The White Working-Class

"God has granted America a special place in human history." 

Do you agree or disagree with that statement? Fully 70 percent of white working-class Americans believe in the divine quality of the United States versus only 42 percent of their college-educated counterparts. This finding comes from a rich new study of the white working-class by the Public Religion Research Institute. The study defines the white working-class as non-Hispanic whites without a four-year college degree who hold non-salaried jobs, and it analyzes the politics and values of this much-talked-about but rarely measured demographic.

One of the most important findings of the study is this: if you're looking for the stereotypical white working-class, look no further than the South. "Southern white working-class Americans stand out from white working-class Americans in the Northeast, Midwest, and West on a number of cultural attitudes and attributes," says the study. For example:

• 80 percent of working-class whites in the South believe God has granted America a special place in human history (versus 61 to 66 percent of working-class whites in the other regions). 
• 62 percent of working-class whites in the South own a gun (versus 38 to 50 percent in the other regions).
• 58 percent of working-class whites in the South think the government has paid too much attention to the problems of blacks and other minorities (versus 40 to 48 percent in the other regions). 
• 69 percent of working-class whites in the South believe discrimination against whites is as big a problem as discrimination against blacks and other minorities (versus 55 to 59 percent in the other regions).
• 62 percent of working-class whites in the South are Romney supporters (versus 36 to 46 percent in the other regions). 

Source: Public Religion Research Institute, Beyond Guns and God: Understanding the Complexities of the White Working Class in the Untied States