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More than four-in-ten Americans say the country still has work to do to give black people equal rights with whites. Blacks, in particular, are skeptical that black people will ever have equal rights in this country. Americans generally think being white is an advantage in society, while about half or more say being black or Hispanic hurts people’s ability to get ahead. Opinions are more mixed when it comes to what impact, if any, being Asian or Native American has.
Most adults, regardless of race or ethnicity, say blacks are treated less fairly than whites in encounters with police and by the criminal justice system, but there’s less consensus about the treatment of blacks in other situations, such as when applying for a loan or mortgage or in stores or restaurants.
This chapter also explores what Americans see as obstacles for black people getting ahead as well as attitudes about what impact, if any, the legacy of slavery has on the current status of blacks. A majority of adults say that being white helps people’s ability to get ahead in the country at least a little (59%); 28% say being white neither helps nor hurts and 12% say it hurts. On the flip side, a majority (56%) sees being black as a disadvantage, with 25% saying it hurts people’s ability to get ahead a lot. About a quarter (26%) say being black neither helps nor hurts and 17% say it helps at least a little.
More also say that being Hispanic hurts people’s ability to get ahead in this country (51%) than say it helps (18%) or that it neither helps nor hurts (30%). Opinions are more split when it comes to the impact of being Native American – about the same shares say these hurts as say it neither helps nor hurts, while a smaller share says it helps. And while a plurality says being Asian neither helps nor hurts, more say it helps (34%) than hurts (21%) people’s ability to get ahead. Majorities across racial and ethnic groups say being white helps one’s ability to get ahead, though Asians (73%), blacks (69%) and Hispanics (61%) are more likely than whites (56%) to say this.
Among whites, education and partisanship are linked to perceptions of white advantage. About three-quarters of whites with at least a bachelor’s degree (72%) say being white helps at least a little, compared with 52% of those with some college experience and 43% of those with a high school education or less.
White Democrats and those who lean toward the Democratic Party are about twice as likely as white Republicans and Republican leaners to say being white helps one’s ability to get ahead (78% vs. 38%). Meanwhile, 22% of white Republicans say being white hurts people’s ability to get ahead at least a little (compared with 3% of white Democrats). White Democrats are more likely than black Democrats to say whites have an advantage (78% vs. 71%).
Among blacks, 76% of those with a bachelor’s degree or more education say being white helps a lot, compared with 61% of those with some college and 49% of those with a high school diploma or less education (a majority in this group – 57% – says being white helps at least a little). And while about six-in-ten blacks ages 30 and older say there’s a lot of advantage in being white, about half (49%) of those younger than 30 say the same (again, majorities of blacks across age groups say being white helps at least a little). Asked about the extent to which being black helps or hurts one’s ability to get ahead, 68% of blacks and 64% of Asians say being black hurts at least a little; 55% of whites and half of Hispanics say the same. Blacks are more likely than other racial or ethnic groups to say being black hurts a lot: 42% say this vs. a third or fewer among Asians, whites and Hispanics.
Among whites, blacks and Hispanics, those with at least a bachelor’s degree are more likely than those with less education to say race hurts blacks’ ability to get ahead. Some 81% of black college graduates and 74% of those with some college say this, compared with 57% of those with less education.
White Democrats and white Republicans differ widely in their perceptions of the challenges blacks face. About three-quarters of white Democrats (77%) say being black hurts people’s ability to get ahead at least a little; 36% of white Republicans say the same. Three-in-ten white Republicans – vs. 8% of white Democrats – say being black helps.
While blacks are more likely than people in most other racial and ethnic groups to say being black is a hindrance in getting ahead, just the opposite is true for Hispanics. Hispanics are the least likely to say being Hispanic hurts people’s ability to get ahead. Fewer than half of Hispanics (46%) say this, while higher shares of Asians (59%) and whites and blacks (52% each) say the same.
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