According to a Discovery Institute-sponsored poll:
According to the survey, 43 percent of Americans now agree that “Evolution shows that no living thing is more important than any other,” and 45 percent of Americans believe that “Evolution shows that human beings are not fundamentally different from other animals.”
The highest levels of support for the idea that evolution shows that humans aren’t fundamentally different from other animals are found among self-identified atheists (69 percent), agnostics (60 percent), and 18 to 29 year-olds (51 percent).
The theory of evolution is also reshaping how people think about morality. A majority of Americans (55 percent) now contend that “Evolution shows that moral beliefs evolve over time based on their survival value in various times and places.”
While some will dispute the results on account of DI sponsorship, the results should not surprise anyone. What is sobering is that reduced belief in human uniqueness generally coexists with reduced interest in civil liberties, as is currently evident among millennials and especially on campuses. For that, see Greg Lukianoff’s Unlearning Liberty, and other efforts to restrict free speech (Also: See also: US millennials most likely to vote to curb free speech). Civil liberties activism has generally included a sense that human being are uniquely worthy of respect, regardless of status.
The poll was done in connection with Richard Weikart’s now book The Death of Humanity
See also: Richard Weikart’s new book, Death of Humanity