The majority of Americans (58%) say race relations are bad in the U.S. and that expressing racist views has become more common under President Trump (56%), according to a new study by the Pew Research Center.
Details: Three-quarters of black and Asian Americans, as well as 58% of Hispanics, said they have experienced bias or discrimination — unjust or prejudicial treatment because of their race or ethnicity. Just a third of white people said the same. Black people were consistently most likely to report experiencing various kinds of discrimination and bias.
- In only two instances were black people not the most likely to have experienced discrimination: Asians were the most likely to say they were the brunt of racial slurs or jokes at 61%, while white people reported the highest levels of people assuming they were "racist or prejudiced."
- Most adults agree the legacy of slavery continues to have an impact on black Americans. But while 78% of black respondents said the U.S. has not gone far enough in giving equal rights to black Americans, only 37% of white respondents agreed with them.
- Americans are also least likely to say black and white Americans get along, compared to other racial and ethnic groups.
1 big trend: White Americans are not only the least likely to experience discrimination, but they also most often miss the impact of racial discrimination and bias on others.
- White Americans were the only racial or ethnic group with a majority (50%) that said "too much attention is being paid to race,” according to the survey.
- They were far less likely than black Americans to say discrimination is a major obstacle to black people's success or that black people are treated unfairly in stores, restaurants or in pay and promotions.
- White Americans were also the least likely to recognize their own privilege. 56% said that being white helps you get ahead in the U.S, compared to 69% of black Americans and 72% of Asians who said that being white helps.
White people's views on race varied greatly by political party. For example, 77% of white Republicans said the bigger issue in the U.S. is seeing “discrimination where it does not exist” — rather than not recognizing real discrimination. 78% of white Democrats found the opposite to be true.