Not only are Muslims being viewed with a skeptical eye in Congress, but adults nationwide appear to be wary of fellow Americans who are Muslim, according to a new Gallup poll.
The results offer a surprising view of just how suspicious Americans are of not only Islam in general, but of Muslims living within the United States. The poll was released the same day that House hearings on the radicalization of American Muslims, led by Rep. Peter King (R-NY) got off to a highly emotional start.
Gallup posed a number of questions about Muslims living in America, including one which asked respondents if American Muslims were “supportive of the United States.” A narrow 53% majority agreed that American Muslims overall supported the nation, while 32% said that was not the case.
While Republicans were the least likely political demographic to say Americans Muslims supported America (43%), Democrats and Independents were hardly overwhelming in voicing the opposite. Just 59% of Democrats and 56% of Independents said they think American Muslims support the U.S.
The poll also found that a 52% majority of all Americans think Rep. King’s hearings on Muslim radicalization in American are appropriate, compared to 38% who said they were inappropriate. Respondents split largely along party lines in response to that question, with just 40% of Democrats saying the hearing were appropriate, but 69% of Republicans saying the same.
The Gallup poll was conducted March 8 among 1,006 adults nationwide. It has a margin of error of 4.0%.
