Amid National Reckoning, Americans Divided on Whether Increased Focus on Race Will Lead to Major Policy Change
Views of how Black people are treated vary widely across racial and ethnic groups
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- Amid National Reckoning, Americans Divided on Whether Increased Focus on Race Will Lead to Major Policy Change
- Americans have mixed views of the long-term effects of increased focus on racial inequality
- Most Black adults say they’ve taken steps to educate themselves on history of racial inequality and to support minority-owned businesses
- Growing share of Black and Hispanic adults say the country hasn’t made enough progress on racial equality
- Among those who say the country hasn’t made enough progress on racial equality, no clear consensus on most effective measures to take
- About a third of Americans say increased focus on race represents a major change
- About half of the public says focus on racial issues will result in policy and societal changes
- Black adults paying more attention to issues of racial equality than White, Hispanic or Asian adults
- About half of Americans say they’ve been paying more attention to issues of race in recent months
- A majority of Americans say at least some of their conversations about race cross racial boundaries
- Black adults are more likely than other racial or ethnic groups to say they’ve done a lot recently to educate themselves about racial inequality
- About two-thirds of Black adults say they’ve supported minority-owned businesses in recent months
- A majority say at least some of their friends, family have taken to social media to express opposition to racism or inequality
- Mix of motives seen for posting about opposition to racism on social media
- Younger adults more likely to say their friends or family posting about opposition to racism on social media are motivated by social pressure
- About half of U.S. adults say it’s very important for people to educate themselves about the history of racial inequality in the country
- About half of Americans now say country hasn’t made enough progress on racial equality for Black people
- Most Black adults who say the country hasn’t made enough progress on racial equality are skeptical that it will
- Black adults who say the country hasn’t made enough progress on racial equality are more likely than their White and Hispanic counterparts to view several measures as very effective in reducing inequality
- Republicans are more likely than Democrats to cite ‘colorblindness’ as doing a lot to reduce racial inequality
- Majorities of Americans say being Black, Hispanic puts people at a disadvantage in our society
- Growing shares of Black adults say being White helps, being Black hurts people’s ability to get ahead
- Americans are more likely now than in 2019 to say Black people are treated less fairly when seeking medical treatment
- Large shares of Black adults and White Democrats say people overlooking discrimination is a bigger problem than people seeing it where it doesn’t exist
- About three-quarters of Black adults say not enough attention is paid to race
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