Poll: New Yorkers by slim margin believe minorities have same opportunity as whites

A slight majority of New Yorkers believe that minorities in the state have the same opportunity to succeed as white residents — a divide highlighted by wide differences based on race, gender and political affiliation, according to a Siena College poll released on Monday in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

The poll, conducted last week of more than 800 registered voters in the state, found that most Democrats and an overwhelming majority of Blacks said they did not have equal opportunity. A majority of whites, men, Latinos, Republicans, independents and residents of the suburbs, including Long Island, disagreed.

Women were evenly divided and there was virtually no difference in the view among younger, middle-aged and older New Yorkers.

"While it’s correct to say a small majority of voters think that minority New Yorkers have the same opportunities as white New Yorkers, it is also correct that this question highlights the wide racial, partisan and ideological divides that exist," said Siena College pollster Steven Greenberg. "More than two-thirds of Blacks say that minorities don’t have the same opportunities as whites, yet majorities of whites and Latinos say they do."

New Yorkers’ views on the state of race relations has improved since last year, with 36% now saying race relations in the state are excellent or good, compared to 60% who say they are fair or poor — up from 31% and 64% last year, the poll found. These are the highest marks for race relations since 2018, when 39% answered excellent or good, Siena found.

Pollsters found that 52% of New Yorkers think minorities have the same chance to succeed as Caucasians while 41% think they do not. The remaining 7% had mixed or no opinion.

Meanwhile, the poll found that more than 72% of voters contend that minorities — Blacks, Hispanics and Asians — experience racial discrimination, compared to 19% who say they do not. A similar 71% to 20% margin found that religious minorities such as Jews, Muslims and others in New York experience discrimination, the poll found.

"About one-third of New Yorkers say that they’ve been treated unfairly over the last year because of their race, religion, gender, ethnicity, or sexual orientation, including 50% of Latinos and 41% of Blacks. This number has remained largely consistent over the last five years," Greenberg said. "Dr. King would have turned 93 this weekend. He said, ‘Change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle.’ New Yorkers say that struggle persists."

By Robert Brodsky

robert.brodsky@newsday.com@BrodskyRobert

Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.