There were similar gaps in black and white perceptions of how blacks are treated in various circumstances. Two-thirds of blacks, for example, said blacks were treated less equitably by the police, a view shared by only a quarter of whites. Forty-two percent of blacks said they felt they had been stopped by the police simply because of their race, compared with only 3 percent of whites. Being black, you're discriminated against when you try to buy something you want unless you assert yourself. If the store is crowded, you're pushed aside because the sales clerks would rather wait on someone else.
Progress means being considered on the same level with any other race.
Predictably, the variation in attitudes about equal opportunity and treatment gave rise to differing views about programs that make special efforts to help minorities get ahead. Blacks favored such programs 76 percent to 11 percent, while whites were ambivalent, with 46 percent saying they favored them and 44 percent saying they opposed them. The poll detected a surprising degree of social interaction between blacks and whites. Forty-three percent of whites and 58 percent of blacks said people of another race had visited their homes socially in the last month. It's basically the same group of folks, white and black.