Maybe postracial America is here after all. OK, maybe not, but promising statistics indicate that black-white marriages are more accepted than ever by most Americans. In fact, 86 percent approve of interracial unions between blacks and whites, according to a USA Today/Gallup poll conducted in August. These numbers represent a stark contrast from 1958, when only 4 percent of Americans approved of black-white marriages.
Breaking down the numbers by subgroups, adults with college degrees and people between ages 18 and 29 are most supportive of black-white unions, ranking above 92 percent approval. In contrast, senior citizens are least supportive of interracial marriages, with only 66 percent approval.
From Gallup:
Approval of black-white marriage is well above the majority level among all key subgroups, though slightly lower among Southerners, Republicans, conservatives and those with no college education. Senior citizens are the least approving of black-white marriage among major subgroups, at 66% …
Today's older Americans, those aged 50 and older, are much more likely to approve of black-white marriage than people of the same age a generation ago; 78% today vs. 27% in 1991, a 51-point shift. At the same time, there has also been a 33-point increase among 18- to 29-year-olds (64% to 97%) and a 35-point increase among 30- to 49-year-olds (from 56% to 91%) between the two time periods.
This seismic shift in numbers represents a large influx of young people with more tolerant ideas joining the population — although even older people are more tolerant of black-white marriages than 50 years ago. Still, at 86 percent approval, perhaps we have a way to go before we truly get to postracial America.
Read more at Gallup.com.
In other news: Obama Attacked for Beer With Honored Marine.