Majority Of Americans Oppose Renaming Military Bases & Reparations: ABC/Ipsos Poll

The recent George Floyd protests and riots have triggered broader debates of everything ranging from removal of Confederate monuments and statues, to renaming Confederate military bases and even memorials to American founding fathers, especially ones that had connections to slavery.

In the latest controvery, for examples, New York City council members are pushing to remove a long-standing Thomas Jeffeson statue from city hall. As statues across the country continue to be subject to vandalism and in some cases toppling, there’s yet to be little public debate or surveying of the American people.

One new poll conducted by ABC News and Ipos released Friday, however, suggests the wave of removals and ‘renamings’ remains unpopular on a national level. At a moment iconic base names like Fort Bragg and Fort Hood could be on the chopping block with enough political momentum gained, a majority of Americans oppose the renaming initiative. The Pentagon is said to actually be considering it.

“While 56% are opposed to changing U.S. military bases named for Confederate leaders, which stand as a reminder of the nation’s complicated history with race, 42% of Americans support the move,” ABC reports of the poll conducted among 727 adults from June 17 to 18.

The survey further asked about reparations for slavery: “Nearly three-fourths of Americans believe that the federal government should not provide payments to black Americans whose ancestors were slaves to compensate for the toll of slavery. Only 26% of Americans are in favor of reparations,” the poll found.

Here are the highlights of ABC News/Ipsos survey via Newsmax:

• 56% are against renaming military bases that currently bear the name of Confederate leaders. Party-wise, 71% of Democrats support changing the names, while 13% of Republicans and 40% of independents do.
• 73% said they oppose the federal government paying black Americans whose ancestors were slaves. 54% of Democrats are in favor of reparations, while 94% of Republicans and 82% of independents are against the practice.
• 63% said they support a ban on police officers using chokeholds.

The poll further found that among black Americans, 67% surveyed want to see the bases renamed.

The broader unpopularity of things like base name changes could be why in many instances Black Lives Matter protesters are taking matters in their own hands and defacing and toppling statues linked to the Confederacy.

16 Statues And Memorials Were Damaged During Sunday’s Protests, Including One Dedicated To African American Soldiers https://t.co/oSlN9cZ1WO via @wburartery

— Andrea Shea (@asheaarts) June 3, 2020

However, as we’ve recently noted, any colonial era or even 19th century historical figures are being attacked, even well-known abolitionists in a few cases.