Columns::Peach State Poll finds most Georgians believe immigrants are not taking their jobs away

since 12/15/98

Columns::February 11, 2002

Black History Month observance commemorates ‘The Birth of African-American Culture’
Poet Nikki Giovanni will lecture, give reading
Governor taps two faculty for new commission to promote historical tourism
Mending (historic) fences
UGA expands its academic program at Gwinnett University Center
Willie Cole visits campus as part of artist series
Risky business
China’s Cultural Revolution put professor on ‘radical’ career path
A world of difference
Administrative changes
Newsmakers
The British were here

Campus News

Peach State Poll finds most Georgians believe immigrants are not taking their jobs away

By Ann Allen
allen@cviog.uga.edu

A majority of Georgians (55 percent) believe that immigrants settling in the state are taking jobs that no one else wants,

according to the latest Peach State Poll. Only about one in four Georgians (27 percent) say that immigrants are taking jobs from Georgia residents. Additionally, 11 percent believe that immigrants who settle in Georgia are creating new jobs.
The Peach State Poll is a quarterly public opinion survey conducted by UGA’s Carl Vinson Institute of Government.
Georgians with annual household incomes between $20,000 and $30,000 are most likely to be skeptical of the economic impact of immigration. Forty-five percent of respondents in this income bracket believe that immigrants are taking residents’ jobs, and only 36 percent say that immigrants are taking jobs that no one else wants. This is the income bracket that tends to see itself in direct competition with immigrants for jobs.
Nearly half of the state (49 percent) believes that immigration to the United States should be decreased, and another third (33 percent) say it should be kept at the present level.
Other survey results:
• More than two-thirds of survey respondents (69 percent) say that their views about immigrants were not influenced by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Almost one in four Georgians (24 percent) admits that their views toward immigrants have become more negative since the attacks.
• The public overwhelmingly favors efforts to teach English to immigrant children; 62 percent of Georgians “completely agree” with the statement “Schools should offer special classes so that immigrant children can learn English,” and another 21 percent “generally agree” with this statement.
• The public is more ambivalent on the issue of bilingual education. Forty-nine percent of Georgians do not believe that bilingual education prevents immigrants from learning English, whereas 46 percent agree with this philosophy.
• Atlantans are much more likely than non-Atlantans to completely agree with the statement that schools should provide special classes to teach English to immigrant children--70 percent as opposed to 54 percent of non-Atlantans. Likewise, Atlantans are also no more likely to disagree with the statement “Bilingual education keeps immigrants from learning English.”

UGA Today supports QuickTime, Flash, RealPlayer and Acrobat Reader (PDF files).
Download information about these plug-ins.
Affiliate icons for UGA Today

COLUMNS ] UGA Today ] Subscribe ] News Bureau ]
Office of Public Affairs Directory ] Photo Services ]
Broadcast, Video & Photography ] Master Calendar]
Columns ] Georgia Magazine ]Visitors Center ]
UGA Home ] Alumni ] Admissions ] UGA Directories ]
Sports ] Weather ] Search UGA sites ]

Columns is produced by the UGA News Service, a unit of UGA Public Affairs.
Beth Roberts: Columns editor, Juliett Dinkins: Columns managing editor,
Janet Beckley: Columns art director. Peter Frey: Columns photo editor

Questions or comments should be directed to columns@uga.edu