Satisfaction with the way Asian Americans are treated in the U.S. has plummeted after a year of documented increases in hate crimes and instances of racism, a new poll shows. Americans are also at an all-time low in their satisfaction with the treatment of immigrants in this country, according to the Gallup poll released Thursday. Americans' views on the treatment of immigrants have declined in the 20 years since Gallup began polling them on the topic, with this year's 33% of satisfaction marking the lowest point. Just 46% of Americans are satisfied with the way Asian people are treated, a 14% drop from the previous year. Between 2016 and 2020, the level of satisfaction dropped 15%; before then, about 70% or more of Americans typically said they were satisfied with the treatment of Asian Americans, according to Gallup.
The finding comes after an uptick in hate crime incidents over the last year-plus amid the coronavirus pandemic, when negative stereotypes for Asian Americans were used by public figures and elected officials. There was a more than 164% increase in anti-Asian hate crime reports to police in the first quarter of 2021 in 16 major cities and jurisdictions compared with last year, according to a report from the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino. White people and Hispanic people were more likely to say they were satisfied with how Asian Americans are treated, at 50% and 44% satisfaction, respectively. Meanwhile, 30% of Black adults said they were satisfied with how Asians are treated. The rate of satisfaction declined at a similar rate across all three groups. The survey also showed a decline in the perception of relations between white Americans and Asian Americans — 67% said relations were good or very good — and between Black Americans and Asian Americans — 58%. The majority of Americans still view those relationships favorably, however.
After months of protests against racism and the police brutality of Black people, Gallup also found that low numbers of Black people, just 15%, are satisfied with Americans' treatment of their racial group. Thirty-seven percent of Hispanic Americans are satisfied with the treatment of Black people. These satisfaction levels are on par with 2018 and 2020 readings. Sixty-eight percent of those surveyed said they were satisfied with how white Americans are treated. Gallup has found that in the 20 years since it has been polling American's satisfaction levels on the treatment of various groups, there has been no improvement over the time span. Therefore, it is unclear whether this year's results are indicative of a rock bottom or whether they will continue to decline in the future.
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