A survey has revealed that one in five American millennials views the US flag as “a sign of intolerance and hatred,” and two in five millennials think burning Old Glory is perfectly acceptable.
The “State of American Patriotism Report,” which was designed to assess the patriotism and historical knowledge of young Americans, also revealed that six in 10 millennials (ages 22-37) believe the United States is “racist and sexist.”
Millennials are not the only ones who lack patriotism, according to the report. Allegiance to the United States seems to be declining among the majority young Americans.
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Astonishingly, forty-six percent of young Americans, defined as ages 14-37, disagreed with the statement, “America is the greatest country in the world.” The survey did not ask them to name which country they think is the greatest, if it is not the United States.
In addition, 53% of the same age group said they believe the United States is a “sexist” country, and 54% believe it is a “racist” country.
CNS reports: The survey was conducted by the public opinion firm YouGov for the Foundation for Liberty and American Greatness (FLAG), a non-profit organization that educates Americans “about the values and principles that make our nation exceptional.”
FLAG founder Nick Adams said he was “totally unprepared” for the “epidemic of anti-Americanism” the survey revealed.
“That half of millennials and Gen Z believe that the country in which they live is both ‘racist’ and ‘sexist’ shows that we have a major fraction of an entire generation that has been indoctrinated by teachers starting in grade school that America is what’s wrong with the world,” Adams said.
According to FLAG, the report indicated a possible “crisis,” as “younger Americans are becoming unmoored from the institutions, knowledge, and the American spirit that keeps America great.”
For example, younger Americans seem more apt to embrace socialism. When asked whether America’s future “should be driven by capitalism or socialism,” 48% of younger Americans chose socialism.
FLAG also suggested the possibility of “recency bias among the young,” demonstrated by the fact that 55% of Americans 18-21 think Barack Obama has had a bigger impact on the country than George Washington.
Nationally syndicated radio talk show host Mark Levin highlighted the report on the Nov. 29 episode of his program, “The Mark Levin Show.” He blamed the government-run public school system, and members of the older generation, for the lack of patriotism in young America.
“All these state-supported universities and colleges, really, are abysmal – absolutely abysmal,” Levin said. “When you mix that with what you see on TV and what you hear on other radio, and then the crap that’s in the books, and then you hear Obama say what he says, and these other jerks say what they say, I don’t even blame these kids. It’s our generation doing it to them.”
“It’s not education; it’s indoctrination,” he added later. “It’s propaganda.”
The survey also found a lack of basic civics and government knowledge among Americans of all ages. Eight in 10 Americans cannot name the five freedoms guaranteed in the First Amendment (speech, press, religion, assembly and petition). And, according to the report, “less than half of respondents know how many amendments were in the bill of rights” (ten).
The survey did yield some encouraging results. FLAG reported that members of young Generation Z (ages 14-17) were the age group most likely to know when the Constitution was ratified and how many amendments are in the Bill of Rights.
In addition, 78% of younger Americans said they were proud to be Americans and 85% said they enjoyed seeing Old Glory displayed on the Fourth of July, although these numbers were much higher among older generations.
