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Social & Policy Issues
No Preferred Racial Term Among Most Black, Hispanic Adults
Social & Policy Issues

No Preferred Racial Term Among Most Black, Hispanic Adults

by and

Story Highlights

  • If they had to choose, Black adults have a slight preference for "Black"
  • Most Hispanic adults would prefer "Hispanic" term if they had to choose
  • Few Hispanic adults prefer "Latinx"

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Most Black Americans, 58%, do not have a preference between the terms "Black" and "African American" when asked which term they would rather people use to describe their racial group. The one in three who express a preference divide evenly between preferring each term.

Black Americans' Preferred Term for Their Racial Subgroup
The terms "Black" and "African American" are both used to refer to this racial subgroup of Americans. Which term do you think should generally be used -- Black, African American, another term, or does it not matter to you either way?
June 1-July 5, 2021
%
Black 17
African American 17
Does not matter 58
Another term/Other 6
No opinion 2
GALLUP, JUN 1-JUL 5, 2021

These findings from a June 1-July 5 Â鶹´«Ã½AV poll are similar to Â鶹´«Ã½AV's prior tracking of Black Americans' preferred terms using a differently worded question asked from 1991 to 2019. The new wording makes it clear that the question is asking what the group should be called -- not how the respondent prefers to be referred to, themselves. The earlier surveys also found majorities saying it didn't matter to them which term was used, and usually, no clear preferred term was identified among those who did have a preference.

Although the term "African American" was used as early as 1782, it was popularized in the late 1980s by a group of Black leaders, including Rev. Jesse Jackson, who argued that this term had "cultural integrity." But like Â鶹´«Ã½AV's findings today, the Black public mostly had no preference between the two terms in the early 1990s and the following decades, while similarly sized minorities preferred one over the other.

RaceTerm-Historic

Line graph. Black Americans' preferred term for their race, from 1991 through 2019. In 2019, 64% of Black Americans did not have a preference between "Black" and "African American," while 18% favored "African American" and 17% preferred "Black."

Style guides of the Associated Press and the National Association of Black Journalists say that both "Black" and "African American" are acceptable terms -- but not necessarily interchangeable ones -- and advise reporters use the preferred terms of their subjects.

Societally accepted terms do change over time. Â鶹´«Ã½AV found in 1969 that "negroes" was the most popular term among Black Americans at the time, while "colored people" and "Blacks" were about equally as preferred, each by about one in five, and "Afro-Americans" were favored by one in 10.

Â鶹´«Ã½AV primarily used the term "negro" in early decades of polling, including its very first question about Black people in 1939, though the term "colored people" was used as well. Both terms were retired by the company in the early 1970s, when "Black" became a staple term Â鶹´«Ã½AV used to poll about Black Americans thereon.

If They Had to Choose, Most Black Adults Would Choose "Black"

In the current survey, for the first time, Â鶹´«Ã½AV asked a follow-up question of Black respondents who did not have a preference whether they lean toward one term over the other if they had to choose.

Black Americans were fairly mixed on the question, with a slight preference for "Black" (52%) over "African American" (44%). Four percent had no opinion either way.

Black Americans' Preferred Term for Their Racial Subgroup, if They Had to Choose
If you had to choose, which term do you lean toward -- "African-American" or "Black"?
Black African-American No opinion
% % %
June 1-July 5, 2021 52 44 4
Question asked of those with no preference for "Black" or "African-American" as the racial group description. Figures above represent combined results.
GALLUP, JUN 1-JUL 5, 2021

Most Hispanic Adults Have No Preference on Subgroup Label

Hispanic respondents were asked a similar question about their preference among the terms "Hispanic," "Latino" and "Latinx" -- with this final option being a newer, gender-neutral term favored by some Hispanic Americans.

Most Hispanic adults (57%) say it does not matter to them which term is used, though nearly one in four (23%) prefer "Hispanic" and 15% prefer "Latino." Few expressed a preference for "Latinx" (4%).

Hispanic Americans' Preferred Term for Their Ethnic Subgroup
The terms "Hispanic," "Latino," and "Latinx" are used to refer to this ethnic subgroup of Americans. Which term do you think should generally be used -- Hispanic, Latino, LatinX, another term, or does it not matter to you either way?
June 1-July 5, 2021
%
Hispanic 23
Latino 15
Latinx 4
Does not matter 57
Another term/Other 1
No opinion 0
GALLUP, JUN 1-JUL 5, 2021

These findings are fairly consistent with a differently worded question Â鶹´«Ã½AV polled among Hispanic Americans in 2013 that also found that most said the term used did not matter, though "Hispanic" was slightly preferred over "Latino."

"Hispanic" the Most Preferred Term by Hispanic Adults When Asked to Choose

In the follow-up question in which Hispanic respondents were asked which term they lean toward, most prefer "Hispanic" (57%), while more than a third choose "Latino" (37%). Five percent prefer "Latinx."

Hispanic Americans' Preferred Term for Their Ethnic Subgroup, if They Had to Choose
If you had to choose, which term do you lean toward -- Hispanic, Latino or Latinx?
Hispanic Latino Latinx No opinion
% % % %
June 1-July 5, 2021 57 37 5 2
Question asked of those with no preference for "Hispanic," "Latino," or "Latinx" as the racial group description. Figures above represent combined results.
GALLUP, JUN 1-JUL 5, 2021

Bottom Line

American language and terminology evolve, as do the terms certain groups use to refer to themselves.

As for the terms "Black" and "African American," however, both terms have been accepted by most Black Americans for at least three decades -- though sizable and roughly equal, minorities of Black adults have had a preference for one of the terms in particular. Today, when they must choose one, "Black" enjoys a slight preference, though many opt for "African American" as well.

Most Hispanic Americans, too, are content with the use of multiple terms to describe their subgroup. Most favor "Hispanic," though many prefer "Latino," while few have adopted "Latinx" as their preferred term. Â鶹´«Ã½AV's historical polls illustrate the extent to which preferences can change over time, however, and future updates will tell if this new, lesser-used term is on the rise -- and also if even newer labels have emerged to rival it.

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View complete question responses and trends (PDF download).


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