Half of black people say it’s unlikely the US will eventually achieve racial equality

Half of black Americans say it’s unlikely the United States will ever achieve racial equality, according to a new survey from Pew Research Center.

The poll found more than 80 percent of black respondents say the legacy of slavery continues to affect the lives of modern black people, including 59 percent who said it affects them “a great deal.”

Seventy-eight percent of black respondents said the country has not made enough progress on equal rights for black and white Americans, and 50 percent said it is unlikely the nation will eventually achieve full racial equality.

{mosads}Fifty-six percent of adults of all ages said being black hurts people’s ability to get ahead to some extent, while 51 percent said the same of being Hispanic. Fifty-nine percent said being white is an advantage in getting ahead, according to Pew. Black, Hispanic and Asian respondents were all more likely than whites to say being white increases one’s chances of getting ahead.

The poll also found a majority of Americans — 65 percent — believe expressions of racist or “racially insensitive” views have become more common since President Trump’s election, and about 45 percent said such views have become more acceptable.

Pew found sharp partisan breakdowns on both questions. Eighty-four percent of Democrats said racism was more common and 64 percent called it more acceptable, while only 42 percent of Republicans said it has become more common and 22 percent said it was more acceptable.

About three quarters of blacks and the same portion of Asians said they have experienced discrimination or some other form of discrimination due to their race or ethnicity, while 58 percent of Hispanics said the same. Sixty-seven percent of whites said they had never experienced this. Asked about specific forms of discrimination, blacks were much more likely than Hispanics, whites or Asians to say they had been regarded with suspicion, treated as though they weren’t smart, or treated unfairly in hiring, pay or promotion.

Asians, meanwhile, were the most likely group to say they had been the targets of racist slurs or jokes, according to Pew.

Pew surveyed 6,637 adults from Jan. 22 to Feb. 5 in English and Spanish.