More than a black and white issue: ethnic identity, social dominance orientation, and support for the black lives matter movement

ABSTRACTThe Black Lives Matter (BLM) Movement is the civil rights issue of our time, with opinions being fractured along racial lines. We examine how the relationship between identity constructs and BLM support operates differently among African Americans and White Americans. Our findings show ethnic identity predicts African Americans’ attitudes on BLM, but is a poor predictor of White Americans’ beliefs. Conversely, social dominance orientation better predicts White Americans’ opinions of BLM, but does not associate with BLM attitudes among African Americans. The interaction of these constructs among White American respondents suggests that as White Americans discuss racial issues, the impact of social dominance is negated – leading to positive evaluations of BLM. These processes have implications for communication about racial issues.