The Effect of Racial Group Consciousness on the Political Participation of African Americans and Black Ethnics in Miami-Dade County, Florida

Abstract

This research examines group consciousness among people of African descent in Miami-Dade County, Florida, and its possible impact on their political participation. Using an original survey of over one thousand respondents, the authors question whether African Americans and black ethnics (Africans, Afro-Caribbean Americans, Afro-Cuban Americans, and Haitians) possess a shared group consciousness and, if so, why. Second, does group consciousness or socioeconomic status most influence the political participation of our respondents? The authors find that these groups have a common consciousness because of their skin color, experiences with discrimination, common interests, similar ideological views, and leadership preferences. They also find that while group consciousness has more of an impact on African American political participation, socioeconomic status more heavily influences black ethnics. Last, factors such as age, gender, partisanship, religion, and second-generation citizenship also affect African American and/or black ethnic political participation.

American Muslim Political Participation: Between Diversity and Cohesion

“…An all but requisite variable in studies of minority political attitudes and behavior, measures of collective identity are frequently marshaled to explain an individual's propensity to participate in various civic activities. This connectedness to a broader community, alternately referred to as group consciousness (Verba and Nie 1972; Miller et al 1981; Bobo and Gilliam 1990) or “linked-fate” (Dawson 1994), is most often associated with African American political identity and participation (Gay and Tate 1998; Chong and Rogers 2005; Austin, Middleton, and Yon 2012). Although scholars caution against merely assuming this mechanism is operative in non-Black minority groups (Junn and Masuoka 2008), numerous studies have nonetheless sought to extend this framework to Asian and Latino American political behavior, with mixed results (Leighley and Vedlitz 1999; Stokes 2003; Sanchez and Masuoka 2010; Wong et al 2011).…”

Ethnicity and the role of group consciousness: a comparison between African Americans and Black immigrants

“…Despite the growth in Black immigration since the 1960s, only recently have scholars begun to consider the differences that might arise among native-and foreign-born Blacks' political attitudes and behaviors (Alex-Assensoh 2010; Austin, Middleton, and Yon 2012;Nunnally 2010;Rogers 2006). Scholars have assumed or, at best, implied that since most Blacks in the US will be treated similarly regardless of their ethnicity, we should expect Black newcomers' racial identity to become politicized and mobilized as African Americans' identity has.…”

Fostering Democratic Participation at Community Colleges: Understanding the Relationship Between Voting and Student, Institutional, and Environmental Factors

“…Further research could focus on the 2012 election year, given its unique significance for increased participation among Black voters. Specifically, scholars could tease apart the impact of racial group consciousness (Austin et al, 2012;Smith & Walker, 2013), from the role of community cultural engagement (Calhoun-Brown, 1996;Djupe & Neiheisel, 2019), particularly among the community college student population.…”