THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, July 15, 1995 TAG: 9507150375
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: NEW YORK LENGTH: Short : 42 lines
Although attacks on racial preferences in hiring are increasingly politically popular, Americans are quite divided on the fairness of affirmative action programs, an Associated Press poll indicates.
In the poll, 48 percent say affirmative action makes hiring and promotions less fair, compared with 39 percent who say it's more fair. The rest are not sure.
Belief in the programs' fairness ranges from 53 percent among blacks and 50 percent among Democrats down to 37 percent among whites and 28 percent among Republicans.
Among the 1,006 adults in the poll taken July 7 through Wednesday, 59 percent think laws are needed to protect minorities from discrimination in hiring and promotion. And 72 percent think affirmative action programs are at least somewhat effective in getting jobs for minorities.
Past polls have found up to 80 percent of Americans oppose giving blacks and other minorities preference in hiring to make up for past inequalities.
Proposals to eliminate such programs have come at state levels and from some of the nation's most powerful politicians, including House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., and GOP presidential candidates including Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, R-Kan.
Dole has drafted possible legislation to forbid programs that use ``quotas, set-asides, timetables, goals and other preferences.'' Such language plays an important role in rallying public opinion, according to the poll.
The results have a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
Wade Henderson, the NAACP's Washington bureau director, said he was disturbed by the poll's finding that 36 percent don't believe anti-discrimination laws are necessary.
KEYWORDS: POLL AFFIRMATIVE ACTION by CNB