Nearly half (48%) of Trump voters disagree that racism is still a serious problem in the US today, while 85% of black people believe it is
February marks Black History Month. Many Americans consider themselves knowledgeable about black history in general, but are less unified when it comes to the topic of racism in the US today and whether it has become a larger issue under the Trump administration.
According to research from YouGov Omnibus, more than seven in ten (71%) people say that racism is still a serious problem in the US. Black people (85%) are especially likely to believe this, while 68% of white people agree. People who voted for Trump in 2016 are split on this statement: 49% agree racism is still a serious issue while 48% disagree.
Black (75%) and Hispanic (60%) Americans are particularly likely to say racism has gotten worse since Trump was elected. White people are almost evenly split: 45% say it has gotten worse during this time while 46% disagree.
Knowledge of black history in the US
Most Americans feel that they have an above-average grasp of black history in the United States. Black Americans are more likely to consider themselves informed about several black history topics and movements than white Americans are. Of the six topics/movements YouGov asked about, black Americans say they’re most knowledgeable about Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott, with 86% saying they know a lot or somewhat know about this topic. Three-quarters (75%) of white people say the same.
Black Americans (77%) are 11% more likely to say they are informed about the Black Lives Matter movement than white people (66%) are. But the largest knowledge gap between black and white Americans is on the topic of Jim Crow laws. Nearly two-thirds (64%) of black Americans say they’re knowledgeable about them, while less than half (48%) of white people say the same. Of the six topics, this is the one that white people are least likely to say they are familiar with.
The topic white people are most likely to say they know about is the history of slavery in the US. Over eight in ten (81%) white Americans and 84% of black Americans say they are informed about this topic.
Teaching black history in schools
While many Americans consider themselves informed about black history, close to half (46%) say that schools today do a poor job of educating children about these topics. Black Americans (57%) and Democrats (57%) are particularly likely to believe this. Republicans (49%) and parents of children under 18 (48%) disagree, with pluralities of these groups saying that black history is taught well in American schools.
Many schools make it a priority to focus on black history during February in honor of Black History Month. Nearly two-thirds (64%) of people agree that black history should be integrated into education curriculums year-round. Democrats (85%) and black people (83%) are particularly in favor of this, while Republicans are less unified: 49% support the idea, 42% are opposed.
See full results here.
Image: Getty
