Ethnic-Racial Identity, Racial Discrimination and Support for Black Lives Matter among Black American Youth.

This study investigates the relationship between ethnic-racial identity, racial discrimination experiences, and strong support for the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement among a nationally representative sample of Black American youth aged 18 to 20. Using data from the 2016 Collaborative Multiracial Post-Election Survey (CMPS), findings indicate that a positive ethnic-racial identity and explicit acknowledgment of anti-Black racism in society significantly predict strong support for BLM, whereas personal experiences of racial discrimination do not remain significant once these factors are accounted for. Additional results show that Black women, U.S.-born youth, those employed full-time, and individuals with liberal political views are more likely to strongly support BLM. The study highlights the importance of multidimensional measures of racial identity and racism in understanding support for BLM and suggests future research should explore longitudinal and intersectional perspectives to further clarify these relationships.