Lost traditions and new pathways: Hunting participation and perceptions among Black HBCU students in the U.S.
Richard von Furstenberg, Lincoln R. Larson, Breanna Bashford, Coral Minchey, M. Elizabeth Rutledge, M. Nils Peterson, KangJae Jerry Lee, Stacy A. C. Nelson, William E. Stone, Annette Williams‐Yussif, Catherine Dorwart, Tony PattersonAbstract
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Relevancy Roadmap urges wildlife agencies to engage nontraditional audiences in activities such as hunting, yet little research has examined young Black Americans’ perceptions of and participation in hunting. We partnered with 5 historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) across 4 Southeastern states to survey Black students ( n = 662) and ask about their hunting behaviors and perceptions, comparing them to White students from predominantly White institutions (PWI; n = 4,763) in the same region. Black HBCU students reported lower past hunting participation than White PWI students (11% vs. 35%), but a greater proportion were classified as potential hunters (38% vs. 21%). Compared to White students, Black students cited greater structural and social barriers, including discomfort with a lack of diversity in the outdoors (Cohen's d = 1.06), negative outdoor experiences ( d = 0.78), and less social support for hunting (Cohen's h = –0.61). Addressing these disparities requires inclusive outreach, mentorship, and culturally relevant hunter recruitment, retention, and reactivation (R3) programming.