Race relations worsening in US: Poll
A majority of people in the United States, especially African Americans, say race relations are worsening in the country, according to a new poll.
Only 40 percent of Americans believe race relations in the US are “good,” while 57 percent believe it is “bad,” according to the latest NBC News/ Wall Street Journal poll.
Nearly a quarter of respondents – 23 percent – told pollsters that the current state of the country’s racial issues is “very bad,” the most pessimistic assessment of racial issues in almost two decades.
Both black and white Americans express pessimism about the current state of race relations. Just 35 percent of blacks and 40 percent of whites think race relations are “good,” while 58 percent and 63 percent, respectively, say it is “bad.”
The high rate of pessimism about race relations comes during the presidency of Barack Obama, the first black president in US history.
The new wave of pessimism follows weeks of nationwide protests over the deaths of unarmed black men at the hands of white police officers.
Recent grand jury decisions in Missouri and New York not to prosecute two white police officers in the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner, who were both black, have caused new concerns about the state of race relations in the United States.
Nationwide demonstrations against racial profiling and abusive police tactics have been held since November after the grand jury decisions. A mass protest organized by Black Lives Matter – Birmingham is planned for Friday in Birmingham, Alabama.
