Opinions | When Latino immigration rises, Whites view Black Americans more warmly
Opinion by Vasiliki Fouka, Marco Tabellini - Yesterday 4:55 PM
Social scientists have observed that as immigrant groups grow in size, prejudice toward them often increases. Studies have established, for example, that in areas of the United States that have seen increased levels of immigration from Mexico, White Americans have tended to view Latinos more negatively — buying into a narrative about a “Latino invasion.” But how does the increased prominence of one disfavored group affect the standing of other minority groups?
A recent study of ours, which looked at how attitudes toward Hispanic Americans and Black Americans shifted from 1970 to 2010, revealed a zero-sum dynamic in that case. Over the period, hostility toward Latinos rose while hostility toward Black Americans decreased. The effect appears to be causal: In parts of the country that had the most immigration, both the negative views of Latinos and the positive views of Black Americans were stronger.
This suggests boundaries of social groups in diverse societies are not fixed: What divides “us” from “them” changes depending on the context. And the interactions can be complex: Notably, as the number of Hispanics rose, other groups, such as Asian Americans and Muslim Americans, did not benefit in the same way as Black Americans, we found. Our research suggests that is because White Americans viewed Asian Americans and Muslim Americans as more “foreign” than Black Americans.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/opinions-when-latino-immigration-rises-whites-view-black-americans-more-warmly/ar-AAWq6D4?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=f9ceacd6bcaf42c6aeb23b3a3e24b4f5
