Princeton, NJ — The results of a nationwide poll released last month by the Gallup Organization reveals a majority of Americans find abortion and human cloning — by a much wider margin — “morally wrong.” However, a slight majority of American believe “Doctor assisted suicide” and “Medical research using stem cells obtained from human embryos” is “morally acceptable.”
Survey respondents were asked the following: “Regardless of whether or not you think it should be legal, for each one, please tell me whether you personally believe that in general it is morally acceptable or morally wrong.”
Fifty-three percent of Americans find abortion “morally wrong,” up from 45 percent one year ago. Only 38 percent of Americans believe abortion is “morally acceptable,” down from 38 percent in May 2001.
“More and more people agree that, even in the earliest stages of development, the rights of every human life need to be protected,” Scott Fischbach, Executive Director of Minnesota Citizen Concerned for Life said in response to the data. “This poll confirms again that the vast majority of Americans view the current policy of absolute abortion on demand as morally unacceptable.”
As the U.S. Senate considers various legislation to ban the practice of human cloning, Gallup suggests Americans are strongly united to ban the grizzly practice and their views haven't changed much since the 2001 survey. Ninety percent of Americans opposed human cloning, up two points from last year. Only 7 percent support it.
In a sign that the pro-life community must continue to educate the public about the dangerous of embryonic stem cell research, the Gallup poll indicates a majority of Americans favor the research that would involve the destruction of human embryos.
Although not told the process destroys the life of a unique human being, 52 percent say embryonic stem cell research is morally incorrect while 39 percent agreed it is morally wrong. Gallup did not ask about embryonic stem cell research in the previous year's questionnaire.
Wording may play a large factor in determining how Americans feel the unethical research. A June 2001 International Communications Research poll found 86 percent say scientists should not be allowed to use human cloning to create a supply of human embryos to be destroyed in medical research. An April 2002 Polling Company poll showed 68 percent of Americans agreed with President Bush's position in opposition to human cloning that includes embryonic stem cell research.
On the issue of assisted suicide, the Gallup poll finds more Americans have solidified their opinion. The Gallup poll reveals 50 percent of Americans find assisted suicide acceptable compared with 44 percent who don't. In May 2001, 49 percent said they approved of assisted suicide while 40 percent did not.
However, a March ABC news poll found 48 percent of Americans oppose legalizing assisted suicide, while 40 percent support it. The results suggest the use of the phrase “Doctor assisted suicide” in the Gallup poll may skew the data and prompt more respondents to support it.
According to Gallup's May 6-9 survey on values and beliefs, just 18% of Americans characterize moral values in the United States as “excellent” or “good,” while 41% consider them “only fair” and 40% call them “poor.”
“Despite Americans' overall satisfaction with the state of the nation these days,” Gallup explains, “the poll finds that the public is fairly critical of the state of moral values. Fewer than one in five adults give the country high ratings on this score, and most see values deteriorating rather than improving.”
The Gallup poll finds Americans who generally believe the state of the nation's moral values are only “fair” or “poor” are much less likely to find abortion, assisted suicide, human cloning and embryonic stem cell research “morally acceptable.”
Among a list of fourteen social issues, human cloning ranked first on the list of what Americans find most objectionable, slightly ahead of having an affair or committing suicide. Abortion ranked sixth most objectionable and assisted suicide eighth. Embryonic stem cell research was the sixth most acceptable issue.
“People are learning more facts about abortion and human development, and this is just one of many polls that show most people believe abortion is morally wrong,” said Fischbach
Negative ratings of moral values are particularly high among older Americans, but women, highly religious people, and self-described “conservatives” are also critical.
These results are based on telephone interviews with a randomly selected national sample of 1,012 adults, 18 years and older, conducted May 6-9, 2002.
(This article courtesy of Steven Ertelt and the Pro-Life Infonet email newsletter. For more information or to subscribe go to www.prolifeinfo.org or email infonet@prolifeinfo.org.)
