More than half of Americans, or 57%, believe the U.S. is on a path to another civil war, according to a national poll from the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights released Wednesday.
The results paint a bleak picture of how Americans view the U.S. More than three-quarters of respondents said they are worried that freedom of speech is being eroded, and 69% believe democracy is under major threat.
More than 7 in 10 respondents said the government must do more to protect the civil and human rights of minorities, with 60% saying race relations in the country are worsening.
Maya Wiley, president and CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, joined “Morning Joe” on Wednesday to break down the results and explain why she believes so many Americans are “very much afraid about the state of our union.”
Wiley said that although the economy and inflation are often top of mind for voters, this recent poll shows that concerns about democracy and freedom “are right up there with them.”
“Voters are not unidimensional. They’re not just one-sided,” she explained. “All of these things come together for them.”
As an example, Wiley pointed to the actions of federal agents carrying out Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown. She said Americans are watching as the government violates “people’s rights and freedoms,” noting that even U.S. citizens have found themselves detained by agents. Those scenes likely instill fear among Americans that the government could “come for anybody,” Wiley said.
Wiley also said she was not surprised that such a high number of Americans said they believed the U.S. is on a path to another civil war, noting that political rhetoric can often divide and vilify the other side. “We are being driven apart, rather than being united and held together,” she said.
“I think one of the reasons we’re seeing such a fear about being on a path to Civil War is because this isn’t supposed to be partisan — the issue of whether or not we as a country have ideals that say we all belong,” Wiley added. However, Wiley did point out some “good news” from the poll, noting 88% of respondents said they believe America’s diversity makes it stronger. “This is a representative sample,” Wiley said. “That means that’s across the political spectrum. So permission to extremism, permission to hate, and the attempts to divide are not landing well, and that’s a good thing.” The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights poll surveyed 1,003 likely midterm voters and was conducted by Brilliant Corners Research & Strategies from Oct. 30 to Nov. 6, with a margin of error of ±3.1 points. You can watch Wiley’s full analysis in the clip at the top of the page.
Allison Detzel is an editor/producer for MS NOW.
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