In “Why Do White Americans Support the Death Penalty?,” American University researchers Joe Soss, Laura Langbein, and Alan Metelko examined whether racial attitudes play a role in white support for the death penalty. The researchers found that white support for the death penalty in the United States has strong ties to anti-black prejudice, and in some geographic areas racial prejudice emerges as the strongest predictor of white death penalty support. Soss, Joe, et al.: “Why Do White Americans Support the Death Penalty? “; 65 The Journal of Politics 397 (2003). See Race and Resources.