Cato Institute Study: 71% of Americans believe political correctness has silenced discussions society needs to have

> The Cato 2017 Free Speech and Tolerance Survey, a new national poll of 2,300 U.S. adults, finds that 71% Americans believe that political correctness has silenced important discussions our society needs to have. The consequences are personal—58% of Americans believe the political climate prevents them from sharing their own political beliefs. [Graph showing who is mostly likely to self-censor](https://object.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/wp-content/uploads/2_selfcensor_b.jpg) > It follows that a solid majority (59%) of Americans think people should be allowed to express unpopular opinions in public, even those deeply offensive to others. On the other hand, 40% think government should prevent hate speech. Despite this, the survey also found Americans willing to censor, regulate, or punish a wide variety of speech and expression they personally find offensive. [Graph showing certain types of offensive speech](https://object.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/wp-content/uploads/2a_definehatespeech3_b.jpg) [Graph regarding free speech beliefs, compared across white, black, and Latino lines](https://object.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/wp-content/uploads/4_statements_b.jpg) Lots of information in here. When I spend some more time parsing it, I'll likely have something more to say.