Thursday, November 21, 2019

30,000 Respondents Offer a Complex Picture of Race and Gender with Serious Implications for the 2020 Election


NEW YORK - Today the Black Futures Lab released Beyond Kings and Queens: Gender and Politics in the 2019 Black Census, an analysis of more than 30,000 Black people that are usually not represented or are underrepresented in conventional surveys, such as homeless people, incarcerated people, LGBTQ+ people, Black Republicans and conservatives, Black immigrants, and mixed-raced people with a Black parent, among others.

This report takes a closer look at where and how gender affects the lives and perspectives of Black Census respondents. The report finds that all genders contend with racism throughout the economy, the criminal justice system and society at large, but it also reveals the diversity of experience in the Black community across lines of gender. Beyond Kings and Queens sheds much needed light on the complex relationship between race, gender, and politics.

”Understanding how to reach and move Black voters in 2020 requires a deeper and more inclusive look at how gender impacts our lives and shapes our participation in politics,” said Black Futures Lab Principal, Alicia Garza. “This report shows cisgender Black women ways that feminist coalitions could be stronger when the concerns of transgender women are included and prioritized. And it shows cisgender Black men how to show up in solidarity with Black women across the gender spectrum.  This is essential reading for politicians who want to earn the support of Black voters and advocates who want to mobilize our communities to the polls in 2020.”

Beyond Kings and Queens: Gender and Politics in the 2019 Black Census deconstructs the often monolithic view of the Black community by looking  beyond the gender binary to surface undervalued political participation and aspirations. “Beyond Kings and Queens shows that people on the margins of society are at the very center of social change,” said Rashad Robinson, president of Color Of Change, the nation’s largest online racial justice organization. “This understanding can help bridge differences and form new coalitions to build power within Black communities and inform 2020 candidates on how to most sincerely and effectively engage Black communities ahead of the election.

Many stories told today about Black people’s civic and political engagement miss the full picture.  “To build the political power needed for real liberation, we need to appreciate how gender and gender identity shape the daily lived experiences and perspectives of Black people in this country,” said K. Sabeel Rahman, President of Demos. “This report shines a light on how transgender, gender non-conforming and non-binary Black people are mobilizing for a better world in the face of dire economic instability and pervasive harassment and violence. It illuminates how race and gender intersect in the lives of cis- and transgender Black men and women in the workplace, at the ballot box, and in the streets. And it shows the necessity of fully engaging and including Black people of all genders.”

Cisgender women responding to the Black Census describe the highest rates of voter registration and report “always” voting in a variety of elections — from congressional midterms to local races to ballot referenda—more often than any other gender demographic. Although transgender and gender non-conforming/non-binary Black Census respondents are somewhat less likely to report voting, they are more civically engaged than cisgender Black Census respondents in key ways outside of electoral politics. 49 percent of transgender and non-conforming/non-binary Black Census respondents attended a protest meeting or demonstration in the last year, compared to 31 percent of cisgender women and 25 percent of cisgender men. "By allowing people to express their gender identities with various options instead of a binary, as is still the case for many surveys, the Black Census was able to capture a nuanced view of how gender identity affects the lived experiences of Black people,” said Dr. Juhem Navarro-Rivera, PhD Political Director and Managing Partner of Socioanalytica Research.

Source: Christopher Collins-McNeil

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