Poll: Georgians believe most new immigrants are illegal
DORIE TURNER
Associated Press
Sep 13, 2006
While the majority of Georgians feel immigration is good for the country, nearly two-thirds believe that most immigrants came to the United States illegally, according to a new statewide poll.
Nearly 65 percent of Georgians surveyed think that immigrants get too much help from the government, and nearly half the state believes that immigration should be decreased.
The data comes from the Peach State Poll, a quarterly publication by the University of Georgia's Carl Vinson Institute of Government. Rich Clark, who directs the poll, said the numbers show that views on immigration have not changed much in Georgia since a poll conducted in December 2001.
"People are very tolerant of others retaining their culture but not necessarily changing our culture," Clark said. "Gerogians like the Georgian culture, the southern culture."
Georgians are less likely than the rest of the country to be OK with immigration - a national Gallup poll found 67 percent of Americans believe that immigration is good for the country, compared to the 53 percent of Georgians who feel that way.
