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Choosing Choice: How Gender and Religiosity Shape Abortion Attitudes among Latinos

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 March 2020

Mirya Holman Open the ORCID record for Mirya Holman [Opens in a new window] ,
Erica Podrazik  and
Heather Silber Mohamed Open the ORCID record for Heather Silber Mohamed [Opens in a new window]
Mirya Holman
Affiliation:
Tulane University
Erica Podrazik
Affiliation:
Tulane University
Heather Silber Mohamed*
Affiliation:
Clark University
*
Address correspondence and reprint requests to: Heather Silber Mohamed, Clark University, Worcester, MA. E-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

The relationship between religiosity and political attitudes is well established in the United States, particularly around gendered issues like abortion. However, this relationship can be complicated by the highly gendered and racialized nature of social identities. In this paper, we explore how different forms of religiosity (belonging to a denomination, specific religious beliefs, and religious behavior in church and in private) interact with gender to shape Latino abortion preferences. Using two sets of national survey data, we find that Evangelicalism and church attendance are more strongly associated with anti-abortion attitudes among Latino men, while religious beliefs are gender neutral. Our results illustrate the importance of intersectional approaches to studies of social identities and political preferences, as well as the importance of including gender in research on the role of the Evangelical church on immigrant political behavior.

Keywords

LatinosgenderreligiosityabortionEvangelicalismbiblechurch attendancesocial groupsintersectionality
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Race, Ethnicity, and Politics , Volume 5 , Issue 2 , July 2020 , pp. 384 - 411
Copyright
Copyright © The Race, Ethnicity, and Politics Section of the American Political Science Association 2020

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Footnotes

Paper was previously presented at the 2018 Western Political Science Association Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA. The authors thank Erin Cassese, Heather Ondercin, and Libby Sharrow for their comments on the project.

References

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