Americans Actually Agree on Far More than We Disagree
As we come together to celebrate the Fourth of July of this year, we wanted to take a step back and look at what unites us as a country.
Thanks to social media, cable news, and the efforts of many of our elected leaders, you might think that America is divided like never before. But the surprising reality is that Americans agree on MUCH more than we disagree.
Far-right politicians spend a lot of time using things like abortion, climate change, and LGBTQ+ rights to divide us, but most people in this country actually stand united on those and many other issues. Don’t believe us? Here’s the proof: 12 big topics we really do agree on!
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Item number 1
Abortion
According to a new poll taken after the leak of a draft ruling to overturn Roe v. Wade, 61% of Americans think abortion should be legal in all or most cases. An even larger majority opposes extremist anti-abortion laws, like the one recently passed in Texas that turns individuals into informants and gives them the ability to sue abortion providers.
Also, 70% of Americans believe that the Roe decision should NOT have been overturned.
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Item number 2
Climate Change
Despite years of disinformation and lies promoted by the fossil fuel industry (and the politicians they bankroll), 72% of Americans understand that climate change is happening.
Not only that, two-thirds of Americans support a carbon tax on fossil fuel companies (like ExxonMobil, BP, and Shell, to name a few) to reduce climate pollution.
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Item number 3
Cannabis Legalization
Support for legalizing cannabis just hit a record high of 68%.
Almost 60% of Americans are also in favor of expunging cannabis-related convictions.
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Item number 4
LGBTQ+ Rights
In 1996, more than two-thirds of Americans opposed marriage between people of the same sex.
Today, 70% of Americans support it. Now that’s putting love first!
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Item number 5
Racial Justice
Huge majorities of Americans agree that institutional racism is a problem and that it should be taught and talked about at schools.
● 68% feel that teaching about race can help students understand what others went through
● 87% believe books that discuss race or slavery should never be banned
● 86% agree that racism is a problem in America
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Item number 6
Gun Control
Even before the horrific recent mass shootings in Uvalde, Buffalo, and Tulsa, there was massive support in this country for common-sense gun-control measures like background checks (89%, including 84% of Republicans) and red-flag laws (86%).
Almost three-quarters (72%) of the country believes that gun violence is a very big or moderately big problem. 63% of Americans support banning assault weapons, 64% support banning high-capacity magazines, and 66% support the creation of a nationwide database to track gun sales.
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Item number 7
Immigration
A majority of Americans (62%) say that immigrants strengthen the country.
That’s almost a complete reversal from 1994, when 61% of Americans said that immigrants burdened the country.
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Item number 8
Money in Politics
Most Americans (77%), Democrats and Republicans alike, want limits on campaign spending.
More than 70% of the public feels that people who give a lot of money to elected officials have more influence in politics than those who don’t.
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Item number 9
Voting Rights
A strong majority of voters support protecting elections and making it easier to vote. Specifically:
● 81% support protecting local election officials
● 69% support requiring states to follow national redistricting standards
● 67% support offering 15 days of early voting
● 66% support preventing state lawmakers from overturning elections
● 62% support making Election Day a national holiday
● 60% support universal vote by mail
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Item number 10
Taxes
Americans are clearly ready to tax the rich to fund spending on healthcare, childcare, clean energy jobs, and other benefits.
71% of voters in a recent poll supported raising taxes on the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans to pay for the stalled Build Back Better bill. Even 50% of Republicans backed that idea!
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Item number 11
The Pandemic
After seemingly endless news stories and online “debates” about vaccines and masks, consider this:
● 90% of the public consistently reported wearing masks when going out in public at the height of the pandemic
● More than 70% report being fully vaccinated, and an even larger majority is open to getting the vaccine
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Item number 12
Healthcare
63% of Americans say that the government should ensure that all Americans have healthcare coverage.
An even larger majority (69%) support Medicare for All (providing Medicare to all Americans).
Americans Are United
Most Americans simply want to make sure that they and their families and friends live happy, healthy lives. They want their neighbors to be treated fairly and their communities to be welcoming and strong.
Meanwhile, too many elected officials make it clear every day that they’re not interested in helping people or doing good. They treat politics like a game—and they’ll do or say anything to win. They weaponize the kinds of issues we highlighted here to divide us and win elections.
Let’s remind them how united we really are.
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