Sixty-nine percent (69%) of voters believe students should be taught that “America was founded on the ideals of freedom, equality, and self-governance. Our nation has a tragic history of racial injustice, but we have made and continue to make progress.”
A Scott Rasmussen national survey found that 18% disagree and believe students should be taught that “America was founded on the ideas of racial oppression and white supremacy. We must recognize that the founders of our nation were racist and reject the system of government they created.” Thirteen percent (13%) are not sure which is more appropriate.
Seventy-six percent (76%) of Hispanic voters believe the nation was founded upon the noble ideals of freedom, equality, and self-governance. Seventy-four percent (74%) of White voters agree.
However, among Black voters, a modest plurality (42%) believe students should be taught that the nation was found upon racial oppression and white supremacy. Thirty-six percent (36%) of Black voters support teaching that America was founded on more noble ideals. Given the nation’s history, that result is far from surprising.
The survey also revealed public confusion over the term “Critical Race Theory.” Among those who have a Very Favorable opinion of Critical Race Theory, 62% believe students should be taught that “America was founded on the ideals of freedom, equality, and self-governance.” That conflicts with what many see as the political definition of Critical Race Theory.
Data released earlier showed that 93% of voters recognize that racism has played a major role in American history. That’s consistent with the question in this survey acknowledging that our nation has a tragic history of racial injustice.
Other data showed that 62% believe the US offers more freedom & equality than most Nations. That’s consistent with the question in this survey recognizing the history of racism, but also that we have made and continue to make progress. Seventy percent (70%) believe that the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s moved America closer to living out its founding ideals.
In raw political terms, voters strongly prefer a candidate supporting freedom & equality over one promising social justice and equity.
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Note: Neither Scott Rasmussen, ScottRasmussen.com, nor RMG Research, Inc. have any affiliation with Rasmussen Reports. While Scott Rasmussen founded that firm, he left more than seven years ago and has had no involvement since that time.
Methodology
The survey of 1,000 Registered Voters was conducted by Scott Rasmussen using a mixed mode approach from July 29-31, 2021. Field work for the survey was conducted by RMG Research, Inc. Most respondents were contacted online or via text while 231 were contacted using automated phone polling techniques. Online respondents were selected from a list of Registered Voters and through a process of Random Digital Engagement. Certain quotas were applied, and the sample was lightly weighted by geography, gender, age, race, education, internet usage, and political party to reasonably reflect the nation’s population of Registered Voters. Other variables were reviewed to ensure that the final sample is representative of that population.
