A leader in the field of public policy and human rights, Prof. James Ron has conducted research and taught courses at the University of Minnesota since 2011. Over the course of a 30-year career, Prof. Ron has collaborated with entities such as Human Rights Watch and the Center for Victims of Torture, which provided funding and in-kind contributions for a 2018 poll he conducted regarding the U.S. public’s opinion on human and civil rights. The bulk of the survey costs were funded by the University of Minnesota.
The nationally representative poll, which collected data from 3,000 adults residing in America (1,000 of whom reported voting for Donald Trump in the 2016 Republic primaries), revealed that respondents support human and civil rights across a range of domestic and foreign issues. poll. One major factor associated with anti-human/civil rights sentiments was support for the Republican Party. In other words, self-proclaimed Republicans tended to be more skeptical of human and civil rights in general, with particular emphasis on the rights of immigrants and refugees.
The poll also discovered that while respondents generally oppose US aid to foreign dictators, Trump supporters are more tolerant of such aid. Survey experiments within the poll indicate that if humankind civil rights advocates could enlist the help of religious figures in condemning foreign aid to dictators, Trump voters would be likely to shift their positions.
Dr. Ron and his colleagues further discussed the poll in editorials published in several publications, including the New York Times (www.nytimes.com/2019/09/24/opinion/anti-semitism-republicans.html), the Washington Post (https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/05/06/no-americans-dont-support-airstrikes-that-kill-civilians-even-when-they-target-terrorists/), and Foreign Policy (https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/08/21/to-protect-human-rights-abroad-preach-to-trump-voters-dictators-authoritarianism-ethnocentrism/).
The nationally representative poll, which collected data from 3,000 adults residing in America (1,000 of whom reported voting for Donald Trump in the 2016 Republic primaries), revealed that respondents support human and civil rights across a range of domestic and foreign issues. poll. One major factor associated with anti-human/civil rights sentiments was support for the Republican Party. In other words, self-proclaimed Republicans tended to be more skeptical of human and civil rights in general, with particular emphasis on the rights of immigrants and refugees.
The poll also discovered that while respondents generally oppose US aid to foreign dictators, Trump supporters are more tolerant of such aid. Survey experiments within the poll indicate that if humankind civil rights advocates could enlist the help of religious figures in condemning foreign aid to dictators, Trump voters would be likely to shift their positions.
Dr. Ron and his colleagues further discussed the poll in editorials published in several publications, including the New York Times (www.nytimes.com/2019/09/24/opinion/anti-semitism-republicans.html), the Washington Post (https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/05/06/no-americans-dont-support-airstrikes-that-kill-civilians-even-when-they-target-terrorists/), and Foreign Policy (https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/08/21/to-protect-human-rights-abroad-preach-to-trump-voters-dictators-authoritarianism-ethnocentrism/).
