WASHINGTON (AP) — Amid a tumultuous political climate marked by assassinations of conservative activists this year. charlie kirk Utah and Democratic Party member Young people in Minnesota are less worried about political violence than older people, according to a new AP-NORC poll.
Roughly four in 10 American adults are concerned about political violence directed at conservatives or liberals, a poll found. Associated Press-NORC Public Affairs Research Center However, fear of violence on either side of the political spectrum is low among young people.
There are also deep partisan divides, with Republicans and Democrats expressing strong concerns about violence against their own factions, but fewer say they are concerned about violence against the other side.
When it comes to fundamental rights, U.S. adults are most likely to say that free speech and press freedoms face major threats. Fewer Americans perceive a threat to their right to vote or bear arms.
“Every time there’s political violence, it seems like it’s going to snowball and it’s worrying,” said Ryan Stryker, 34, a music teacher in Manchester, New Hampshire. Ryan Stryker is a liberal but politically independent and opposes President Donald Trump.
Young people are less worried about violence and threats to free speech
The poll found that 44% of American adults are “very” or “extremely” concerned about political violence directed at conservative politicians and groups. A similar proportion, 41%, are concerned about violence directed at liberal people or groups.
However, there is a huge gap between generations.
About half of adults over 60 are very concerned about political violence directed at conservatives and liberals, compared to about three in 10 adults under 30.
“I remember Kent State University. I was there,” said Tony DeGiovine, 74, a retired electrician, musician and Democrat from Phoenix. “The National Guard isn’t really trained to patrol the streets. Neither is the military. There’s going to be some problems.”
In 1970, the National Guard shot and killed an unarmed student protesting the Vietnam War at Kent State University.
Similar generational patterns exist when it comes to liberals’ and conservatives’ concerns about restricting free speech.
About 4 in 10 U.S. adults are “very” or “extremely” concerned about threats to free speech from conservatives and liberals. But while about half of adults over 60 are very concerned about the threat to free speech from conservatives, only about a quarter of adults under 30 think the same way. There is still a significant, albeit smaller, gap among liberals.
Fundamental rights are seen as threatened
The poll, which asked whether various fundamental rights are under threat, found that about half of U.S. adults believe there is a “serious” threat to free speech, and about four in 10 say the same goes for freedom of the press. Fewer people (3 in 10) say there are serious threats to their right to vote and the right to keep and bear arms.
There was no age difference among Americans who perceived a “major” threat to free speech. The findings suggest that although younger people believe free speech is under threat, they are less personally concerned than older people about how free speech affects liberals and conservatives.
“It’s concerning that we seem to be reaching a point where we’re going to stop talking, we’re going to stop compromising, and people are going to vilify our opponents,” said Craig Tenhoff, 58, an independent from Simi Valley, California.
Only about 2 in 10 adults under 30 say their right to vote faces a “serious” threat, compared to about 4 in 10 adults over 60.
Republicans are worried about violence against conservatives, Democrats are worried about violence against liberals.
American adults who identify with a political party are more likely to worry about violence against organizations or people who share their ideology, but most independents are less worried about political violence overall.
About 6 in 10 Republicans are “very” or “extremely” concerned about political violence directed at conservative politicians and groups, compared to just 27% who are very concerned about political violence directed at liberal politicians and groups.
Meanwhile, about 6 in 10 Democrats are “very” or “extremely” concerned about political violence directed at liberal politicians and groups, and 38% are very concerned about political violence directed at conservatives.
These findings are particularly pronounced among people at the extremes of the political spectrum. Conservative Republicans and liberal Democrats are much more likely to be concerned about violence directed at their side than more moderate members of the coalition.
About a quarter of independents are “very” or “extremely” concerned about political violence directed at conservatives and liberals.
Max Anderson, an independent who describes himself as a liberal, said he was concerned about violence across the political spectrum.
“I think a lot of people my age are generally not doing well right now,” said Anderson, a 23-year-old college student from Fort Collins, Colorado. “So all of a sudden, more extreme measures of action started to feel like a better option.”
There are wide partisan divides over the extent to which free speech, free press, and voting rights are currently under threat. About two-thirds of Democrats say free speech and freedom of the press face “grave threats,” while only about 3 in 10 Republicans think so about free speech and about 2 in 10 about press freedom.
Jeff Milligan, 72, a Republican from Logan, Ohio, said he was more concerned about violence directed at conservatives than liberals. Milligan was once more concerned about threats to fundamental rights than he is now.
What has changed for him?
“President Trump was elected,” he said.
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Cooper reported from Phoenix.
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The AP-NORC poll of 1,289 adults was conducted Oct. 9-13 using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for all adults is plus or minus 3.8 percentage points.
