Friday, December 21, 2007

Just the Stats: Hispanics Perceive Major Differences in Race-Ethnic Relations in Suburbia

Differences in people’s perceptions on how they are treated by the court system, salespeople and suburban communities are apparent across racial and ethnic lines, according to a new poll recently released by Manhattanville College.

It showed that more than one-half of Hispanics surveyed stated that police treated them less fairly then they did their White peers. For Hispanics, discrimination seems to occur most frequently while shopping — with roughly 53 percent of respondents reporting that they had experienced discrimination in that activity, compared to 60 percent of Blacks and 44 percent of Whites who said they had.

More Hispanics than any other group, 41 percent, said they experienced discrimination at school, compared to 33 percent of Blacks and 29 percent of Whites who said they had.

Richard Berman, president of Manhattanville College, said: “This poll captures diverse perceptions of people and the suburban communities they live and work in. It shows that discrimination is quite real when it comes to activities like shopping and eating in restaurants, as well as perceptions about how different groups are treated by the criminal justice system.”