Faculty Sponsor, if applicable
Christine Reyna
Project Abstract
The Black Lives Matter protests of 2020 have been quite divisive along political and racial lines. Previous literature suggests that White and Conservative groups tend to be less supportive of protests in general and are more supportive of police use of deadly force. This informed our research question: how do White individuals vs. BIPOC and Liberals vs. Conservatives differ in support for the BLM protests, their causes, and authoritarian responses to the BLM protests? We surveyed a large, representative sample and measured responses for our variables of interest: demographics, support or opposition to the protests, protest theories, authoritarian response, and racial inequality. We divided our sample by race (White vs. BIPOC) and by ideology (Liberals vs. Conservatives) and ran a MANCOVA to examine the differences in our variables between these groups of interest. We hypothesized BIPOC and Liberal individuals to demonstrate higher overall support for the protests and be less supportive of authoritarian measures in response to the protests. Conversely, we hypothesized White and Conservative individuals to be less supportive of the protests and be more supportive of an authoritarian response to the protests. Our findings supported all our hypotheses.
Type of Research
Junior Year Experiential Learning (JYEL)
Preview
Presentation Year
5-17-2021