Parents on National Ideals, Bad Citizens

In May, the Public Agenda Foundation in New York City marked its 50th anniversary. The organization, founded in 1975 by social scientist Daniel Yankelovich and former secretary of state Cyrus Vance, wanted to amplify the voices of ordinary Americans. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, researchers there designed a series of surveys designed to do just that.

As we prepare to celebrate Independence Day, one of these impressive surveys is worth a deeper look. The 1998 survey asked parents a series of questions about what the United States stood for and what children should be taught about US history and ideals. The survey included large oversamples of black, Hispanic, and immigrant parents. Both the design and the answers themselves reflected not only an awareness of problems the country faced, but also a deep belief in the goodness of America.

It is hard to imagine some of the questions being asked today. One battery of questions asked about a series of circumstances in which a person would be a “bad citizen.” Pollsters rarely use judgmental language like that these days. Slightly more than 70% of white, black, Hispanic, and immigrant parents agreed that they would consider someone a bad citizen if a person refused to work with people from different racial and ethnic backgrounds. Around 60% of white, Hispanic, and immigrant parents said someone would be a bad citizen if the person makes a point never to stand up when the national anthem is played; 52% of black parents gave this response. Around 50% of all parents said someone would be a bad citizen if he or she is able to vote but never does. Parents were equally divided about political interest- 48% said a person with no interest in the issues facing the country would be a bad citizen, while 48% disagreed.

One of the themes in the survey was the importance of teaching children about American history. More than 70% of each group of parents said society has to “actively teach kids what it means to be an American,” while around 20% said this was something that happens naturally as kids grow up. At the time of this survey 25 years ago, a majority, 52%, said parents should take the most responsibility for this, followed by schools at 42%. Of those who responded “parents,” only 15% said parents were doing an excellent or good job at this. Forty-six percent of those who responded “schools” gave this response.

Around 90% of the full sample of parents said they could give a good answer if their child asked them to explain what the July 4th holiday celebrates, while 11% said they would have to look it up first. 65% percent said they could give a good answer about the causes of the Civil War (34% said they would have to look it up). Parents were less confident they could explain the Bill of Rights (47% said they could give a good answer) or the reasons for the Cold War (44%).

Seventy-eight percent of the total sample of parents said kids failing to appreciate what it means to be an American was a very or somewhat serious problem. Ninety percent said most people take the freedoms we have for granted. In another question, 55% said they themselves sometimes take our freedoms for granted.

There were many echoes in the survey of contemporary concerns. 67% of parents said it was “absolutely essential” that people can protest or criticize the government without fear of punishment, and another 23% answered that it was important but not essential. Eighty-one percent said it was “absolutely essential” that the police should follow strict rules on how to collect evidence and treat people they arrest and another 16% said this was important.

Sixty-five percent said the US was doing a mixed job in terms of living up to its ideals, while 24% said a good job and 10% a poor one. Immigrant parents were more positive than other subgroups of parents that the US was doing a good job, and in other questions in the survey, they were the most positive about America. Black parents were less likely than the other parent subgroups to give positive responses on some of the survey questions that related to their distinct historical experience. Yet, common values and ideals for all the parent groups were more the rule than the exception.

Public Agenda titled this survey “A Lot To Be Thankful For.” The July 4 holiday gives us a valuable opportunity to remember and celebrate this.