More than half of Russians do not consider racial discrimination to be the main reason for the civil unrest across the United States following the death in custody of George Floyd, according to a poll by Russia's Public Opinion Foundation, published on Friday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 26th June, 2020) More than half of Russians do not consider racial discrimination to be the main reason for the civil unrest across the United States following the death in custody of George Floyd, according to a poll by Russia's Public Opinion Foundation, published on Friday.
On May 25, Floyd, an African American man, died in Minneapolis police custody in the US state of Minnesota. A video of the arrest showed a white police officer pressing his knee onto Floyd's neck for at least eight minutes while the detainee was kept handcuffed on his stomach, repeatedly saying he could not breathe. The incident sparked protests against police violence and racism in various cities across the United States and in other countries.
Respondents in Russia were asked whether racism was the main reason for the protests, or if it was something else. Fifty-three percent chose the latter option, while 29 percent selected the former, and 17 percent could not answer.
Among the age groups, people aged 31-45 were most likely to pick the second response. When broken down by education, 62 percent of those with university degrees were most likely to say that the protests were motivated by reasons other than racism, more than in any other education group.
The poll was conducted by phone from June 19-21, with 1,000 people surveyed.
