A new CNN/ORC Research poll has found that opposition to religious freedom laws has jumped eight points to fifty-seven percent.
The CNN/ORC Research poll revealed that a strong majority of Americans now believe that businesses should be required to provide services to same-sex couples. The support for allowing businesses to discriminate on the basis of “religious freedom” has fallen from 47% in 2014 to 41% today.
The decline is more dramatic when the CNN poll is compared to other recent polling that was done before Indiana’s religious freedom law educated many Americans to the bigotry behind these bills, The Washington Post reported, “While a Pew Research Center poll conducted in September showed Americans were split on whether businesses with religious objections should be able to refuse service to a gay wedding (with 47 percent in favor), and a January AP-GfK poll showed a clear majority (57 percent) thought they should be able to.”
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The polling reveals what can happen when people are exposed to the real purpose of harmless sounding Republican laws. On the surface, a bill to protect religious freedom sounds like an unobjectionable piece of legislation to most Americans.
The true intent of these laws is often hidden behind the language of liberty. In reality, Republican religious freedom laws are designed to give conservatives the power to discriminate.
Once this ugly truth was revealed, support for religious freedom laws plunged. Another piece of the Republican code for bigotry has been exposed, which is why more and more Americans want nothing to do with the GOP’s version of “religious freedom.”
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
