Poll: 3-in-4 Voters, Majority of Black Americans Oppose Tearing Down Mount Rushmore

The overwhelming majority of likely U.S. voters, including a majority of black Americans, oppose the tearing down of the Mount Rushmore National Memorial featuring Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln, a poll finds.

While rioters, as well as some Republican and Democrat lawmakers, have sought to remove monuments, statues, and flags associated with the Civil War and the nation’s presidents, the overwhelming majority of Americans say they are opposed to such plans.

The latest Rasmussen Reports survey finds 75 percent of likely U.S. voters oppose closing or changing Mt. Rushmore in Keystone, South Dakota. Less than 20 percent said they support the removal of Mt. Rushmore.

By a 56-percent majority, black Americans said they oppose tearing down Mt. Rushmore, while only about 35 percent said they support removing the monument. Likewise, more than six-in-ten Democrats, 76 percent of swing voters, 82 percent of white Americans, and 88 percent of Republican voters said they oppose tearing down Mt. Rushmore.

The Rasmussen Reports survey also asked likely voters if they opposed or supported removing statues in honor of Presidents George Washington and Thomas Jefferson from public places. More than 70 percent of all likely voters said they opposed tearing down statues dedicated to the two men.

Majorities in every racial, income, age, gender, political, and educational attainment group said they oppose tearing down statues and buildings honoring Washington and Jefferson — including 54 percent of black Americans, 78 percent of white Americans, 57 percent of Democrats, 83 percent of Republicans, and 75 percent of swing voters.

For years, Americans by huge majorities have opposed a post-structuralist agenda to tear down and remake the nation’s historical monuments and statues. In a 2017 Rasmussen Reports survey, nearly 90 percent of Americans said they oppose tearing down monuments honoring former presidents.

The poll surveyed 1,000 likely U.S. voters from June 29 to 30 and has a margin of error of +/- 3 percentage points.

John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter at @JxhnBinder.