Race Relations in America
Posted By David On- 49.5% of white American registered voters polled think that immigration has a net negative effect on race relations, while 43.6% think that affirmative action has a net negative effect.
- 14.4% of urban respondents think their neighborhood needs less diversity.
- 84.2% of respondents have a positive view of MLK, as did 88.2% of respondents age 18-29.
- 92.2% of Democrats think that Trump had a negative effect on race relations, while 77.9% of Republicans think Biden has had a negative impact.
By David Zsutty
On January 16, 2024, Charlie Kirk challenged the Martin Luther King narrative, and by extension, the entire Civil Rights era paradigm.[1] [1] This took courage because MLK is venerated as the patron saint of multiculturalism. Questioning MLK’s legacy naturally leads to questioning other controversial subjects, such as the legacy of the Civil Rights era as a whole and the current state of race relations in modern America.
This prompted the Homeland Institute to conduct a poll on the broader subject of contemporary race relations and related topics such as the legacy of various public figures. This poll was conducted from January 25, 2024 through February 11, 2024, with 976 respondents who are characteristic of registered white American voters. Our margin of error was plus or minus 3%.
1. Race Relations in Modern America
We began by asking respondents a series of questions about race relations, delineating between race relations at the respondents’ school or work and outside of their school or work. The questions also delineated between whether they had more, about the same, or fewer interactions with people of a different race.
| Q1. If you have more interactions at your school or workplace with people whose race differs from your own compared to five years ago, which of the following statements best describes the quality of those interactions? | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | ||
| # | % | Democrat | Independent | Republican | Another | |
| I neither work nor attend school | 248 | 25.4% | 29.4% | 19.8% | 27.2% | 32.0% |
| Generally better than they were five years ago | 88 | 9.0% | 15.2% | 7.1% | 5.4% | 8.0% |
| Generally about the same as they were five years ago | 360 | 36.9% | 32.4% | 40.1% | 38.9% | 20.0% |
| Generally worse than they were five years ago | 46 | 4.7% | 1.0% | 4.7% | 7.6% | 12.0% |
| I have not had more of such interactions | 234 | 24.0% | 22.0% | 28.3% | 20.9% | 28.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
| Q2. If you have about the same number of interactions at your school or workplace with people whose race differs from your own compared to five years ago, which of the following statements best describes the quality of those interactions? | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | % | |
| # | Total | Democrat | Independent | Republican | Another | |
| I neither work nor attend school | 247 | 25.3% | 30.1% | 18.9% | 27.2% | 32.0% |
| Generally better than they were five years ago | 72 | 7.4% | 11.1% | 6.5% | 5.1% | 4.0% |
| Generally about the same as they were five years ago | 483 | 49.5% | 46.3% | 53.1% | 49.1% | 44.0% |
| Generally worse than they were five years ago | 54 | 5.5% | 0.7% | 5.9% | 9.5% | 8.0% |
| I have not had about the same number of such interactions | 120 | 12.3% | 11.8% | 15.6% | 9.2% | 12.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
| Q.3 If you have fewer interactions at your school or workplace with people whose race differs from your own compared to five years ago, which of the following statements best describes the quality of those interactions? | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | % | |
| # | Total | Democrat | Independent | Republican | Another | |
| I neither work nor attend school | 245 | 25.1% | 30.4% | 18.6% | 26.6% | 32.0% |
| Generally better than they were five years ago | 55 | 5.6% | 7.1% | 4.7% | 5.1% | 8.0% |
| Generally about the same as they were five years ago | 260 | 26.6% | 21.3% | 28.9% | 30.1% | 16.0% |
| Generally worse than they were five years ago | 39 | 4.0% | 1.7% | 3.2% | 6.3% | 12.0% |
| I have not had fewer such interactions | 377 | 38.6% | 39.5% | 44.5% | 32.0% | 32.0% |
| I don’t know | 0 | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
| Q.4 If you have more interactions outside of your school or workplace with people whose race differs from your own compared to five years ago, which of the following statements best describes the quality of those interactions? | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | % | |
| # | Total | Democrat | Independent | Republican | Another | |
| Generally better than they were five years ago | 111 | 11.4% | 17.2% | 9.1% | 8.5% | 8.0% |
| Generally about the same as they were five years ago | 411 | 42.1% | 41.2% | 39.8% | 46.8% | 24.0% |
| Generally worse than they were five years ago | 81 | 8.3% | 3.7% | 7.7% | 13.0% | 12.0% |
| I have not had more of such interactions | 373 | 38.2% | 37.8% | 43.4% | 31.6% | 56.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
| Q.5 If you have about the same number of interactions outside of your school or workplace with people whose race differs from your own compared to five years ago, which of the following statements best describes the quality of those interactions: | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | % | |
| # | Total | Democrat | Independent | Republican | Another | |
| Generally better than they were five years ago | 80 | 8.2% | 10.8% | 7.7% | 6.3% | 8.0% |
| Generally about the same as they were five years ago | 628 | 64.3% | 64.9% | 63.4% | 64.9% | 64.0% |
| Generally worse than they were five years ago | 76 | 7.8% | 3.7% | 7.1% | 12.0% | 12.0% |
| I have not had about the same number of such interactions | 192 | 19.7% | 20.6% | 21.8% | 16.8% | 16.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
| Q.6 If you have fewer interactions outside of your school or workplace with people whose race differs from your own compared to five years ago, which of the following statements best describes the quality of those interactions: | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | % | |
| # | Total | Democrat | Independent | Republican | Another | |
| Generally better than they were five years ago | 46 | 4.7% | 5.7% | 4.4% | 4.1% | 4.0% |
| Generally about the same as they were five years ago | 349 | 35.8% | 29.7% | 36.6% | 41.5% | 24.0% |
| Generally worse than they were five years ago | 70 | 7.2% | 5.7% | 4.7% | 10.8% | 12.0% |
| I have not had fewer such interactions | 511 | 52.4% | 58.8% | 54.3% | 43.7% | 60.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
There was a clear trend of Democrats reporting to have better interracial interactions compared to Republicans, and Republicans reporting to have worse interactions compared to Democrats. This trend was consistent inside and outside of school and work, and whether the number of interracial interactions was more, about the same, or less than five years ago.
Why might this be? Are white Republicans facing more discrimination from minorities based on their known or suspected party affiliation? Are white Republicans more candid about the effects of DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion), while Democrats have chalked it up to being “part and parcel” of a multicultural society? Do Democrats have better interracial social skills perhaps, or do they simply pander to minorities more? More research is needed on this subject, and we will explore this disparity in further detail in a future poll.
It was also surprising how significantly more respondents across the board think that race relations are about the same as they were five years ago compared to the number who think that they are now worse or better. This might be because five years ago was 2019, right before BLM unrest took off after George Floyd died, and while 2020 and its immediate aftermath was full of racial tension, those tensions may have subsided, been eclipsed by other issues, or come to be perceived as normal.
It may also be indicative of a broader psychological phenomenon in which the general public welcomes almost any slight reprieve after the deranged intensity of a “current thing” (COVID, BLM, January 6, etc.) and then comes to accept a slightly less-worse position as a “new normal” instead of demanding a full return to the status quo. This phenomenon is dangerous because it leads to a steadily rising tide in which reversals are either temporary, or were what the elites were aiming for all along, like a bartering merchant whose initial proposal is an unrealistic price which is intended to pave the way towards a desirable price.
Surprisingly, there was a trend of respondents reporting better quality interracial interactions if they had more of such interactions compared to five years ago. Are white Americans perhaps learning what to say and not say to other races the more they interact with them? This also requires additional research.
2. Neighborhood Diversity
We next asked respondents whether they think their neighborhood needs a lot more, a little more, a little less, a lot less diversity, or has about just the right amount of diversity.
| Q. 7 Which of the following statements best describes your neighborhood? | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | ||
| # | % | Democrat | Independent | Republican | Another | |
| My neighborhood needs a lot more diversity | 101 | 10.3% | 19.6% | 8.3% | 3.5% | 16.0% |
| My neighborhood needs a little more diversity | 211 | 21.6% | 30.4% | 23.9% | 9.8% | 36.0% |
| My neighborhood has about just the right amount of diversity | 590 | 60.5% | 49.0% | 58.7% | 74.7% | 40.0% |
| My neighborhood needs a little less diversity | 47 | 4.8% | 1.0% | 5.9% | 7.3% | 4.0% |
| My neighborhood needs a lot less diversity | 27 | 2.8% | 0.0% | 3.2% | 4.7% | 4.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
50% of Democrats said that their neighborhood needs either a lot more or a little more diversity, compared to 32.2% of Independents and 13.3% of Republicans. Almost half of Democrats and three quarters of Republicans said their neighborhood has just about the right amount of diversity. Virtually no Democrats said their neighborhood needs less diversity, compared to 9.1% of Independents and 12.1% of Republicans.
Urban environments tend to be more diverse, and when we broke out the results by whether respondents were urban, suburban, or rural, we found that increasing urbanization correlated with wanting a less diverse neighborhood among respondents of all party affiliations with 14.4% of urban respondents, 5.9% of suburban, and 6.4% of rural respondents saying they think their neighborhood needs less diversity. This suggests that proximity to diversity can breed contempt for it, but not at the levels one would imagine. Another possible explanation is that people can and do move to neighborhoods with desirable demographics.
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | % | |
| # | Total | Democrat | Independent | Republican | Another | |
| My neighborhood needs a lot more diversity | 101 | 10.3% | 19.6% | 8.3% | 3.5% | 16.0% |
| My neighborhood needs a little more diversity | 211 | 21.6% | 30.4% | 23.9% | 9.8% | 36.0% |
| My neighborhood has about just the right amount of diversity | 590 | 60.5% | 49.0% | 58.7% | 74.7% | 40.0% |
| My neighborhood needs a little less diversity | 47 | 4.8% | 1.0% | 5.9% | 7.3% | 4.0% |
| My neighborhood needs a lot less diversity | 27 | 2.8% | 0.0% | 3.2% | 4.7% | 4.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
| All Respondents by Area | % | % | % | |||
| # | % Total | Urban | Suburban | Rural | ||
| My neighborhood needs a lot more diversity | 101 | 10.3% | 7.2% | 9.2% | 15.1% | |
| My neighborhood needs a little more diversity | 211 | 21.6% | 20.6% | 20.4% | 25.1% | |
| My neighborhood has about just the right amount of diversity | 590 | 60.5% | 57.8% | 64.6% | 53.4% | |
| My neighborhood needs a little less diversity | 47 | 4.8% | 9.4% | 3.3% | 4.8% | |
| My neighborhood needs a lot less diversity | 27 | 2.8% | 5.0% | 2.6% | 1.6% | |
| Total | 976 | |||||
| Democrats by Area | % | % | % | |||
| # | % Total | Urban | Suburban | Rural | ||
| My neighborhood needs a lot more diversity | 58 | 19.6% | 10.0% | 17.3% | 39.6% | |
| My neighborhood needs a little more diversity | 90 | 30.4% | 25.7% | 31.2% | 34.0% | |
| My neighborhood has about just the right amount of diversity | 145 | 49.0% | 61.4% | 50.9% | 26.4% | |
| My neighborhood needs a little less diversity | 3 | 1.0% | 2.9% | 0.6% | 0.0% | |
| My neighborhood needs a lot less diversity | 0 | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | |
| Total | 296 | |||||
Urbanization correlating with wanting less diversity only applied to Independents and Republicans, however. While more urban democrats reported that their neighborhood had just the right amount of diversity compared to rural and suburban democrats, virtually no urban Democrats said that their neighborhood needs less diversity, with only 2.9% saying that their neighborhood needs a little less diversity, and zero saying it needs a lot less. This suggests that for Democrats, diversity is an absolute moral imperative, and they are unable or unwilling to connect diversity with issues such as crime, school quality, etc.
We also analyzed results by family status, but could not detect any clear trends.
| Family Status | |||||||
| Single without children | Single with children | Married without children | Married with children | Widowed or divorced without children | Widowed or divorced with children | Other | |
| My neighborhood needs a lot more diversity | 11.1% | 8.1% | 5.0% | 10.9% | 5.8% | 15.8% | 4.3% |
| My neighborhood needs a little more diversity | 22.3% | 22.6% | 25.7% | 19.9% | 25.0% | 19.2% | 21.7% |
| My neighborhood has about just the right amount of diversity | 56.4% | 61.3% | 59.4% | 63.1% | 67.3% | 59.2% | 65.2% |
| My neighborhood needs a little less diversity | 4.9% | 6.5% | 5.9% | 5.1% | 0.0% | 5.0% | 0.0% |
| My neighborhood needs a lot less diversity | 5.2% | 1.6% | 4.0% | 0.9% | 1.9% | 0.8% | 8.7% |
3. The Legacy of the Civil Rights Movement
We next asked respondents how familiar they were with Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, and Marcus Garvey, along with their effect on race relations in America. To begin, respondents overall had a positive view of MLK’s legacy, with Democrats having the highest view of MLK, with three quarters of Democrat respondents saying that MLK’s legacy had a positive impact on race relations, followed by Independents and then Republicans. Only 5.9% of Independents and 5.4% of Republicans said that MLK had either a minor or major net negative on race relations.
Additionally, the 18-29 age bracket had a more enthusiastic appraisal of MLK’s legacy compared to the 30-44 and 45-64 age brackets. 88.2% of respondents age 18-29 had a positive view of MLK, compared to 84.2% of all respondents. While the age brackets were not as tightly controlled for as party affiliation and ideology, the results are still suggestive, and especially since the 18-29 age bracket was better balanced for party affiliation and education level than the other age brackets.
| Q.11 Which of the following best describes the effect you think that Martin Luther King and his legacy have had on race relations in America: | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | ||
| # | % | Democrat | Independent | Republican | Another | |
| A major net positive | 585 | 59.9% | 75.3% | 58.1% | 46.2% | 76.0% |
| A minor net positive | 240 | 24.6% | 19.3% | 26.0% | 28.8% | 16.0% |
| About equally positive and negative | 89 | 9.1% | 2.7% | 8.0% | 16.8% | 4.0% |
| A minor net negative | 25 | 2.6% | 1.4% | 2.7% | 3.8% | 0.0% |
| A major net negative | 16 | 1.6% | 0.0% | 3.2% | 1.6% | 0.0% |
| I don’t know | 21 | 2.2% | 1.4% | 2.1% | 2.8% | 4.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
| Results by Age | ||||||
| % | % | % | % | |||
| 18-29 | 30-44 | 45-64 | over 65 | |||
| A major net positive | 70.4% | 58.3% | 51.3% | 66.5% | ||
| A minor net positive | 17.8% | 26.8% | 28.6% | 21.5% | ||
| About equally positive and negative | 5.9% | 8.5% | 12.1% | 7.7% | ||
| A minor net negative | 1.8% | 3.0% | 2.7% | 2.6% | ||
| A major net negative | 1.2% | 2.1% | 2.36% | 0.4% | ||
| I don’t know | 3.0% | 1.3% | 2.95% | 1.3% | ||
| Total | ||||||
Furthermore, even Republicans age 18-29 had a more positive view of MLK than Republicans in general, with not a single Republican age 18-29 saying that MLK’s legacy had a negative impact on race relations. Of our 976 respondents, 316 were Republican, 168 were age 18-29, and only 37 were both Republican and age 18-29. Smaller sample sizes naturally come with a lower degree of accuracy, as single results have more impact. Nonetheless, the data is still suggestive of a general trend of young people, and even young Republicans, having a positive view of MLK.
| REPUBLICANS BY AGE | All Republicans | Republicans 18-29 |
| A major net positive | 46.20% | 64.86% |
| A minor net positive | 28.80% | 16.22% |
| About equally positive and negative | 16.77% | 16.22% |
| A minor net negative | 3.80% | 0.00% |
| A major net negative | 1.58% | 0.00% |
| I don’t know | 2.85% | 2.70% |
But as explained by Charlie Kirk, and also by Counter-Currents here [2], MLK was far from the saint the media portrays him to be. Aside from rampant degeneracy in his personal life which was diametrically opposed to the moral sanctimony he exuded, he was also a plagiarist, and most importantly, a Communist agent with extensive ties to international Communism who was trying to destabilize America, not reform it. MLK’s career was ironically an actual example of “Russian collusion.”
As such, these findings suggest that the public, and especially the youth, require further education about the truth of MLK’s life and legacy, including the Republican youth who may not be as “based and red-pilled” as sometimes claimed.
It should also be remembered that while the truth about MLK may be old news for the radical Right, it is entirely new for much of the broader public. An upside to how few people know the truth about MLK is that educating them about MLK could drastically alter the cultural and political landscape. Thus, the significance of Charlie Kirk’s debunking of the MLK narrative to his young audience, and giving permission to others to do the same by moving the Overton Window, cannot be over stated.
We also found that while respondents reported to be very familiar with MLK’s life and political activism, they were slightly less familiar with Malcolm X, and overwhelmingly unfamiliar with Marcus Garvey.
| Q.10 How familiar are you with the life and political activism of Martin Luther King Jr? | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | ||
| # | % | Democrats | Independents | Republicans | Another | |
| Very familiar | 206 | 21.1% | 26.4% | 20.1% | 18.0% | 12.0% |
| Somewhat familiar | 432 | 44.3% | 44.6% | 47.2% | 39.9% | 56.0% |
| Fairly familiar | 274 | 28.1% | 27.0% | 26.0% | 32.0% | 20.0% |
| Somewhat unfamiliar | 55 | 5.6% | 2.0% | 6.2% | 8.2% | 8.0% |
| Very unfamiliar | 9 | 0.9% | 0.0% | 0.6% | 1.9% | 4.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
| Q.12 How familiar are you with the life and political activism of Malcom X? | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | ||
| # | % | Democrats | Independents | Republicans | Another | |
| Very familiar | 96 | 9.8% | 12.2% | 10.6% | 6.6% | 12.0% |
| Somewhat familiar | 317 | 32.5% | 36.8% | 32.2% | 28.2% | 40.0% |
| Fairly familiar | 240 | 24.6% | 20.9% | 27.7% | 24.4% | 28.0% |
| Somewhat unfamiliar | 242 | 24.8% | 23.6% | 24.5% | 26.9% | 16.0% |
| Very unfamiliar | 81 | 8.3% | 6.4% | 5.0% | 13.9% | 4.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
| Q. 14 How familiar are you with the life and political activism of Marcus Garvey? | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | ||
| # | % | Democrats | Independents | Republicans | Another | |
| Very familiar | 10 | 1.0% | 2.0% | 0.9% | 0.3% | 0.0% |
| Somewhat familiar | 61 | 6.3% | 8.4% | 6.8% | 3.8% | 4.0% |
| Fairly familiar | 41 | 4.2% | 5.7% | 3.5% | 3.5% | 4.0% |
| Somewhat unfamiliar | 164 | 16.8% | 20.6% | 18.9% | 10.8% | 20.0% |
| Very unfamiliar | 700 | 71.7% | 63.2% | 69.9% | 81.6% | 72.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
This is despite how Malcolm X had a large following and was assassinated like MLK. And while Marcus Garvey lived from 1887-1940, which puts him well before the Civil Rights era of the 1960s, he was in many ways a proto-Civil Rights leader. Marcus Garvey was hailed as the “Black Moses,” claimed to have a following of 2 million people, and established a series of independent black businesses.[2] [3] However, he also advocated for racial separatism, which is the diametric opposite of MLK.
This strongly suggests that the media crafted MLK’s sainthood to the exclusion of other black leaders not because he had a positive impact, but because he was so subversive. Thus, asking why there is almost no celebration of other black leaders aside from MLK may help the general public to become open to learning the truth about MLK.
Additionally, respondents’ views of the Civil Rights Movement’s effect on race relations almost perfectly mirrors their views of MLK’s effect on race relations. This suggests that MLK and the Civil Rights era as a whole are almost synonymous with one another in the public mind. Therefore, debunking the MLK narrative is important because it would undermine the undeserved sanctimony of the Civil Rights Movement. This would include the legal framework it spawned, which as explained by Christopher Caldwell in The Age of Entitlement essentially overwrote the old Constitution.
| Q. 16 Which of the following best describes the effect you think that the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s as a whole has had on race relations in America: | |||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | % | ||
| # | Total | Democrat | Independent | Republican | Another | ||
| A major net positive | 584 | 59.8% | 72.0% | 58.4% | 48.4% | 80.0% | |
| A minor net positive | 210 | 21.5% | 17.9% | 22.7% | 24.1% | 16.0% | |
| About equally positive and negative | 97 | 9.9% | 7.1% | 8.8% | 14.2% | 4.0% | |
| A minor net negative | 35 | 3.6% | 0.3% | 5.3% | 5.1% | 0.0% | |
| A major net negative | 28 | 2.9% | 0.7% | 2.7% | 5.4% | 0.0% | |
| I don’t know | 22 | 2.3% | 2.0% | 2.1% | 2.8% | 0.0% | |
| Total | 976 | ||||||
| Q. 11 Which of the following best describes the effect you think that Martin Luther King and his legacy have had on race relations in America: | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | % | |
| # | Total | Democrat | Independent | Republican | Another | |
| A major net positive | 585 | 59.9% | 75.3% | 58.1% | 46.2% | 76.0% |
| A minor net positive | 240 | 24.6% | 19.3% | 26.0% | 28.8% | 16.0% |
| About equally positive and negative | 89 | 9.1% | 2.7% | 8.0% | 16.8% | 4.0% |
| A minor net negative | 25 | 2.6% | 1.4% | 2.7% | 3.8% | 0.0% |
| A major net negative | 16 | 1.6% | 0.0% | 3.2% | 1.6% | 0.0% |
| I don’t know | 21 | 2.2% | 1.4% | 2.1% | 2.8% | 4.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
4. Presidents and Race Relations
We also asked respondents what effect they think that Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden had or are having on race relations during their presidencies.
| Q. 18 Which of the following best describes the effect you think that Barack Obama had on race relations in America during his presidency: | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | ||
| # | % | Democrats | Independents | Republicans | Another | |
| A major net positive | 216 | 22.1% | 45.6% | 18.6% | 5.1% | 8.0% |
| A minor net positive | 246 | 25.2% | 37.2% | 27.4% | 10.4% | 40.0% |
| About equally positive and negative | 179 | 18.3% | 14.2% | 23.0% | 16.5% | 28.0% |
| A minor net negative | 101 | 10.3% | 1.4% | 11.2% | 17.1% | 20.0% |
| A major net negative | 216 | 22.1% | 0.7% | 17.1% | 49.1% | 4.0% |
| I don’t know | 18 | 1.8% | 1.0% | 2.7% | 1.9% | 0.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
| Q. 19 Which of the following best describes the effect you think that Donald Trump had on race relations in America during his presidency: | ||||||
| All Respondents | % | % | % | % | ||
| # | % | Democrats | Independents | Republicans | Another | |
| A major net positive | 92 | 9.4% | 0.3% | 4.1% | 24.4% | 0.0% |
| A minor net positive | 133 | 13.6% | 1.5% | 11.5% | 27.5% | 4.0% |
| About equally positive and negative | 186 | 19.1% | 4.7% | 21.8% | 28.5% | 32.0% |
| A minor net negative | 151 | 15.5% | 9.8% | 25.1% | 11.4% | 4.0% |
| A major net negative | 395 | 40.5% | 82.4% | 34.2% | 6.3% | 60.0% |
| I don’t know | 19 | 1.95% | 0.68% | 3.24% | 1.90% | 0.00% |
| Total answers given | 976 | |||||
| Q. 20 Which of the following best describes the effect you think that Joe Biden is having on race relations in America during his presidency: | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | ||
| # | % | Democrats | Independents | Republicans | Another | |
| A major net positive | 52 | 5.3% | 12.2% | 2.7% | 2.2% | 0.0% |
| A minor net positive | 167 | 17.1% | 42.2% | 10.6% | 1.3% | 8.0% |
| About equally positive and negative | 276 | 28.3% | 34.8% | 33.9% | 16.5% | 24.0% |
| A minor net negative | 157 | 16.1% | 5.1% | 20.9% | 20.6% | 24.0% |
| A major net negative | 286 | 29.3% | 2.4% | 26.3% | 57.3% | 36.0% |
| I don’t know | 38 | 3.9% | 3.4% | 5.6% | 2.2% | 8.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
Both Republicans and Democrats tend to see their presidents as improving race relations and the opposing party’s presidents as hurting race relations. While somewhat natural and expected, it is indicative of the broader trend of political polarization which was explored in a previous Homeland Institute poll available here [4]. The strongest trend is that 82.4% of Democrats thought that Donald Trump had a major net negative on race relations and 9.8% thought he had a minor net negative, for a total of 92.2%. For comparison, 66.2% of Republicans thought that Obama had a net negative impact on race relations as did 77.9% in regards to Biden. While this poll was only of white voters, this does strongly suggest that pandering to blacks and other minorities with programs like the Platinum Plan are ineffective.
5. Present and Future Race Relations
We next asked respondents how they view race relations today in America and how they think race relations will change within the next five years.
| Q. 21 Which of the following best describes how you view race relations in America today? | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | ||
| # | % | Democrats | Independents | Republicans | Another | |
| Very good | 34 | 3.5% | 3.4% | 1.8% | 5.7% | 0.0% |
| Somewhat good | 362 | 37.1% | 36.5% | 37.5% | 38.3% | 24.0% |
| Somewhat bad | 401 | 41.1% | 47.0% | 42.2% | 33.5% | 52.0% |
| Very bad | 138 | 14.1% | 10.8% | 13.9% | 16.8% | 24.0% |
| No opinion | 41 | 4.2% | 2.4% | 4.7% | 5.7% | 0.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
| Q. 22 Within the next five years, do you think that race relations in America will most likely: | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | ||
| # | % | Democrats | Independents | Republicans | Another | |
| Greatly improve | 48 | 4.9% | 5.1% | 3.8% | 6.3% | 0.0% |
| Somewhat improve | 323 | 33.1% | 40.9% | 29.8% | 29.4% | 32.0% |
| Stay about the same | 366 | 37.5% | 38.9% | 37.8% | 36.4% | 32.0% |
| Somewhat worsen | 182 | 18.6% | 12.8% | 20.9% | 20.6% | 32.0% |
| Greatly worsen | 57 | 5.8% | 2.4% | 7.7% | 7.3% | 4.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
40.6% of all respondents said that race relations are currently very good or somewhat good, while 55.2% said very bad or somewhat bad. Republicans were slightly more likely to say that race relations are currently good, or have no opinion. 37.5% of all respondents said that race relations will stay about the same, with almost no variation by party affiliation. This suggests that there is an ahistorical segment of the population which simply assumes that tomorrow will be like today purely due to inductive reasoning, and that this segment of overly inductive individuals is consistent across party lines.
38% of all respondents think that race relations will greatly or somewhat improve within the next five years, 37.5% stay about the same, and 24.4% somewhat or greatly worsen. Democrats where slightly more likely at 46% to think race relations would improve. Republicans and Independents had very similar opinions about the future of race relations.
However, these answers were incongruent with respondents’ views on how immigration and affirmative action affect race relations.
| Q. 25 Which of the following best describes the effect you think that immigration has on race relations in America: | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | ||
| # | % | Democrat | Independent | Republican | Another | |
| A major net positive | 60 | 6.1% | 11.8% | 6.2% | 0.9% | 4.0% |
| A minor net positive | 143 | 14.7% | 24.7% | 11.8% | 7.6% | 24.0% |
| About equally positive and negative | 250 | 25.6% | 31.8% | 26.0% | 19.0% | 32.0% |
| A minor net negative | 206 | 21.1% | 19.6% | 26.5% | 16.8% | 20.0% |
| A major net negative | 277 | 28.4% | 7.8% | 23.6% | 53.5% | 20.0% |
| I don’t know | 40 | 4.1% | 4.4% | 5.9% | 2.2% | 0.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
| Q. 25 Which of the following best describes the effect you think that affirmative action has on race relations in America: | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | ||
| # | % | Democrats | Independents | Republicans | Another | |
| A major net positive | 89 | 9.1% | 19.6% | 7.7% | 0.9% | 8.0% |
| A minor net positive | 174 | 17.8% | 34.5% | 12.4% | 7.6% | 24.0% |
| About equally positive and negative | 207 | 21.2% | 24.0% | 21.8% | 19.0% | 8.0% |
| A minor net negative | 160 | 16.4% | 10.1% | 22.1% | 15.8% | 20.0% |
| A major net negative | 265 | 27.2% | 3.4% | 25.4% | 50.9% | 32.0% |
| I don’t know | 81 | 8.3% | 8.4% | 10.6% | 5.7% | 8.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
49.5% of all respondents think that immigration has a major or minor net negative effect on race relations compared to 20.8% who said it has a positive effect, while 43.6% of all respondents said that affirmative action has a major or minor net negative effect compared to 26.9% who said it has a positive effect. Republicans were more likely to view immigration and affirmative action as having a negative effect on race relations. Even 27.4% of Democrats said that immigration has a negative effect on race relations, as did 13.5% of Democrats in regards to affirmative action.
Because it is likely that immigration and affirmative action will continue unless current trends drastically reverse, it should stand to reason that race relations will worsen. However, more respondents think that race relations will improve than worsen. Why they think race relations will improve merits further research. In the meantime, it would be wise for critics of affirmative action and immigration to explain to the general public that if these policies worsen race relations, then that is a strong argument against them.
We next asked respondents how responsible they think black people and white people are for the outcomes of black people.
| Q. 23 On average, how responsible are black people for the outcomes in their life? | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | ||
| # | % | Democrats | Independents | Republicans | Another | |
| Almost entirely responsible | 303 | 31.0% | 9.8% | 31.9% | 50.6% | 24.0% |
| Mostly responsible | 529 | 54.2% | 64.2% | 54.3% | 45.6% | 44.0% |
| Mostly not responsible | 121 | 12.4% | 22.0% | 10.9% | 3.8% | 28.0% |
| Almost entirely not responsible | 23 | 2.4% | 4.1% | 2.9% | 0.0% | 4.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
| Q. 24 On average, how responsible are white people for the outcomes of black people? | ||||||
| Results by Party | % | % | % | % | ||
| # | % | Democrats | Independents | Republicans | Another | |
| Almost entirely responsible | 77 | 7.9% | 8.8% | 6.8% | 8.2% | 8.0% |
| Mostly responsible | 235 | 24.1% | 38.9% | 23.0% | 11.1% | 28.0% |
| Mostly not responsible | 407 | 41.7% | 44.3% | 45.4% | 35.8% | 36.0% |
| Almost entirely not responsible | 257 | 26.3% | 8.1% | 24.8% | 44.9% | 28.0% |
| Total | 976 | |||||
85.2% of all respondents said that black people are either almost entirely or mostly responsible for their outcomes, compared to 14.8% who said that blacks are mostly or almost entirely not responsible for their outcomes. Even among Democrats, 9.8% said that blacks are almost entirely responsible for their outcomes, while 64.2% said mostly responsible, for 74% total.
These numbers are incongruent with respondents’ views on whether white people are responsible for the outcomes of black people. 32% of all respondents replied that white people are almost entirely or mostly responsible for the outcomes of black people, which is over twice the number of respondents at 14.8% who said that blacks are mostly or almost entirely not responsible for their outcomes.
It logically follows that the more that white people are responsible for the outcomes of black people, the less that black people are responsible. Therefore, attempts to smear white people as responsible for black outcomes essentially deprives black people of their agency. Either black people should be held responsible for their decisions and outcomes, or they lack agency and can not be held responsible for their actions. And if blacks lack agency and thus can not be held responsible for their actions, this naturally means that we are better off living separately rather than forced to live together in the pursuit of a multicultural utopia which was not even feasible to begin with.
6. Conclusion
To summarize, key takeaways are that:
- The general public and especially the youth, including even the Republican youth, require further education about the truth of MLK and the Civil Rights Movement.
- Republicans report having more negative interracial interactions than Democrats.
- Proximity to diversity in urban environments may breed contempt for it, but not at the level some may expect.
- Democrats may tend to see diversity as an absolute moral imperative which can never be negative.
- Respondents tend to see the other side’s president(s) as worsening race relations, and Democrats are almost in complete lockstep in thinking that Donald Trump had a negative impact on race relations despite his Platinum Plan and other forms of pandering to minorities.
- Respondents are generally optimistic about race relations improving in America, which is incongruent with their view that immigration and affirmative action have a negative effect on race relations.
- Respondents overwhelmingly think that black people are more responsible than not responsible for their outcomes, including even a majority of Democrats. However, a sizeable portion of the general public still holds white people responsible for black outcomes.
[1] [5] https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-charlie-kirk-show/id1460600818?i=1000641772005 [6]
[2] [7] https://www.britannica.com/biography/Marcus-Garvey [8]