Articles

Facts, values and the constitution

Public Agenda Alert
March 2, 2006

More Americans can name the characters in The Simpsons or the judges on American Idol than can name the five rights covered by the First Amendment, according to a survey released this week by the McCormick Tribune Freedom Museum.

In fact, less than 1 percent of those surveyed could name all five (the right to petition for redress of grievances tripped up nearly everyone). That's no great credit to the educational system, although it might be good news for the programmers at the Fox Network. But what does it mean for the country?

Based on Public Agenda's research, we're not surprised by the disappointing results. And of course, people ought to have a better grasp of the Constitution. Ironically, the public thinks so, too. When we examined this issue in our "Knowing It By Heart" survey in 2002, we found two-thirds who said it was "absolutely essential" for ordinary Americans to understand their constitutional rights, even though just as many admitted they were only "generally familiar" with the Constitution.

But if it's any consolation, we also found most Americans embrace the values behind the Constitution, despite their vague memory for the specifics. The vast majority of people seem to have absorbed the basic principles of the Bill of Rights. And they strongly believe that rights and responsibilities go hand in hand.

Americans display a deeply rooted sense of these underlying principles and an ability to think carefully about scenarios that deal with rights and freedoms. When given concrete scenarios to deal with, such as how to respond to protests at an abortion clinic, we found most people are able to set aside their own views in order to consider the rights of others.

Clearly, much educational work needs to be done. But based on what we've found, Americans are open to engaging the fundamentally important issues in the constitution. And they believe it is important for them to do so. That, at least, is
a place to start.

Read the McCormick Tribune Freedom Museum survey:
http://www.mccormicktribune.org/
mccormickmuseum/indexpc.htm

Find out more about "Knowing It By Heart: Americans Consider the Constitution and Its Meaning":
http://www.publicagenda.org/research/
research_reports_details.cfm?list=16

Copyright 2006 Public Agenda.

About Public Agenda

Public Agenda is a nonpartisan opinion research organization helping Americans explore and understand critical issues since 1975. For more information about Public Agenda, visit http://www.publicagenda.org.

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