Analysis of the Harvard Public Opinion Project’s recently released statistics reveals that millennials’ opinions on issues such as racial diversity and sexual orientation appear to be in line with the general trend toward acceptance in today’s society. Of those ages 25 to 29, 37 percent agreed and 20 percent disagreed that racial diversity in the … Read more
Citizen apathy in the United States has reached levels that are symptomatic of a disillusioned populace, if not systemic failure. In the 2012 presidential elections, only 57.5 percent of eligible voters came out to vote. In a new survey by the Harvard Public Opinion Project, that disillusionment has only grown, with only 40 percent of … Read more
The last 12 months contained no lack of major news events. Two especially historic events stand out: Edward Snowden’s release of information showing the NSA was collecting data far more broadly than previously imagined, and the completion of the first period of enrollment under President Obama’s new healthcare plan. Among the wonkish denizens of Washington, … Read more
Authors of the HPOP poll and HPR writers analyze the spring survey’s findings, which range from international affairs to marijuana legalization. Hear about the poll results, from the students behind the poll!
In 2007, Janet Napolitano, then the Democratic governor of Arizona and the chair of the National Governors’ Association, wrote an initiative for the year, as is custom for chairs of the NGA. Hers focused on improving the state of American education—specifically math and science—and in pursuit of this end, she convened a council of educators, … Read more
For the average American, the words “genital mutilation” conjure up images of babies in developing countries and of human rights advocates railing against horrors that take place on other continents. Genital mutilation seems barbaric, backwards, and very, very far away. And yet, there is an epidemic of nonconsensual genital mutilation in the Western world that … Read more
This time they may have fixed it. Despite overhauling the test fewer than ten years ago, the College Board has decided to once again revamp the SAT test. The changes refocus the test on critical thinking and close reading instead of rote memorization and simple test-taking ability. Most importantly, the standards of the new … Read more
Newton North High School’s March production of the play “Thoroughly Modern Millie” sparked controversy throughout the Greater Boston community over what some saw as insensitive racial stereotyping. Many Asian members of the community were particularly hurt and offended by the play. The responses to the controversy were varied: some students at Newton North defended the … Read more
The spring 2014 Harvard Public Opinion Project poll found that millennials, much like the general public, are conscious of and concerned about the growing income inequality in the United States. More than half of the respondents believed the gap between the rich and poor in America to be a major problem, with 64 percent reporting … Read more
Citizen apathy in the United States has reached levels that are symptomatic of a disillusioned populace, if not systemic failure. In the 2012 presidential elections, only 57.5 percent of eligible voters came out to vote. In a new survey by the Harvard Public Opinion Project, that disillusionment has only grown, with only 40 percent of … Read more