Table Of ContentThe John W. McCormack
An Occasional Paper
Conflict and Convergence:
Race, Public Opinion and Political Behavior In Massachusetts
The University ofMassachusetts McCormack Institute Poll
Sponsored by
The University ofMassachusetts President's Office
TheJohn W. McCormack Institute ofPublic Affairs
University ofMassachusetts Boston
Louis DiNatale, Poll Director
Robert L. Woodbury, Director, McCormack Institute
June 1998
University of Massachusetts Boston
The McCormack Institute
TheJohnW. McCormack Institute ofPublic Affairs is a multi-purpose
public policy research institute, established in 1983 at the University of
Massachusetts Boston and named in honor ofthe lateJohnW.
McCormack,former Speaker ofthe U.S. House ofRepresentatives.
The institute's components include four centers, each with its own area
offocus: the Center for State and Local Policy, the Center for Social
Policy Research, the Center forWomen in Politics and Public Policy,
and the Center for Democracy and Development.The institute also
administers UMass Boston's M.S. Program in PublicAffairs and
publishes Tlie New EnglandJournal ofPublic Policy.
—
The McCormack Institute's fellows and staff who are drawn from
such div—erse fields asjournalism,politics and government,and the social
sciences represent vital connections between the University commu-
nity and centers ofpower and innovation in the private and public
sectors.They are involved in university teaching, survey research, edu-
cational outreach projects, and a variety ofpublications including
books, academic papers,and newspaper columns; they also appear regu-
larly as guest speakers,moderators,and panelists onTV and radio.
Through the work ofthese distinguished academics and practitioners,
the institute seeks to contribute to informed public discourse and to
play a constructive role in public policy formulation and problem-
solving.
Tlie views contained in thispaper are those ofthe author(s) and not the
John W.McCormack Institute ofPublicAffairs.
CONFLICT AND CONVERGENCE:
&
RACE, PUBLIC OPINION POLITICAL
BEHAVIOR MASSACHUSETTS
IN
The University of Massachusetts McCormack Institute Poll
Sponsored by
The University ofMassachusetts President's Office and the
John W. McCormack Institute ofPublic Affairs
University ofMassachusetts Boston
Lou DiNatale, Poll Director
Robert Woodbury, Director, McCormack Institute
A
collaborative project ofthe
John W. McCormack Institute ofPublic Affairs
William Monroe Trotter Institute
Institute for Asian American Studies
Mauricio Gaston Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy
Project team (in alphabetical order)
John Blydenburgh, Professor ofGovernment, Clark University
Lou DiNatale, Senior Fellow, McCormack Institute
Carol Hardy-Fanta, Research Director, Center for Women in
Politics & Public Policy, McCormack Institute
James Jennings, Director, Trotter Institute
Mary Jo Marion, Associate Director, Gaston Institute
Regina Rodriguez-Mitchell, Research Associate, Trotter Institute
Andres Torres, Director, Gaston Institute
Paul Watanabe, Co-Director, Institute for Asian American Studies
Russell Williams, Research Associate, Trotter Institute
Robert Woodbury, Director, McCormack Institute
Reportpreparedby
Paul Watanabe
Carol Hardy-Fanta
June 1998
Table of Contents
About the poll 1
Racial & Ethnic Diversity: A Good Thing? 1
Are Conditions for Minority Groups Better? 2
Assessments ofMinority Groups' Chances 2
Experiences with Discrimination 4
-.
Top Issues: Does Race/Ethnicity Matter? 4
Affirmative Action 5
Immigration 6
Bilingual Instruction 7
Standardized Tests for Graduation 7
Role ofGovernment 8
Confidence in Social Institutions 9
Political Participation and Citizenship 10
Nativity and Citizenship by Race 10
Voter Registration and Turnout 11
Partisan Identification and Ideology 11
Appendix: Poll Questionnaire
About the Poll
Under the auspices ofthe John W. McCormack Institute ofPublic Affairs, the University of
Massachusetts has regularly conducted polls to measure attitudes and behavior related to the
political, economic, and social life ofthe Commonwealth. Data from these polls have offered
important and regular insights about the views ofMassachusetts' residents. One ofthe drawbacks
ofthese polls and most others conducted by or for news media outlets, academicians, politicians,
and candidates is that they have not been able to generate significantly large samples ofnon-whites
(African Americans, Asian Americans, and Latinos) to assess with any depth their opinions and
behavior. Typically, for example, a poll with a randomly selected sample of450-500 respondents
includes 50 to 60 nonwhites. In order to offer amore detailed look at the attitudes and behavior of
these residents, the UMass McCormack Institute Poll was expanded to include over 300 non-
whites with over 100 African Americans (N=127), Asian Americans (N=l 14), and Latinos
(N=107) as well as whites (N=381). The poll, which was conducted April 13-23, was designed
and analyzed in collaboration with the Institute for Asian American Studies, the Mauricio Gaston
Institute, and the William Monroe Trotter Institute all at the University ofMassachusetts Boston.
Racial and Ethnic Diversity: A Good Thing?
The rapidly changing racial and ethnic diversity ofMassachusetts was regarded as a "good
thing" by large proportions ofall groups (67% Asian Americans, 58% African Americans, 49%
Latinos, 47% whites). Smaller percentages (6% Asian Americans, 12% African Americans, 12%
Latinos, 1 1% whites) characterized the increasing racial and ethnic diversity as a "bad thing."
Racial/Ethnic Diversity: A Good Thing?
I 80
Z
60
i
I 40
.« 20
1 0
CO
African Latino Asian White
American American
Good Bad Nodiff DK/NS
thing thing
African 58 12 24 6
American
Latino 49 12 25 14
Asian 67 6 23 4
American
White 47 11 35
Are Conditions for Minority Groups Better or Worse?
In their assessments ofthe condition ofminority groups over the last five years, there were
some significant differences among the racial groups. For example, while 50% ofwhites said that
conditions for minority groups had "gotten better," fewer non-whites agreed with this assessment
(29% African Americans, 40% Asian Americans, 43% Latinos). Additionally, over two-thirds of
African Americans (68%) and 46% ofAsian Americans and 44% ofLatinos said that conditions
had "stayed the same" or "gotten worse." For whites, 38% feltthat conditions had stayed the same
or gotten worse.
Latino African American
13%
29%
43%
48%
Better
33%
Worse
20%
11% Stayed the Same
j
DK/No Opinion
White
Asian American
Assessments ofMinority Groups' Chances: A Long Way to Go
When asked to agree or disagree with the statement that "African Americans are still a long
way from having the same chance in life than white people have," nearly two-thirds ofAfrican
Americans (63%) and over
African Americans are still a long wayfrom
one-halfofAsian
having the same chance in life as white people Americans (54%) and
Latinos (53%) said they
80
agreed with the statement.
4i_) 60 Over one-third ofwhites
nO)
O 40 (37%) said they agreed.
20
0
African Latinos Asian Whites
Americans Americans
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