Unveiling the Mask of Post-Race Legitimacy; Preserving White Supremacy through the Use of Colorblind Racism in Policy Preference
Faculty Sponsor(s)
Amy Orr
Location
Jereld R. Nicholson Library: Grand Avenue
Subject Area
Sociology
Description
Recent literature has illustrated a shifting form of racism from a Jim Crow, overt form to a colorblind, covert form. Although the latter may present itself as more subtle, both forms have served to reinforce the foundation of white supremacy. In order to preserve this foundation, colorblind ideology has been used to implement coded language and race-neutral explanations in policy, reinforcing the existing racial hierarchy in a powerful, but discreet manner. This study utilizes survey data to analyze the relationship between colorblind attitudes and policy preference. It is hypothesized that 1) higher levels of colorblindness will lead to less support for social policies that would benefit racial and ethnic minorities, and 2) Whites will present higher levels of colorblind attitudes than non-Whites. In an online ‘Social Attitudes Survey’, a series of questions determined that while Hypothesis 2 was not supported, with whites and non-whites showing similar levels of colorblindness, Hypothesis 1 was supported, with colorblindness and policy preference presenting a correlation of 0.788, p
Recommended Citation
Gonzalez, Vanessa, "Unveiling the Mask of Post-Race Legitimacy; Preserving White Supremacy through the Use of Colorblind Racism in Policy Preference" (2022). Linfield University Student Symposium: A Celebration of Scholarship and Creative Achievement. Event. Submission 18.
https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/symposium/2022/all/18
Unveiling the Mask of Post-Race Legitimacy; Preserving White Supremacy through the Use of Colorblind Racism in Policy Preference
Jereld R. Nicholson Library: Grand Avenue
Recent literature has illustrated a shifting form of racism from a Jim Crow, overt form to a colorblind, covert form. Although the latter may present itself as more subtle, both forms have served to reinforce the foundation of white supremacy. In order to preserve this foundation, colorblind ideology has been used to implement coded language and race-neutral explanations in policy, reinforcing the existing racial hierarchy in a powerful, but discreet manner. This study utilizes survey data to analyze the relationship between colorblind attitudes and policy preference. It is hypothesized that 1) higher levels of colorblindness will lead to less support for social policies that would benefit racial and ethnic minorities, and 2) Whites will present higher levels of colorblind attitudes than non-Whites. In an online ‘Social Attitudes Survey’, a series of questions determined that while Hypothesis 2 was not supported, with whites and non-whites showing similar levels of colorblindness, Hypothesis 1 was supported, with colorblindness and policy preference presenting a correlation of 0.788, p
