New data has been released by the Public Religion Research Institute, a group based in Washington, D.C., that revealed the usually conservative Latino Catholics overwhelmingly support abortion rights today than they did more than a decade ago. 

More than 75% of Latino Catholics said abortion should be legal in most or all cases. It’s a stark contrast to 2010, when the same question was asked and just over 51% of people agreed. It’s also in contrast to white evangelicals, where only 25% believe it should be legal after the landmark overturn of Roe v. Wade. Nearly all white evangelical respondents to the survey said they would like to see the banning of abortions after 15 weeks, with over 50% saying anyone who provides an abortion face a felony charge. 

The survey also showed that as of recently, white evangelicals are on their own as it relates to the downing of abortion rights with even Catholic, non-Chrisian related, Black protestants, and non-religious Americans being much more supportive. White evangelicals also look to their religious leaders for the framing of their vision on abortion rights more than other groups at 38% in comparison to Latino Catholics that sit at about 13%. 

In relation to the number of those who look to their religious beliefs to dictate their views on abortion, for Latino Catholics it is 32% to that of 73% of white evangelicals. 

The survey was conducted from June 24-26 and was published just hours after the overturn of Roe v. Wade, as organizers looked to get an immediate response to the huge ruling. 2,038 people were surveyed, which included 241 Latinos with 104 considering themselves Catholic. 

According to Chief Executive Officer of PRRI, Melissa Deckman, Latino Catholics are in line with other religious people of color as it relates to abortion support. 

So much as changed within Latino Catholic circles with the rise in abotion advocacy groups that are Catholic, such as the nonprofit organization Catholic for Choice, based in Washington D.C., that “lifts up the voices of the majority of Catholics who believe in reproductive freedom.” With over 38,000 followers on Twitter, it is a growing platform for other Latino Catholics to find some alignment with others like themselves who believe in abortion rights and contraceptives. 

Of white Catholics who were surveyed, 62% oppose the overturn compared to 72% of Latino Catholics. The survey plays a big role in challenging the beliefs of Catholics and what it truly means to be not just a Catholic, but even a Latino, as historically, both have maintained a rather conservative outlook on certain issues like abortion and sex. The findings reveal that one can remain with their faith, but not exactly have to align with it in all aspects. The younger demographic has a lot to do with the turnaround of Latino Catholic outlooks on abortion. 

According to Deckman: “We know that age is a big differentiator when it comes to attitudes on abortion for Americans overall, but clearly, I think it’s helping drive more support for abortion among Latinos…We now have a situation where abortion is no longer a constitutional right, and access to abortion care is becoming more limited in a lot of areas…“I think that’s led younger people to become more supportive of abortion rights in general.”