Two-thirds say Obama tried to make race relations better

Almost eight years after electing a black president, vast majorities of blacks and Hispanics think President Barack Obama at least tried to make race relations in the United States better, according to a poll released.

But only about half of whites think Obama made race relations better or at least tried to make race relations better but failed. Almost a third of whites said the president "made race relations worse."

The Pew Research Center report also suggested there is still a stark difference in attitudes about race relations among racial and ethnic groups.

For example, whites were split on the status of race relations, with 46% saying they are generally good overall and 45% saying they are generally bad. But blacks were less optimistic, with 61% saying that race relations are bad and 34% saying that they are good.

Many people had hope that Obama's historic election would bring about better race relations, said Juliana Horowitz, a Pew associate director who helped craft the poll.

62% of Americans said the president himself made race relations better or at least tried to make race relations better, but a full 25% said he made things worse. The poll did not ask for specifics in how Obama made race relations better or worse.

Racial divisions can be clearly seen in the responses.

Vast majorities of blacks and Hispanics 85% for blacks and 74% for Republicans said Obama had made race relations better or tried to make race relations better.

Only about half of whites 52% said he made things better or tried to make things better but failed. But a full third, or 32%, said the president has made things worse.

A majority of blacks 65% expressed support for the Black Lives Matter movement, with 41% saying they strongly support it and 24% saying they support it somewhat. About 1 in 10 blacks 12% say they oppose the Black Lives Matter movement.

Among whites, 4 in 10 say they strongly or somewhat support the Black Lives Matter movement, with 14% saying they strongly support it.

A majority of African-Americans 71% said they had personally experienced discrimination or been treated unfairly because of their race or ethnicity, with fewer than 1 in 10 saying it happens to them on a regular basis.

Almost a third of white adults 30% said they had been discriminated against because of their skin color or ethnicity but only 2% said it happens to them on a regular basis.