Perhaps more important, the survey corroborates data collected by other researchers showing that those who say Christianity should be accorded an official status in the nation’s identity share many of the same views on race and immigration.
“Among White people, Christian nationalism is linked with support for the Republican Party, enthusiasm for Trump, hostility toward immigrants and denial that racism is pervasive or systemic in America,” the study found.
The only white Americans who differ are Democrats.
Whitehead, whom Pew consulted with on the study, said it further substantiated what he and his team have found.
“What this Pew report shows, and what we’re finding in our work, is that for white Americans a desire to see Christianity privileged in the public sphere really has to do with privileged access to political and cultural power and that’s over and above the effects of political party and ideology,” Whitehead said.
“There’s something unique about wanting to see this brand of Christianity central to the culture that aligns them very similarly toward race, immigration and politics.”
This article originally appeared here.
