Previous research has found that formerly incarcerated people often experience discrimination or difficulty moving beyond their convictions once reentering society after they complete their sentence. I raise the following question: in what ways do the difficulties of reentry and discrimination impact political engagement for formerly incarcerated African Americans as they navigate back into society? This paper analyzes data from the 2020 CMPS that includes a sample of formerly incarcerated people and how long it’s been since their release and participation in multiple types of civil engagements. I hypothesize that the formerly incarcerated engage in civil engagements because they are a means of expressing their voices against racial and reentry discrimination. This research is important as it will bring awareness to the difficulties and discriminatory behaviors toward formerly incarcerated people during reentry and seek to understand the concepts that being a product of the criminal justice system expands beyond the duration of incarceration.

This research explores the intersection of social movements and public opinion, particularly how different racial groups view protestors. The main issue being explored is the widespread disagreement on the most appropriate ways to express dissent towards institutions like the government and police. There is a major debate about how individuals evaluate non-violent and violent protests. Racial factors also play a role in these perceptions, as evidenced by the predominantly white January 6th protesters and mainly Black individuals participating in Black Lives Matter protests. Media bias further complicates perceptions by portraying protests differently depending on the political issues involved. This study uses the Collaborative Multiracial Post-election Survey 2020 (CMPS) and asks how racism influences public perceptions of protestors. Specifically, I ask how opinions about BLM protestors compare to those of January 6th insurrection protestors. I hypothesize that attitudes towards racism affect the views of white people towards both types of protestors, but racism does not have the same influence on Black people’s opinions of protestors. This research seeks to provide a deeper understanding of social movement participation and its impact on political opinions.

Black politics has traditionally been framed around the role of African Americans in America’s political framework. Yet, like any other race, certain groups within the race have more power over others. In this case, Black elites' influence and power have continuously grown. I argue that Black elitist politics contradict the notion of representing the best interest of the community as they often enable those who discriminate towards the Black community from perceived connotations. Using the 2020 Collaborative Multiracial Post-Election Survey, I analyze the relationship between elite status and attitudes about economic and social welfare policies. I hypothesize that Black Elites only worry about economic measures while non-elites worry about economic measures and social welfare measures. This analysis explains how Black elites prioritizing economic measures affect Black liberation or movement(s).

As efforts to restrict access to curriculum related to race, ethnicity, and politics in K-12 education have intensified over the years, the current situation has reached an all-time high. I argue that there will be a relationship between fear and individuals’ attitudes towards the incorporation of Black history in K-12 education. This research investigates how fear influences people’s attitudes towards incorporating Black history into K-12 education and how these attitudes vary by race. Using data from the 2020 Collaborative Multiracial Post-Election Survey (CMPS), this study examines the responses to questions about agreement or disagreement on teaching race and racism in the U.S history curriculum.