A Disturbing Poll

about Americans and diversity

A recently released CNN poll indicates that roughly a third of Americans believe diversity is a threat to American culture. While some might say this number isn’t shocking, it shows the impact of Trump. The number in 2019 was 11%, far below last week’s number. Two-thirds of Americans believed that diversity enriched our culture in this poll. In 2019, 82% believed that society was enriched by diversity.

The question that was asked was worded as follows:

“Overall, do you think having an increasing number of people of many different races, ethnic groups, and nationalities in the U.S. is mostly (threatening) or mostly (enriching) American culture?" This is clear and the results tell an ugly story.

This is the product of nine years of lies, nativism and hate. Trump has turned Americans against Americans, new citizens and immigrants. The fact that this country was built on the back of immigrants is irrelevant to Trump. He would prefer that Scandinavians emigrate to the United States than immigrants from “shitholes.” We know that he is a racist. We know that many of his followers are racists. But the degree of change in attitudes over the past five years should frighten all right thinking Americans.

And the lies continue and proliferate. Many people apparently believe that legal Haitian immigrants are eating dogs and cats in Springfield, OH. This is a preposterous notion, and yet millions believe it.

We have to hope that a Harris administration would help reverse this trend. But Project 2025 and its adherents will still be out there, peddling lies, nativism and hate. This poison has infected the national bloodstream and it will take time to treat. With deep regret, I believe much of it was backlash to an African American president. Racism is far more rampant than it was before Obama, and there is a legitimate fear that a Harris victory will stoke it further.

That can’t be helped. We have a right to a society that shuns these beliefs, that allows freedom to all and encourages all citizens and immigrants to become active participants in our civic life. If we have to put up with our co-citizens beliefs, we can work to blunt them by building a society based on the contributions of people of all faiths, cultures, religions and beliefs living in peace, prosperity and dignity.

The best way to do that is to keep electing Democrats, for a decade or more if necessary to legislate the effects of hate out of existence. We can’t change their hearts, but we can use the law to neuter the impact of the intolerance. To those who believe that this is the wishful thinking, my response is that the alternative is giving up. That is intolerable, so let the effort begin in January. We can do far better than this. In truth, we must.