: Legislation and Intergovernmental Relations Committee
On agenda: 2/9/2023 Final action: 5/25/2023
Title: PROPOSED RESOLUTION A RESOLUTION REQUESTING A MEETING OF THE COOK COUNTY LEGISLATION AND INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS COMMITTEE TO DISCUSS ASIAN AMERICAN AND MENA DATA COLLECTION WHEREAS, Cook County is one of the largest and most racially, ethnically and linguistically diverse counties in the country; and WHEREAS, Cook County Government is committed to supporting equitable, inclusive and accessible government; and WHEREAS, Cook County Government must collect accurate data to understand and serve the specific needs of its diverse communities; and WHEREAS, Asian Americans include people whose origins and ancestries lie in East Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Indian subcontinent; and WHEREAS, Asian Americans include over 20 ethnicities speaking 2,300 languages and dialects; and WHEREAS, there were approximately 409,000 Asian American residents in Cook County representing 7.7% of the County's population according to the 2020 US Census; and WHEREAS, Asian Americans experienced a 28.2...
Sponsors: JOSINA MORITA, FRANK J. AGUILAR, ALMA E. ANAYA, SCOTT R. BRITTON, JOHN P. DALEY, BRIDGET DEGNEN, BRIDGET GAINER, MONICA GORDON, BILL LOWRY, DONNA MILLER, STANLEY MOORE, KEVIN B. MORRISON, SEAN M. MORRISON, ANTHONY J. QUEZADA, MAGGIE TREVOR
Attachments: 1. 1 Offices Under the President, 2. 2 CCSO Sheriff, 3. 3 Assessor, 4. 4 Board of Review_, 5. 5 AA MENA Clerk of the Circuit Court, 6. 6 Cook County Clerk Presentation, 7. 7 Office of the Chief Judge, 8. 8 State's Attorney, 9. 9 Treasurer Office, 10. A Public Defender's Office, 11. B Cook County Health

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PROPOSED RESOLUTION

 

A RESOLUTION REQUESTING A MEETING OF THE COOK COUNTY LEGISLATION AND INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS COMMITTEE TO DISCUSS ASIAN AMERICAN AND MENA DATA COLLECTION

 

WHEREAS, Cook County is one of the largest and most racially, ethnically and linguistically diverse counties in the country; and

 

WHEREAS, Cook County Government is committed to supporting equitable, inclusive and accessible government; and

 

WHEREAS, Cook County Government must collect accurate data to understand and serve the specific needs of its diverse communities; and

 

WHEREAS, Asian Americans include people whose origins and ancestries lie in East Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Indian subcontinent; and

 

WHEREAS, Asian Americans include over 20 ethnicities speaking 2,300 languages and dialects; and

 

WHEREAS, there were approximately 409,000 Asian American residents in Cook County representing 7.7% of the County’s population according to the 2020 US Census; and

 

WHEREAS, Asian Americans experienced a 28.2% population increase, the highest population growth rate in Cook County between 2010 and 2020, according the US Census Bureau; and

 

WHEREAS, Cook County recognizes Asian Americans as a minority group; and

 

WHEREAS, Cook County recognizes the rise in anti-Asian hate and discrimination; and

 

WHEREAS, Cook County does not comprehensively or consistently collect data on Asian Americans; and

 

WHEREAS, MENA is a collective term for people whose origins and ancestries lie in the Middle East and North Africa; and

 

WHEREAS, MENA include 24 nationalities and ethnicities; and

 

WHEREAS, according to an analysis by AMVOTE PAC, there were approximately 167,000 registered MENA voters in Cook County; and

 

WHEREAS, Illinois has the 4th largest MENA population in the US and the Chicago Metropolitan area is home to the fourth largest urban concentration of MENA populations in the US, according to 5 Year American Community Survey data 2010-2014; and

 

WHEREAS, Cook County recognizes that the MENA community experienced a rise in hate and discrimination following 9/11 and subsequent US conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq; and

 

WHEREAS, MENA individuals are currently subsumed under the white Race category by the US Census Bureau, per directive of the US Office of Management and Budget; and

 

WHEREAS, the identification of MENA individuals as white does not reflect the identity or lived experiences of the MENA community; and

 

WHEREAS, Cook County does not collect data on MENA identified persons; and

 

WHEREAS, the lack of comprehensive and consistent data on Asian Americans and MENA population hinders Cook County’s ability to understand and serve these communities;

 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Board of Commissioners request the Offices Under the President and separately elected offices come before the Legislation and Intergovernmental Relations Committee to detail current Asian American data collection practices as well as the operational capacity for future MENA data collection; and

 

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that these offices meet with and provide a detailed report on their current data collection practices including any data collection documents that ask for racial or ethnic demographic information, whether they include Asian American or MENA categories or not, and provide these to the resolution sponsor(s) and the Legislation and Intergovernmental Relations Committee Chair for distribution to the Cook County Board of Commissioners prior to their appearance before the Committee.end