Nearly one-half of Americans favour restricting Muslims' rights: poll

Nearly one-half of Americans favour restricting Muslims' rights: poll
10:42 PM EST Dec 17

ITHACA, N.Y. (AP) - Nearly one-half of Americans believe the U.S. government should restrict the civil liberties of Muslim-Americans, a national poll indicates.

The survey conducted by Cornell University also found Republicans and people who described themselves as highly religious were more apt to support curtailing Muslims' civil liberties than Democrats or people who are less religious.

Researchers also found respondents who paid more attention to television news were more likely to fear terrorist attacks and support limiting the rights of Muslim-Americans.

"It's sad news. It's disturbing news. But it's not unpredictable," said Mahdi Bray, executive director of the Muslim American Society.

"The nation is at war, even if it's not a traditional war. We just have to remain vigilant and continue to interface."

The survey found 44 per cent favoured at least some restrictions on the civil liberties of Muslim-Americans. Forty-eight per cent said liberties should not be restricted in any way.

The survey showed 27 per cent of respondents supported requiring all Muslim-Americans to register where they live with the U.S. government. Twenty-two per cent favoured racial profiling to identify potential terrorist threats. And 29 per cent thought undercover agents should infiltrate Muslim civic and volunteer organizations to keep tabs on their activities and fund-raising.

Cornell student researchers questioned 715 people in the national telephone poll conducted this fall. The margin of error was 3.6 percentage points.

James Shanahan, an associate professor of communications who helped organize the survey, said the results indicate "the need for continued dialogue about issues of civil liberties" in a time of war.

While researchers said they were not surprised by the overall level of support for curtailing civil liberties, they were startled by the correlation with religion and exposure to television news.

"We need to explore why these two very important channels of discourse may nurture fear rather than understanding," Shanahan said.

The survey indicated 37 per cent believe a terrorist attack in the United States is still likely within the next 12 months. In a similar poll conducted by Cornell in November 2002, that number stood at 90 per cent.

CBC News

If this poll is to be believed, it seems the propaganda is working. It recently seems popular to vilify gays as well, is there a concentration camp with their name on it too?

If that large a part of the US really buys into that tripe, then it shouldnt suprise us really that Bush has a second term in office. Honestly the thought of this many americans being so blatantly ignorant makes me sick to my stomach. In the case that this is real maybe all the accusations of Nazi-like thinking in the US might not be too far off. For the sake of all that might still be good and worth saving in this country I hope this is an amazingly skewed study perpetrated by some nutjobs rather than an actual dipcition of the feelings of the people.

I find it funny how muslims are todays enemy when christianity has been getting away with death and oppression for thousands of years and people are are ok with that. Maybe christians should be limited in their civil liberties...

If the Us starts restricting peoples rights based on race and religion, i will be the first to take up arms against the NAZ- i meant NEO-CONS... it really undermines your country and its people when half of you think like this...

But then again polls usually are innacurate, and can be made to say just about anything you want if you do it properly

Originally posted by Thorfinn Skullsplitter
I find it funny how muslims are todays enemy when christianity has been getting away with death and oppression for thousands of years and people are are ok with that. Maybe christians should be limited in their civil liberties...

See (and I mean no offense to Thorfinn, he just said what I was really thinking) if the rest of the US took this attitude from the beginning all religious faiths would be under watch, because nobody is free from the bad marks of others upon their faith. Yet Christians walk around the nation relatively free and unoppressed so why shouldnt the rest of us have that same luxury?

As for taking up arms, why bother at that point, if a majority of the country feels the need to both elect bush and shackle muslims, why stick around with people like that at all who are so out of it? Wouldnt it just be easier to find a new home and leave such a diseased place behind?

Originally posted by alternateheaven

See (and I mean no offense to Thorfinn, he just said what I was really thinking) if the rest of the US took this attitude from the beginning all religious faiths would be under watch, because nobody is free from the bad marks of others upon their faith. Yet Christians walk around the nation relatively free and unoppressed so why shouldnt the rest of us have that same luxury?

I don't understand how christianity continues to get away with all of its wrong-doings, but it does. Wasn't Hitler a right-wing christian? Wouldn't that tell you something of the nature of those type of people? I think all religious groups who practice a religion that has a history of bloodshed should be watched to a certain degree.

[edit on 17-12-2004 by Thorfinn Skullsplitter]

I think all religious groups who practice a religion that has a history of bloodshed should be watched to a certain degree.

Lol, you mean watched like how we already watch each other because we are all a nation/world of paranoids? As for Hitler, the man was a walking contradiction in many ways. He didnt match up with his idea of the master race, and he was also apparnatly a closet homosexual, yet he spoke out against homosexuality with great fervor. Every faith has had their members shed the blood of others from time to time; christians, muslims, even the shamans of native american tribes took up arms when necessary. Sad thing is few realize that we are more connected than we are different...

If this poll is right then my post is right.

And after that, the world say that US is the country the most free of the world !!! AHAHAHAHAHAHA

With Bush and his propaganda against religions, peoples who are not like the majority the country is going to the death... I'm very against its politics and his unrespect against everyone. I hope at least that some of them agree with me and that those who voted for that criminal are mad.

Maybe all this intolerence from you're president and from some of you make that terrorists groups and others countries hate America.

That's it. Thanks and sorry for my english

[edit on 17-12-2004 by Vitchilo]

I submitted a news story to ATSNN on this at roughly 8:30 - 9C, I can't seem to find what happened to it. Did it fall in a blackhole?

And whom are the Neo Nazi�s going to go after when they have rounded up all the Muslims?
It is not very hard to figure out, will it be the unemployed the silent minority, or the political dissenters, soccer moms or Nascar dads or maybe you know the real terrorist the one�s who talk about the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights or maybe some other group of people unhappy with the American body politic of today. No I know who they will come after next.!

I read this earlier in the day. National poll my doupa. This poll as with most are complete and utter krap with a big"K". I feel bad, mad, angry, pissed, whichever word youlike to use. This is not how America feels. I am not buying it.
I suggest a re-poll.

Seriously, I know everyone on here is not from the U.S., but if a poll was taken on ATS the numbers would not add up to anything like what we see here. I may not be the well educated, but I am not naive enough to buy this news story for one minute.

Originally posted by specialasianX
If the Us starts restricting peoples rights based on race and religion, i will be the first to take up arms against the NAZ- i meant NEO-CONS... it really undermines your country and its people when half of you think like this...

ahem ok, you're not even an american

I cant believe anyone is dumb enough to take a university poll to heart. Even the more established pollsters are unreliable as hell. Shows how dumb people in the world are, willing to believe about anything.

What would be useful is seeing the exact questions on the polls, anyway.

Originally posted by rogue1

Originally posted by specialasianX
If the Us starts restricting peoples rights based on race and religion, i will be the first to take up arms against the NAZ- i meant NEO-CONS... it really undermines your country and its people when half of you think like this...

ahem ok, you're not even an american

Firstly i really doubt it would ever come to this...

And secondly, only Americans are allowed to fight for whats right are they? You didnt have to be German to fight against the NAZI's...

If the US were to become a racsist state it would inevitably invade other nations and there would be a huge backlash... of which i would gladly join the army of one of the nations against the racism

Originally posted by specialasianX


Firstly i really doubt it would ever come to this...

And secondly, only Americans are allowed to fight for whats right are they? You didnt have to be German to fight against the NAZI's...

So you advocate invasion of other countries due to their internal politics, do you ?
In that case what the US has done in Iraq was right, by your thinking.

If the US were to become a racsist state it would inevitably invade other nations and there would be a huge backlash... of which i would gladly join the army of one of the nations against the racism

What a load of BS, so you would fight the Chinese due to their racist policies in Tibet ? I didn't think so.

Originally posted by specialasianX
If the US were to become a racsist state it would inevitably invade other nations and there would be a huge backlash... of which i would gladly join the army of one of the nations against the racism

Now substitute China, or Syria, for the US in the above statement. Would you come to our defense? Just curious...

I absolutely refuse to beleive that a majority of the american population, or even a significant portion of the american population, would be in favour of nconstituiotnal restrictions on muslims. I think that a lot of americans, however, are confused over racial profiling and what it can do and if its appropriate, and might be in favour of it, but not that they're in favour of special laws de facto and certainly not de juris 'laws' that restrict the rights of muslims.

Originally posted by jsobecky

Originally posted by specialasianX
If the US were to become a racsist state it would inevitably invade other nations and there would be a huge backlash... of which i would gladly join the army of one of the nations against the racism

Now substitute China, or Syria, for the US in the above statement. Would you come to our defense? Just curious...

Is there a reason as to why you'd have doubts that he would?

Originally posted by Durden

Originally posted by jsobecky

Originally posted by specialasianX
If the US were to become a racsist state it would inevitably invade other nations and there would be a huge backlash... of which i would gladly join the army of one of the nations against the racism

Now substitute China, or Syria, for the US in the above statement. Would you come to our defense? Just curious...

Is there a reason as to why you'd have doubts that he would?

I doubt he would do anything, just sit on his ass. He does seem to have an anti-US bias in amny of his arguments though.

Originally posted by rogue1
I doubt he would do anything, just sit on his ass. He does seem to have an anti-US bias in amny of his arguments though.

How's that?