Survey: 39% of Catholics have faced racial discrimination, 10% within parish community

A survey of 2,401 Catholic adults found that 39% said they have faced racial discrimination at some point in their lives, and 10% said they have faced racial discrimination within their parish community.

The survey was published on Oct. 26 by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA), which is a research center at Georgetown University that produces social scientific studies about the Catholic Church.

It found significant differences among racial and ethnic categories, with Indigenous and Black Catholics reporting the highest levels of racial discrimination. Non-Hispanic white Catholics reported the lowest levels of racial discrimination.

The survey found that 75% of Indigenous Catholics reported experiences of racial discrimination in their lives. About 15% said they have experienced it in their parishes and 23% have experienced it in Catholic education.

It found that 66% of Black Catholics said they have experienced racial discrimination at some point in their lives, with 26% experiencing it in their parish communities and 26% experiencing it in Catholic education.

About 54% of Hispanic Catholics reported experiencing racial discrimination in their…