7 ms·

For those who aren't aware, the reason for this is well-known: the average POC statistically leans right on all social issues except for race.

tptacek 6y ago
You mean "to the right of the Democratic party". It is not in fact the case that black voters lean to the right of the median in US politics.
- SaltyLemonZest 6y ago
  No, I mean to the right of the median. For example, in poll data from last year 61% of Americans overall but only 51% of black Americans support gay marriage. On some issues like interracial marriage, they're actually even further to the right; 18% of black Americans say interracial marriage is bad for society, while only 12% of Republican-leaners do. https://www.pewforum.org/fact-sheet/changing-attitudes-on-gay-marriage/ https://www.pewforum.org/fact-sheet/changing-attitudes-on-ga... https://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2017/05/18/2-public-views-on-intermarriage/ https://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2017/05/18/2-public-views-on...
  - tptacek 6y ago
    Marriage equality is a notorious outlier. Compare abortion, marijuana legalization, immigration, and taxes. (Rayiner noted earlier that black voters are to the right of Democrats more generally, which is true, but they're right at the median overall, and far to the left of evangelical white voters).
    - SaltyLemonZest 6y ago
      My understanding is that black voters are also to the right of the median on abortion. I can't find any recent statistics - all the polls I'm seeing only break down "white" and "non-white", but black Americans trailing in support for abortion is a historically well-known phenomenon (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3852356/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3852356/). The other issues, yeah, you're right. I don't really consider taxes a social issue, but I realized I forgot about gun control.
      - dragonwriter 6y ago
        > My understanding is that black voters are also to the right of the median on abortion As I point out, with a source, in another subthread, Blacks are more supportive of abortion than the nation as a whole, and second only to Asians. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23936024 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23936024 Even in your ancient (5 years after Roe!) piece, while Blacks were less supportive of abortion than average, they were also becoming supportive more rapidly than other groups. 40+ years later, that faster change has flipped the starting positions.
dragonwriter 6y ago
> For those who aren't aware, the reason for this is well-known: the average POC statistically leans right on all social issues except for race. Blacks are the most supportive of abortion legality in most or all cases of any race other than Asians, so that's one issue that isn't race that Blacks lean to the left on. https://www.prri.org/research/legal-in-most-cases-the-impact-of-the-abortion-debate-in-2019-america/ https://www.prri.org/research/legal-in-most-cases-the-impact...
- rayiner 6y ago
  It’s complicated. They are also more likely to say abortion is morally wrong than many other groups, which has political implications. (Legality versus non-legality isn’t really the main issue today.)

tptacek 6y ago

You mean "to the right of the Democratic party". It is not in fact the case that black voters lean to the right of the median in US politics.

SaltyLemonZest 6y ago
No, I mean to the right of the median. For example, in poll data from last year 61% of Americans overall but only 51% of black Americans support gay marriage. On some issues like interracial marriage, they're actually even further to the right; 18% of black Americans say interracial marriage is bad for society, while only 12% of Republican-leaners do. https://www.pewforum.org/fact-sheet/changing-attitudes-on-gay-marriage/ https://www.pewforum.org/fact-sheet/changing-attitudes-on-ga... https://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2017/05/18/2-public-views-on-intermarriage/ https://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2017/05/18/2-public-views-on...
- tptacek 6y ago
  Marriage equality is a notorious outlier. Compare abortion, marijuana legalization, immigration, and taxes. (Rayiner noted earlier that black voters are to the right of Democrats more generally, which is true, but they're right at the median overall, and far to the left of evangelical white voters).
  - SaltyLemonZest 6y ago
    My understanding is that black voters are also to the right of the median on abortion. I can't find any recent statistics - all the polls I'm seeing only break down "white" and "non-white", but black Americans trailing in support for abortion is a historically well-known phenomenon (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3852356/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3852356/). The other issues, yeah, you're right. I don't really consider taxes a social issue, but I realized I forgot about gun control.
    - dragonwriter 6y ago
      > My understanding is that black voters are also to the right of the median on abortion As I point out, with a source, in another subthread, Blacks are more supportive of abortion than the nation as a whole, and second only to Asians. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23936024 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23936024 Even in your ancient (5 years after Roe!) piece, while Blacks were less supportive of abortion than average, they were also becoming supportive more rapidly than other groups. 40+ years later, that faster change has flipped the starting positions.

dragonwriter 6y ago

> For those who aren't aware, the reason for this is well-known: the average POC statistically leans right on all social issues except for race. Blacks are the most supportive of abortion legality in most or all cases of any race other than Asians, so that's one issue that isn't race that Blacks lean to the left on. https://www.prri.org/research/legal-in-most-cases-the-impact-of-the-abortion-debate-in-2019-america/ https://www.prri.org/research/legal-in-most-cases-the-impact...

rayiner 6y ago
It’s complicated. They are also more likely to say abortion is morally wrong than many other groups, which has political implications. (Legality versus non-legality isn’t really the main issue today.)