46 Percent of US Adults Feel Strong Connection to Ethnic Origins

May 20, 2021: Forty-six percent (46%) of U.S. adults feel a strong connection to their family's ethnic and cultural origin. A Pew Research Center study found that a smaller number — 33% — consider that origin central to their identity.[1]

Fifty-five percent (55%) of Black Americans see their origin as central to their identity. So do 54% of Hispanics. However, 75% of white Americans do not.[1]

The topic of racial identity is very complex and a growing number of Americans "have one white parent and one nonwhite or Hispanic parent."[2] Currently, about one out of 10 births in the U.S. come from such parentage. And, that number will keep growing because nearly one out of five new weddings cross racial or ethnic lines.[2]

Currently, just 49% of U.S. adults say Census Bureau racial and ethnic categories match their self-identity very well.[3]

An earlier Number of the Day noted that 6% of the U.S. population gave different ethnic and racial responses on the 2010 census than they did on the previous census.Each weekday, Scott Rasmussen's Number of the Day explores interesting and newsworthy topics at the intersection of culture, politics and technology. Columns published on Ballotpedia reflect the views of the author. Scott Rasmussen's Number of the Day is published by Ballotpedia weekdays at 9 a.m. Eastern. Columns published on Ballotpedia reflect the views of the author. Scott Rasmussen is founder and president of the Rasmussen Media Group. He is the author of "Mad as Hell: How the Tea Party Movement Is Fundamentally Remaking Our Two-Party System," "In Search of Self-Governance," and "The People's Money: How Voters Will Balance the Budget and Eliminate the Federal Debt." Read Scott Rasmussen's Reports — More Here.Footnotes:

1. Pew Research Center, "Americans’ origins and connections to their families’ roots," May 14, 2021
2. Deseret News, "We are misunderstanding the future of race in America," April 18, 2021
3. Pew Research Center, "Only about half of Americans say census questions reflect their identity very well," May 14, 2021