POLL RELEASES June 4, 2001
Public Overestimates U.S. Black and Hispanic Populations Perceptions of the percentage of Hispanics in America have grown significantly since 1990, while perceptions of the percentage of blacks have remained steady
by Joseph Carroll
GALLUP NEWS SERVICE
PRINCETON, NJ -- The latest U.S. Census findings on the increasing diversity of America have received considerable attention this year. Americans seem to realize that the United States is a diverse nation, but recent polling suggests the public thinks the nation is more diverse than it actually is. Americans generally overestimate, to a significant degree, the percentage of the U.S. population that is either black or Hispanic. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 12.3% of the U.S. population is black, and 12.5% is Hispanic. Gallup Poll results from March 26-28, however, show that slightly less than one in 10 Americans can accurately identify that the population of either blacks or Hispanics in this country falls between 10% and 14%. The typical American estimates the percentages of blacks and Hispanics in this country to be more than twice as high as they actually are.
On average, Americans say that 33% of the U.S. population is black. In fact, a majority of Americans (56%) estimate that the percentage of blacks in this country stands at 30% or higher. As many as 17% of Americans say the percentage of blacks is 50% or greater. Only 7% accurately state that the percentage of blacks falls between 10% and 14% of the entire population.
Americans' impressions about the percentage of Hispanics in this country are somewhat more accurate than their impressions about the percentage of blacks. Americans, on average, say that 29% of the U.S. population is Hispanic, which is slightly more than twice the actual percentage of Hispanics. About two in five Americans say Hispanics constitute 30% or more of the population. Just 10% accurately estimate that between 10% and 14% of the population is Hispanic.
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