A new survey by the Arab American Institute (AAI) was released early this week finding that there is a growing number of Americans who hold a favorable opinion of Muslim and Arabs – the highest levels in a decade.
In the wake of the White Supremacist rally in Charlotte, Virginia, the report finds that Americans are starting to have an increased awareness of xenophobia and racism. Of those surveyed, 51% feel favorable to American Muslims (compared to 33% in 2015) while 52% held a favorable opinion of Arab Americans (compared to 40% in 2015).
Of note, those that say they personally know a Muslim or Arab person hold a far more favorable view than those who do not know a member of either community.
There is a deep partisan divide, however, with 58% of Democrats versus 26% of Republicans holding a favorable opinion of Muslims, and 54% of Democrats versus 31% of Republicans having a favorable opinion of Arabs.
