>From: "Lois Klesa Morrison" >Date: Tue, 4 Jan 1994 08:32:29 EST >Subject: Middle Georgia Poll The poll is from The Macon Telegraph, December 12, 1993, and was part of an extensive series on gays and lesbians in the Macon area. Macon/Bibb County is located near the center of Georgia and is near Sam Nunn's hometown of Perry. (Any typos are mine.) POLL: MOST RESIDENTS SAY HOMOSEXUALS SHOULD HAVE BASIC RIGHTS ATTITUDE AND OPINION SURVEY ON GAYS IN MACON: HOW IT WAS DONE. This 1993 survey consisted of questions used in a statewide survey in North Carolina in February of this year plus questions developed by The Macon Telegraph staff. The telephone numbers used to call residents of the Macon area were developed using a random telephone number generating computer program. One-third of those contacted declined to participate in the survey, which took four days to complete. It has a margin of error of 6 percentage points. All surveys were anonymous and confidential. 1. President Clinton's policy on homosexuals in the military has been in the news a lot recently. Do you approve of his latest compromise policy which would allow homosexuals to be in the military providing they did not participate in homosexual activities? YES 49%; IT DEPENDS 17%; NO 34% 2. Should homosexuals be allow to serve in the armed forces? YES 47%; IT DEPENDS 20%; NO 33% 3. When two adults of the same sex have sexual relations, do you think that it is always wrong, almost always wrong, only sometimes wrong, or not wrong at all? ALWAYS WRONG 60%; ALMOST ALWAYS WRONG 4%; ONLY SOMETIMES WRONG 14%; NOT WRONG AT ALL 22% 4. Should employers be allowed to fire workers who announce that they are homosexual? YES 13%; IT DEPENDS 21%; NO 67% 5. If you were a manager and heard that a job candidate was gay, would you be inclined to eliminate him/her from consideration for that job? YES 14%; IT DEPENDS 18%; NO 68% 6. Should employers be allowed to deny promotions to employees who are known to be gay simply because they are gay? YES 9%; IT DEPENDS 10%; NO 81% 7. If a qualified person running for office shared most of your views, but was also homosexual, would you vote for that person? YES 40%; IT DEPENDS 29%; NO 31% 8. If a qualified person applied to join a civic club, but was homosexual, should he or she be allowed to join? YES 61%; IT DEPENDS 25%; NO 15% 9. If you were at a restaurant and saw two members of the same sex holding hands, would you be offended? YES 32%; IT DEPENDS 13%; NO 55% 10. Would you patronize a business or social club that openly admits homosexuals? YES 27%; IT DEPENDS 23%; NO 49% 11. How strongly do you agree or disagree with the following statements? Please choose a number from 1 to 5 that best represents your feelings with: 1 = "Strongly Agree"; 2 = "Somewhat Agree"; 3 = "Neutral"; 4 = "Somewhat Disagree"; 5 = "Strongly Disagree". 1 2 3 4 5 People who cry homophobia are generally overreacting 23% 18% 35% 5% 19% Gays are no different from anyone else 31% 9% 20% 5% 36% Gay activists want special privileges that no one else gets 27% 16% 18% 4% 35% As long as they keep sinning against God, gays will never be accepted 34% 9% 20% 8% 30% Gay people have no choice about their sexual orientation 24% 4% 23% 8% 40% It's understandable when parents turn their backs on children who are gay 14% 5% 10% 7% 64% Gay people are victims of discrimination 48% 8% 17% 5% 22% Gay people may lose friends if they reveal they are gay 58% 18% 9% 5% 9% Gay people make important contributions to our society 43% 18% 21% 9% 13% It's not safe to be with gay people because they might make a pass at you 15% 5% 12% 12% 56% Gay people are different from anybody else 30% 9% 17% 9% 34% Friendships would be destroyed if someone revealed he/she was gay 30% 9% 17% 9% 34% 12. Do you have any friends, co-workers, and family members that you believe to be homosexual? NO 40%; YES 42%; MAYBE/THINK SO 18% 13. Do you think homosexuality is something a person is born with or is it caused by other factors such as upbringing or environment? UPBRINGING/ENVIRONMENT 42%; BORN WITH 15%; BOTH 43% 14. In light of the latest findings by scientists, if scientists came up with a conclusive link between genetics and homosexuality, would it change your attitude toward gays? YES 13%; IT DEPENDS 27%; NO 60%