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Column: Poll finds divisions on race

 
Published July 24, 2015

Seven years ago, in the afterglow of a stirring election night in Chicago, commentators dared ask whether the United States had finally begun to heal its divisions over race and atone for the original sin of slavery by electing its first black president. It has not. Not even close. A New York Times/CBS News poll reveals that nearly 6 in 10 Americans, including heavy majorities of both whites and blacks, think race relations are generally bad and that nearly 4 in 10 think the situation is getting worse. Almost half of those questioned said the Obama presidency had no effect on bringing the races together, while about a third said it had driven them farther apart. Only 15 percent said race relations had improved. By comparison, two-thirds of Americans surveyed shortly after President Barack Obama took office said they believed race relations were generally good. One bright spot: Respondents tended to have much sunnier views of race relations in their own communities.