In our 2015 article called Intersecting Identities: Race, Military Affiliation, and Youth Attitudes towards War, (War & Society) we examined the relative effects of racial and military statuses on attitudes toward the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. We generally found that while African-Americans were less supportive of these efforts, military status made a difference; African-American cadets were much more supportive of both wars than their civilian peers. Data for that article was quite old, from 2002 to 2010. Here, we look at newer data, to see if these patterns have changed. In these data, we see that the pattern holds for surveys collected from 2012-2017. As before, African-American civilians report the least support for both war efforts while white cadets report the most support. However, African-American cadets continue to report the second most support, suggesting a strong military effect.

Our data clearly show, much like traditional polls by Gallup and other organizations, that the Afghanistan War received more support than the war in Iraq. What role does the military play in identity and attitudes? We also also show, in both cases, having a military affiliation impacts attitudes toward these conflicts. Regarding racial status, it would be easy to say that African Americans are less supportive of war than whites, but it is also clear that military status intersects with race. Perhaps cadets are socialized in the military to be more hawkish – just like their white peers. Maybe more hawkish African Americans join the services. That said, they are different than their white peers, whether they are civilian or associated with the military. These data help demonstrate the complexities of how our statuses and roles impact our thoughts and feelings about the world.