Separation of Races Found OK by Many Young People

About half of young adults believe that separation of races is acceptable as long as there are equal opportunities for everyone, according to a survey of attitudes about race relations released Monday.

The study, sponsored by the National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People and conducted by Hamilton College in Clinton, N.Y., and the polling firm Zogby International, asked adults 18 to 29 whether “it’s OK if races are basically separate” from one another. The survey did not specify what “basically separate” meant.

About 50% of whites surveyed responded that general separation by race is acceptable, compared with about 40% of African Americans.

Analysts who worked on the study said the findings signal that race relations could worsen unless social and political institutions continue to push for integration and equal opportunity among all ethnic groups.

“This indicates that many young Americans are comfortable with the notion of a segregated society,” said Phillip Klinkner, director of the Arthur Levitt Public Affairs Center at Hamilton College. “This is a cause for concern since many school districts are dismantling their integration efforts at a time when new data show rising levels of school segregation.”

School officials in Boston decided earlier this year to halt busing programs for integration and districts in Buffalo, Seattle and Cleveland are phasing out desegregation programs. A report by Harvard University in June found that 70% of African Americans and 75% of Latinos are enrolled in schools that are predominantly minority.

But some scholars questioned whether an acceptance of separatism is harmful to society.

Giles Conwill, a history professor at Morehouse College in Atlanta, said that associating with others of the same race is not a rejection of other races. He also drew a distinction between separatism and segregation.

“Separatism is a conscious decision made from within. Segregation is imposed from an outside source,” Conwill said. “A group’s decision to separate is simply an affirmation of its own cultural identity.”

The report also found that a majority of those who responded to the survey believe that equal opportunity and multicultural education are important. Two-thirds of the young adults and almost 83% of African Americans said that the government should guarantee equal rights and fair treatment in the workplace.

The survey polled 1,001 randomly selected young people from various racial, ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds around the country and has a margin of error of just over plus or minus 3 percentage points. Zogby analysts said they have not gathered statistics on older Americans’ attitudes about race but are likely to do so.

In general, officials for the NAACP and Hamilton College said, the study indicates that many young people share an optimism about the future of race relations in America.

But NAACP officials said the study also shows “how far this country has to travel” before racial harmony is a reality. Hilary Shelton, director of the NAACP’s Washington office, said that many young people who have benefited from integration policies do not fully understand the link between government integration efforts and improved race relations.