Americans Believe Diversity is Our Strength

Americans more likely to say growing diversity makes their country a better place to liveSurveys from the Pew Research Center show that Americans are much more positive about diversity than Europeans. Remarkably only 7% of Americans think that diversity makes America a worse place to live–the next closest on that score is Spain where more than three times as many people think diversity makes Spain a worse place to live.

Liberals are more positive about diversity than conservatives but close to a majority of American conservatives (47%) think that diversity makes America better–which would make American conservatives more positive about diversity than most European liberals.

Optimism about diversity is one of America’s most admirable qualities.

Diversity can reduce trust and a society that combines distrust and a powerful central government threatens to oscillate between civil war and authoritarianism. Under limited government, however, a little distrust can not only be managed it’s a positive. If America were more homogenous, for example, we would have abandoned freedom of speech and religion a long time ago. It’s precisely because we can’t agree on what to say that we let everyone say what they want.

Hat tip: Cardiff Garcia.

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