American History and Civics Education More Important than Ever

As we celebrated the Fourth of July, there was a general acknowledgement that America is severely polarized along party lines. A new Gallup poll shows that the partisan gap on basic patriotism is now the width of the Grand Canyon.

Gallup reports that Americans have become less patriotic over time, and that difference is primarily driven by Democrats. Only 36 percent of them say they are extremely or very proud of America, the lowest number ever recorded. Among Generation Z, those adults born in 1997 or later, only 24 percent of Democrats are extremely or very proud of the U.S. More Gen Z Democrats say they have little or no pride in being American (32 percent). For comparison, 53 percent of independents express a great deal of pride in their country, though this represents a drop of seven points from last year. National pride among Republicans registered at 92 percent, up from 85 percent in Gallup’s measurement last year.

About the Author

John Fund

John Fund is National Review’s national-affairs reporter.

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As we celebrated the Fourth of July, there was a general acknowledgement that America is severely polarized along party lines. A new Gallup poll shows that the partisan gap on basic patriotism is now the width of the Grand Canyon.

Gallup reports that Americans have become less patriotic over time, and that difference is primarily driven by Democrats. Only 36 percent of them say they are extremely or very proud of America, the lowest number ever recorded. Among Generation Z, those adults born in 1997 or later, only 24 percent of Democrats are extremely or very proud of the U.S. More Gen Z Democrats say they have little or no pride in being American (32 percent). For comparison, 53 percent of independents express a great deal of pride in their country, though this represents a drop of seven points from last year. National pride among Republicans registered at 92 percent, up from 85 percent in Gallup’s measurement last year.