A majority of Americans think lifetime ban and fine imposed on Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling was the right punishment, but the public is more divided on whether Sterling should be forced to sell the team. … Black Americans (71 percent) are more likely than whites (52 percent) to […] Read more »
Are White Republicans More Racist Than White Democrats?
The comments made by Cliven Bundy and Donald Sterling this month demonstrate that the U.S. is far from a colorblind society. And the reaction to their comments has drawn further attention to the fraught relationship between racism and partisan politics. When racist statements by high-profile figures are made public, some […] Read more »
Polling on racism is complicated
From a pollster’s perspective, racism is a tough nut to crack. Is there any proven and tested battery of questions that will measure racism? For that matter, is racism a single construct, or is it a multidimensional phenomenon that renders measurement nigh impossible? Reading the comments allegedly said by L.A. […] Read more »
Cliven Bundy: Racism entwined with government antipathy
Conservatives would like us to believe that hatred of government and racism are totally separate phenomena. That one has nothing to do with the other. They’re wrong. Resentment of the federal government and racism have gone hand-in-hand in the United States for 200 years. CONT. Bill Schneider (George Mason U.), […] Read more »
Americans On the Use of Race as a Factor in College Admissions
The Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld the state of Michigan’s ban on considering race as a factor in admissions to the state’s public colleges and universities, government contracting, and public employment. … This whole area of focus on affirmative action is not only controversial, but also complex and somewhat difficult […] Read more »
Answers on Affirmative Action Depend on How You Pose the Question
Polling about affirmative action and racial issues is inherently difficult, and responses differ rather widely based on question wording. As a result, both sides in the debate are able to promote poll numbers that suggest a majority of Americans agrees with them. In the wake of Tuesday’s Supreme Court decision […] Read more »