Equal Opportunity Beliefs beyond Black and White American Christianity

Abstract

<jats:p>Scholars in critical race and the sociology of religion have independently drawn attention to the ways in which cultural ideologies drive beliefs about inequalities between groups. Critical race work on “abstract liberalism” highlights non-racially inflected language that tacitly reinforces White socioeconomic outcomes resulting from an allegedly fair social system. Sociologists of religion have noted that White Evangelical Christian theology promotes an individualist mindset that places blame for racial inequalities on the perceived failings of Blacks. Using data from the National Asian American Survey 2016, we return to this question and ask whether beliefs about the importance of equal opportunity reveal similarities or differences between religious Asian American and Latino Christians and Black and White Christians. The results confirm that White Christians are generally the least supportive of American society providing equal opportunity for all. At the other end, Black Christians were the most supportive. However, with the inclusion of Asian American Christian groups, we note that second generation Asian American and Latino Evangelicals hew closer to the White Christian mean, while most other Asian and Latino Christian groups adhere more closely to the Black Christian mean. This study provides further support for the recent claims of religion’s complex relationship with other stratifying identities. It suggests that cultural assimilation among second generation non-Black Evangelical Christians heads more toward the colorblind racist attitudes of many White Christians, whereas potential for new coalitions of Latino and Black Christians could emerge, given their shared perceptions of the persistent inequality in their communities.</jats:p>

Racial and Religious Convergences and Divergences among Christian Students’ Approaches to Color‐Blindness, Color‐Cognizance, and Race in Christian Organizations

“…Studies show that Black Christians are more likely than White Christians to recognize structural and racial inequality (Emerson and Smith 2000; Hinojosa and Park 2004; Perry and Whitehead 2019), that White evangelicals appear distinctive in their individualistic perspectives (Cobb 2013; Tranby and Hartmann 2008), and that religious orthodoxy interacts with structural position in shaping different understandings of racial inequality (Frost and Edgell 2017). In addition, Park and colleagues (2020) find that White Christians are the least supportive of equal opportunity and that second‐generation Latino and Asian American evangelicals are similar to White people in their perspectives. They suggest that cultural assimilation among second‐generation Latinos and Asian Americans may move them more toward the color‐blindness of White people rather than the racial perspectives of Black people (Park, Chang, and Davidson 2020).…”

“…In addition, Park and colleagues (2020) find that White Christians are the least supportive of equal opportunity and that second‐generation Latino and Asian American evangelicals are similar to White people in their perspectives. They suggest that cultural assimilation among second‐generation Latinos and Asian Americans may move them more toward the color‐blindness of White people rather than the racial perspectives of Black people (Park, Chang, and Davidson 2020). Furthermore, Edwards and Oyakawa (2022) found that Black religious leaders in predominantly White denominations are more similar to White evangelicals in drawing on individualistic understandings of inequality.…”

“…One study found that White evangelicals were more likely to report racial discrimination; however, this pattern was distinctive to the South (Mayrl and Saperstein 2013). Nonetheless, as the aforementioned studies suggest, it is evangelicals of color who are often more aware of the structural inequalities or disadvantages people of color face (Emerson and Smith 2000; Hinojosa and Park 2004; Park, Chang, and Davidson 2020; Perry and Whitehead 2019) with some evidence suggesting White evangelicals may be color‐cognizant White favoring (Mayrl and Saperstein 2013). These studies suggest that race, religion, and other factors, such as politics, region, and predominantly or historically White organizational contexts may also shape color‐cognizance.…”

“…In the aftermath of the 2016 elections, many scholars noted the importance of the intersections of race and religion in Donald Trump's ascendance, pointing to Christian nationalism (Baker, Perry, and Whitehead 2020; Gorski and Perry 2022; Whitehead and Perry 2020) and the White racial demographic of evangelical Trump supporters (Yukich and Edgell 2020). Since then, research examining the intersections of race and religion and racial inequality has continued to grow (for examples, see Curtis 2021; Davis and Perry 2021; Edwards and Oyakawa 2022; Harris, Jones, and Monson 2022; Park, Chang, and Davidson 2020; Yukich and Edgell 2020). As sociologists of religion increasingly emphasize how religion is racialized (Yukich and Edgell 2020), organizational sociologists have also drawn attention to how organizations are not race neutral but are racialized structures (Ray 2019).…”

Racializing the Religious during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…By interrogating the assumptions of White Christian norms, new scholarship could examine the intersection of race and religion by focusing on racial/ethnic groups that share a religious affiliation. Few studies have explored this intersection (Padela and Curlin 2013;Park et al 2020;Yukich and Edgell 2020). Examining the racial inequities highlighted by this pandemic offers an opportunity to increase understanding of religion and health among members of predominately Black and other minority-dominant faith communities as a pathway to explore health disparities overall.…”