A recent poll conducted by Cygnal offers a clear rejection to the noting that lawbreaking or violence is an acceptable response to federal immigration enforcement. According to this poll, approximately 24% of Americans believe criminal action — including violence — can be justified to stop ICE. While this figure is troubling, the broader picture is reassuring: Nearly 70% Americans reject illegal or violent responses outright.

Opposition spans the political spectrum. Republicans oppose such actions at roughly 80%, while Independents follow closely behind at approximately 72%. Even Democrats — the sole group with considerable levels of approval — a majority, standing at approximately 57%, still disagrees. Conservatives eschew this behavior at rates exceeding 80%, and moderates oppose it by even wider margins. Stunningly, even among self-identified liberals, disagreement is far above agreement.

Why is this important? Because political extremism often correlates with deeper social dissatisfaction. The 2024 American Family Survey reflects striking differences in well-being: 37% of conservative women and 28% of moderate women ages 18-40 report being “completely satisfied” with life, compared to just 12% of liberal women. Liberal women also report significantly higher levels of loneliness.

Concluding, when social alienation and political radicalism intersect, the result is not progress, but instability. Most Americans — across ideology; age; and gender — understand that violence and lawlessness are not legitimate tools of political expression — the data make this abundantly clear.

Bill Straesser

Altoona