Confusion Over Racial History Learning May Be Semantics According to SHU Poll
Family ranks high as factor on racial inequality
A new digital poll by Sacred Heart University’s Institute for Public Policy & Civic Engagement, completed between October 14 and October 27, 2021, asked 1,000 Connecticut residents questions about a variety of subjects including opinions toward racism, critical race theory (CRT) and if it should be taught in public schools.
For the purposes of the survey, critical race theory was defined as “examining social, cultural, and legal issues primarily as they relate to race and racism in the United States.” Based on that definition, more than half of the respondents, 54.7%, indicated being familiar with critical race theory, while 29.2% reported being not familiar. Demographically, those saying they were familiar with CRT were 56% of the Caucasian respondents, 48.7% of the Black respondents and 53.2% of the Hispanic respondents.
When asked if they believed critical race theory should be part of a K-12 curriculum, 39.8% said they believe that CRT should be included. However, in a related question, more than two-thirds of respondents, 71.2%, believe that K-12 students should learn about the history of racial injustices in the United States.
In the demographic breakdown for the question about teaching CRT to K-12 students, 61.7% of Democrats believe CRT should be part of a K-12 curriculum, compared to 17.8% of Republicans. And 63.2% of Black respondents believe CRT should be part of a K-12 curriculum, compared to 35.3% of Caucasians. A similar disparity existed based on age: 55.7% of respondents ages 18-34 believe it should be part of a K-12 curriculum, compared to 32.2% among those ages 65 or older.
The poll attempted to probe issues relating to race. Fewer than half (43.5%) of respondents believe that race is “constructed by society” as opposed to being a “biological feature” (35%), while 49.4% of respondents believe that racial inequities are the result of “prejudices of individuals” as opposed to being the result of “institutions” (25.3%). Among Black respondents, 63.2% believe racial inequities are the result of “prejudices of individuals,” compared to 49.7% of Caucasians. And 57.1% of respondents ages 65+ believe racial inequities are the result of “prejudices of individuals,” compared to 42.6% among those ages 18-34.
When asked to rank the impact of five potential factors on racial inequality in the United States, 31.1% of respondents ranked family as having the greatest impact on racial inequality, while 27.4% of respondents indicated they believe government has the greatest impact.
However, the economy (47.3%) received the highest percentage of top-two rankings among the five factors measured, followed by education (46.4%). Only 7.4% of respondents indicated that religion has the greatest impact on racial inequality in the United States.
“Critical race theory is a complicated subject, one given to personal experience, interpretation and misinformation,” said Mark Beekey, acting dean of SHU’s College of Arts & Sciences. “We can intuit from our poll and what we know from the media that there is a lot of confusion about what CRT actually comprises. As further proof of this misperception, while only four out of 10 respondents think it should be taught in the public schools, more than seven in 10 believe students should learn about America’s history of racial injustices.”
Actual polling was conducted on behalf of the institute in partnership with GreatBlue Research, which administered the 52-question, Connecticut-specific digital survey interviewing 1,000 residents. Statistically, this sampling represents a margin for error of +/-3.02 percent at a 95 percent confidence level.
Sacred Heart’s Institute for Public Policy & Civic Engagement was established in 2017 in the College of Arts & Sciences. In addition to hosting state-wide polls, the institute conducts public policy research, hosts public forums and workshops and serves as a public-policy learning incubator for students.