Poll shows Americans’ racist bias

Source: alalam.ir, 23-06-2008

WASHINGTON- One third of Americans admit to racist feelings and close to half of the population believes race relations are poor in the United States, a poll has suggested.

Asked by a Washington Post-ABC News poll if they had at least some feelings of racial prejudice,
30 percent of white respondents and 34 percent of African-Americans polled answered "yes".

Just over half of the overall sample said they believe race relations in the country are "good".

However, more than six in 10 blacks rated race relations and "not so good" or "poor".

Some of the findings could suggest challenges ahead for Democrat Barack Obama, who is seeking to become America's first black president.

The Illinois senator led his rival, Republican John McCain, by six percentage points overall, but among likely voters he was neck and neck with 47 percent to McCain's 48 percent.

In addition, just over half of whites surveyed described Obama as a "risky" choice for the White House, while two-thirds said McCain was a "safe" pick.

However, six in 10 said they thought Obama's candidacy would "shake up the racial status quo, for better or worse", the Post reported.

Close to a third of those polled thought Obama's bid for president would have a positive effect on race relations, while four in 10 said they didn't expect it to make much difference.

The telephone poll was conducted June 12 through June 15 and sampled 1 125 adults. It has a three percentage point margin of error.