Saturday, April 2, 2005
Poll Shift on Terri's Death
Public opinion may be shifting on the decision to disconnect Terri Schiavo's feeding tube and starve her to death, according to a new Fox Opinion Dynamics survey – with a significant percentage of Americans now saying it was "murder."
When asked about the "decision to remove" Schiavo's feeding tube, 38 percent of Americans told Opinion Dynamics that they disagreed with the move, with 42 percent saying it was the right thing to do.
A full 20 percent said they were unsure.
A widely circulated ABC News poll last week asked if it was right to pull Schiavo's feeding tube, noting that she's been "on life support for 15 years" with a condition that is "irreversible."
Phrasing the question like that, 63 percent backed the decision to remove her tube, with 28 opposed.
In perhaps the most startling finding of the survey, 50 percent of African-Americans told Opinion Dynamics that removing Schiavo's feeding tube was "an act of murder."
Thirty-nine percent of Republicans agreed. Even among Americans under 30, more than a third of the population [35 percent] believe that Schiavo was murdered.
Opinion Dynamics surveyed 900 registered voters on March 29-30, the day before Schiavo died.
Public opinion may be shifting on the decision to disconnect Terri Schiavo's feeding tube and starve her to death, according to a new Fox Opinion Dynamics survey – with a significant percentage of Americans now saying it was "murder."
When asked about the "decision to remove" Schiavo's feeding tube, 38 percent of Americans told Opinion Dynamics that they disagreed with the move, with 42 percent saying it was the right thing to do.
A full 20 percent said they were unsure.
A widely circulated ABC News poll last week asked if it was right to pull Schiavo's feeding tube, noting that she's been "on life support for 15 years" with a condition that is "irreversible."
Phrasing the question like that, 63 percent backed the decision to remove her tube, with 28 opposed.
In perhaps the most startling finding of the survey, 50 percent of African-Americans told Opinion Dynamics that removing Schiavo's feeding tube was "an act of murder."
Thirty-nine percent of Republicans agreed. Even among Americans under 30, more than a third of the population [35 percent] believe that Schiavo was murdered.
Opinion Dynamics surveyed 900 registered voters on March 29-30, the day before Schiavo died.
