Black Americans Favor Increased US Involvement in Gaza
Written by Black Hot Fire Network Team on February 11, 2026
As the Israel-Hamas war reaches its seventh month, calls for a ceasefire have intensified from the American public and the international community. Israel’s military operations in response to Hamas’s attack have resulted in the deaths of more than 30,000 Palestinians and a mounting humanitarian crisis in Gaza, with many residents facing food shortages. Black American activists, intellectuals, and religious leaders are closely observing the situation, with some prominent figures expressing displeasure toward U.S. President Joe Biden’s Gaza policy.
A Carnegie survey conducted at the end of October 2023 revealed substantial Black American support for Israel, but also a preference for greater restraint toward Palestinian civilians. A subsequent poll, conducted between March 14 and March 18, 2024, showed that American involvement in ending the conflict and protecting Palestinian lives was a popular position among many Black Americans, even more so than in early October.
Summary
A majority of Black Americans (68 percent) favored the United States calling for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza. A plurality (46 percent) strongly supported this idea.
Three in five Black Americans (59 percent) believed U.S. military aid to Israel should be conditioned to ensure that Israel uses American weapons for legitimate self-defense and in a way consistent with human rights standards.
A majority of Black Americans (66 percent) reported that their feelings toward Biden had not changed since Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel. However, those under thirty years old and Black independents were more likely to report feeling worse about Biden since October 7.
While two in five (42 percent) Black respondents reported not feeling connected to the plight of either Israelis or Palestinians, the number of Black Americans reporting feeling connected to Palestinians grew significantly (45 percent, up from 32 percent in the October 2023 survey).
Most Black Americans Believed the United States Should Call for a Permanent Ceasefire in Gaza
Widespread support for a ceasefire exists within the larger Black community, according to polling data. A majority (68 percent) of Black Americans surveyed favored a U.S. call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza. A plurality (46 percent) of respondents strongly supported the United States calling for an immediate ceasefire, while 22 percent somewhat supported the idea. Support for a U.S. ceasefire push was consistent across age groups, Black Democrats (72 percent), Black Republicans (69 percent), and Black independents (71 percent).
These findings represent a shift from October, when a plurality favored a U.S. push for some form of ceasefire (43 percent), with 28 percent believing the United States should call for an immediate ceasefire. The share of those strongly in favor of the United States calling for an immediate ceasefire nearly doubled since late October.
News reports about the human toll of the war in Gaza have contributed to a general shift in American opinion. The activism of Black faith leaders has also played a critical role in increasing support from many in the Black community for the United States calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. A third (32 percent) of respondents reported that the calls from Black faith leaders had made them “much more likely” to support such a move.
Most Black Americans Agreed That U.S. Aid to Israel Should Be Conditional
Amid a growing humanitarian toll from Israel’s military operations in Gaza, and recent news coverage of the pipeline of U.S. weapons to Israel, a majority of respondents (59 percent) felt that U.S. military assistance to Israel should be conditioned to ensure that Israel is using American weapons for legitimate self-defense purposes and in a way consistent with human rights standards. This finding aligns with February 2024 polling conducted by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, which revealed that a majority (53 percent) of Americans favored placing restrictions on U.S. weapons to Israel to ensure they are not being used against Palestinian civilians. Black Democrats (63 percent) and Black Americans under thirty (64 percent) were the most supportive of conditioning aid to Israel. Support for conditioning aid was also substantial among those over thirty (57 percent), Black independents (56 percent), and Republicans (62 percent).
Black American Opinions on Biden Were Mostly Unchanged Since October 7
Contrary to recent commentary about growing displeasure with Biden’s Gaza policy, findings revealed that Black Americans’ sentiments toward Biden had not changed much since the conflict between Israel and Hamas started on October 7. Seventeen percent felt better about Biden, 18 percent felt worse, and a majority (66 percent) reported no change. These findings are consistent with previous survey data.
Black independents exhibited the largest change in their feelings about Biden—23 percent reported feeling worse since October 7, roughly twice the number of Black Democrats (13 percent) who said the same. Those under thirty were more likely to feel worse about Biden (19 percent), while those over thirty were somewhat less likely (16 percent). These responses suggest that domestic issues may weigh more heavily than the conflict in Gaza on the minds of many Black voters.
In what is projected to be a very close presidential election, a slackening of support among certain demographics in the Black community could affect Biden’s reelection bid, especially in key swing states. While a mass exodus of Black voters from the Democratic Party is unlikely, stronger support for a ceasefire could encourage critical demographics of Black voters (such as the young, progressives, or those disillusioned with the Democratic Party) to support his reelection.
Black American Connectedness to the Palestinian Plight Has Increased
Since Israel’s military operation in Gaza began, Black Americans’ feelings of connectedness to the plight of Israelis declined from 19 to 13 percent. Meanwhile, 18 percent reported feeling connected to the plight of the Palestinians, up 9 percentage points from the October survey. Twenty-seven percent reported feeling connected to both groups, up 4 percentage points from the previous survey. More Black Americans expressed feeling connected to Palestinians (45 percent) than to Israelis (40 percent)—a shift from the previous survey. A significant portion of Black respondents (42 percent) reported not feeling connected to either group.
Black Americans Felt Action Should Be Taken If Israel Is Found to Have Committed Genocide in Gaza
With South Africa bringing a case to the International Court of Justice charging Israel with genocide, respondents were asked what actions the United States should take if the ICJ finds that Israel has committed genocide in Gaza. A majority (51 percent) of respondents felt the United States should impose sanctions on Israel. This sentiment was stronger among those with higher levels of formal education, with 59 percent of respondents who had a four-year degree or postgraduate education supporting sanctions.
Methodology
The data analyzed are from an original online survey of 600 people of African descent—including African Americans, Afro-Caribbeans, and continental Africans with residence in the United States who identify as Black or African American. The survey was designed by scholars at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and conducted by polling firm YouGov between March 14 and March 18, 2024.
YouGov recruited respondents from its proprietary panel of nearly 2 million U.S. residents. Only respondents aged eighteen and above who are Black and reside in the United States were eligible to participate in the survey.
YouGov employs a sophisticated sample-matching procedure to ensure that the respondent pool is representative of the African American community. All analyses employ sampling weights to ensure representativeness. The overall margin of error for the sample is +/- 4.14 percent.
Notes
Our March 2024 survey polled 335 Black Democrats, 67 Black Republicans, and 122 Black independents. The number of Black Republicans in the survey was not large enough to draw definitive conclusions about their preferences.
