A Questionable Statewide Survey on Equality and the Black Lives Matter Movement in Oregon
News Release from Oregon Values and Beliefs Center
April 14th, 2022, 11:34 AM
Home - Oregon Values and Beliefs Center (oregonvbc.org)
Downloadable file: OVBC February Annotated Questionnaire
Downloadable file: OVBC February Crosstabs
From February 1-7, 2022, the Oregon Values and Beliefs Center conducted a statewide survey of Oregonians’ values and beliefs, including beliefs and attitudes about equality in Oregon. The question numbers in this document correspond with the survey questionnaire (Q50-52a, Q32 and Q34).
Not Seeing Racism Where it Does Exist vs. Seeing Racism Where it Does Not Exist
A slim majority of Oregonians (54%) feel people NOT seeing racial discrimination where it really DOES exist is a bigger problem than people seeing racial discrimination where it really does NOT exist (35%). One in ten (10%) are unsure (Q50).
Women are more likely than men to think people not seeing racial discrimination where it really does exist is a bigger problem (59% vs. 48%).
A strong majority of Democrats (80%) think people not seeing racial discrimination where it really does exist is a bigger problem, whereas a strong majority of Republicans (71%) think people seeing racial discrimination where it really does not exist is a bigger problem.
71% of college graduates think people not seeing racial discrimination where it really does exist is a bigger problem, compared to only 41% of Oregonians with a high school diploma or less education.
These findings are largely in line with those from a September 2020 Pew Research Center study[1] which found that more than half of Americans (56%) said when it comes to racial discrimination, the bigger problem for our country is people not seeing racial discrimination where it really does exist; while 43% said people seeing racial discrimination where it does not exist is the bigger problem. This was nearly identical to responses collected by Pew in 2019.
Support for Black Lives Matter Movement
Six in ten Oregonians (59%) say they support the Black Lives Matter movement, with 36% saying they are strongly in support. Three in ten (32%) say they oppose the movement, and one in ten (9%) are unsure (Q51).
Support for the Black Lives Matter movement increases with higher income and education levels.
There is a massive political divide on perceptions of the movement, with nine in ten (87%) Democrats in support and seven in ten (69%) Republicans opposed.
Support is higher among residents of Multnomah County (72%) compared to Oregonians from other areas of the state (55%).
These results are, again, largely in line with those from a September 2021 Pew Research Center poll which found that 55% of U.S. adults expressed at least some support for the movement, unchanged from September 2020.
Are we in a better place as a result?
Oregonians are split on whether our culture is in a better or worse place after the social impact of the Black Lives Matter movement in response to the murder of George Floyd, with 36% thinking we are in a better place and 38% saying we are worse off. Two in ten (19%) think we are in the same position as before (Q52).
There is a large age gap on this question, with Oregonians ages 75 and older significantly more likely than those ages 18-29 to think our culture is in a better place (48% vs. 28%).
Overall, Republicans tend to be more pessimistic on the issue, with 69% saying our culture is in a worse place, whereas 58% of Democrats think we’re better off.
Optimism on this issue tends to increase with higher income and education levels.
These mixed opinions match those from the OVBC June 2021 survey[2] which found that 19% felt the Black Lives Matter movement had a positive effect in their community, compared to 22% who felt the overall effect was negative.
In Their Own Words:
The Social Impact of the Black Lives Matter Movement
All respondents were offered the opportunity to share their thoughts on the Black Lives Matter movement in an open-ended format (Q52a). Below are some representative quotes:
“The wheels of Justice and equality for all is a very slow and painful process. It’s going to take years and years and years. If we keep chipping away at it we’ll get there, but we’re a long way off”
Female, age 75+, Deschutes County, Black or African American, Native American or American Indian and White
“I support the movement and what they stand for, I do not support the riots or the organization.”
Female, age 18-29, Jefferson County, Latina/x
“The movement has helped shift the national conversation about policing and changed the way leaders respond to highly publicized acts of police violence.”
Male, age 55-64, Washington County, Native American or American Indian
“People who oppose Black Lives Matter need to stop taking it as a threat to them. What BLM means is that we need to treat our Black citizens and neighbors as if they were as important as white people, i.e., treat people equally.”
Female, age 55-64, Clackamas County, White
“ALL lives matter. We need to stop focusing on color and make things better for everyone.”
Female, age 65-74, Lincoln County, White
Oregonians Support the Movement, But Draw the Line at Criminal Behavior
Three-quarters of Oregonians (74%) agree with the statement “It is okay for the government to arrest and prosecute protesters who break the law.” Only 10% disagree and 12% neither agree nor disagree (Q34).
High percentages of Democrats (78%), Republicans (86%) and Independents (69%) agree with this statement.
With one exception, more than 60% of all demographic subgroups agree with this statement. The only exception is younger Oregonians ages 18-29, who still show majority agreement at 54%.
A slim majority of Oregonians (52%) disagree with the statement “sometimes it is okay to engage in violence against the government,” with 39% strongly disagreeing. Nearly three in ten (26%) agree with the statement and 18% neither agree nor disagree (Q32).
Women are more likely than men to disagree with the statement (59% vs. 46%).
Democrats (61%) are more likely to disagree than Republicans (51%) and Independents (44%).
Disagreement is higher among Oregonians with a college degree or more education when compared to those with a high school diploma or less education (64% vs. 38%).
Demographic Trends
Identifying What Unites Us, Understanding What Divides Us
Reported below are statistically significant subgroup differences between BIPOC and white Oregonians, urban and rural Oregonians, and age groups. Many of these differences are not major and are presented to inform public education and communications initiatives.
BIPOC and white Oregonians respondents were nearly identical in their answers to all closed-ended questions from this section of the survey (Q50-52a,Q32,Q34).
A slim majority of both Oregonians of color and whites think that people NOT seeing racial discrimination where it really DOES exist is a bigger problem than people seeing racial discrimination where it really does NOT exist (55% and 54%, respectively) (Q50).
There are a lot of mixed feelings about the Black Lives Matter movement, with 58% of Oregonians of color and 59% of white respondents reporting they support it as a movement (Q51).
When asked if the social impact of the Black Lives Matter movement in response to the murder of George Floyd has left our culture in a better or worse place, Oregonians of color and white respondents answered similarly, with 35% and 36% saying our culture is better off, respectively (Q52).
Oregonians from communities of color and white Oregonians hold equal levels of disagreement with the statement “sometimes it is okay to engage in violence against the government” (50% and 52% disagree, respectively) (Q32).
In an area of alignment, urban and rural Oregonians are roughly equal in their agreement with the statement “it is okay for the government to arrest and prosecute protesters who break the law” (74% and 69%, respectively) (Q34).
Urbanites are more likely to think that people NOT seeing racial discrimination where it really DOES exist is a bigger problem than their rural counterparts (58% vs. 47%) (Q50).
Regionally, rural respondents report the lowest support for the Black Lives Matter movement at 47%, compared to urban respondents (69% support) (Q51).
Rural respondents are less likely to think we are better off after the social impact of the Black Lives Matter movement in response to the murder of George Floyd (25%) than urban respondents (46%) (Q52).
Support for the Black Lives Matter movement is largely consistent across age groups (50-62%) (Q51).
The belief that our culture is in a better place as a result of the Black Lives Matter movement tends to increase with age, from 28% among those ages 18-29 to 48% among those ages 75+ (Q52).
Younger Oregonians ages 18-44 are significantly more likely than those ages 45+ to agree with the statement “sometimes it is okay to engage in violence against the government” (39-42% vs. 5-19%) (Q32).
Agreement with the statement “it is okay for the government to arrest and prosecute protesters who break the law” increases with age, from 54% among those ages 18-29, to 75% of those ages 45-54, to 90% of those ages 75+ (Q34)
Methodology: The online survey consisted of 1,584 Oregon residents ages 18+ and took approximately 15 minutes to complete. Respondents were contacted by using professionally maintained online panels. In gathering responses, a variety of quality control measures were employed, including questionnaire pre-testing, validation, and real-time monitoring of responses. To ensure a representative sample, demographic quotas were set, and data weighted by area of the state, gender, age, and education.
Statement of Limitations: Based on a 95% confidence interval, this survey’s margin of error, for the full sample, ranges from ±1.5% to ±2.5%. Due to rounding, numbers may not add up to 100%.
This survey uses aggregated data to analyze the opinions of BIPOC residents in comparison to the opinions of residents who identify as white and not another race. BIPOC residents are not a monolith; the grouping represents a wide diversity of races and ethnicities. The findings included in this memo should not be construed such that all people of color are believed to share the same opinions. Disaggregated race data will be provided when sample sizes permit reliability.
This research was completed as a community service by the Oregon Values and Beliefs Center, an independent and non-partisan organization. OVBC is an Oregon charitable nonprofit corporation (https://oregonvbc.org).
Contact Info:
Amaury Vogel, 503-734-6748, Avogel@Oregonvbc.org