Opinion poll says race plays role in O.J. Simpson case

Jet, July 25, 1994

Since the deaths of O.J. Simpson's ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman were announced and the Hall Of Famer has been charged with their murders, a question has lingered in back of America's consciousness: Does Simpson's race play a role in the murder case?

A recent CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll reveals many respondents indeed believe race is a factor in the case and the disparity on the issues between Blacks and Whites in the poll is vast. Not just toward Simpson but in the minds of those polled.

Blacks in particular interviewed in the poll have expressed outrage over what some have termed a media lynching.

When pollsters asked if O.J. Simpson is guilty or innocent, 60 percent of Blacks said Simpson is innocent; 68 percent of Whites said he is guilty.

Pollsters found that 77 percent of Blacks feel sympathetic toward the fallen sports hero, while 42 percent of Whites expressed empathy.

Fifty-four percent of Blacks say in the poll that the media's interest and the public's interest in the case is greater because Simpson is a Black man; but only 17 percent of Whites agree with that assertion, according to the poll.

And 59 percent of Blacks say the media's treatment of Simpson is too harsh, while 31 percent of Whites in the poll agree.

As far as Simpson getting a fair trial, 64 percent of Blacks believe he will not, compared to 41 percent of Whites.

But 63 percent of Whites say the jury will be too lenient toward Simpson, compared to 19 percent of Blacks.