Kinder Institute releases findings from 2017 Houston Area Survey

Style Magazine Newswire | 5/2/2017, 4:45 p.m.
Despite the recent rhetoric, more people living in the Houston area are supportive of immigration. That’s according to the results …
Rice University

HOUSTON - Despite the recent rhetoric, more people living in the Houston area are supportive of immigration. That’s according to the results of the 2017 Kinder Houston Area Survey, released Monday morning.

The survey shows a double-digit percentage increase since 2010 in the number of Harris County residents that believe immigrants contribute more to the American economy than they take, as well as those who think the country should not cut back on the number of legal immigrants it accepts over the next decade.

Pollsters also found a double-digit jump in the number of Harris County residents who favor allowing undocumented immigrants to earn a path to legal citizenship, provided they speak English and don’t have a criminal record.

Survey authors credit the shifting poll numbers to younger Houstonians who have grown up in a much more diverse city than their parents.

“It’s the 100 percent American kids who are the children of the immigrants of 25 to 30 years ago,” said Dr. Stephen Klineberg, a professor of Sociology at Rice University and the author of the survey, now in its 36th year. “That creates a very different sense of ‘Can I get along with these people?’ and ‘Who are they?’ and ‘What are they like?’ and you can see that taking shape.”

The poll also shows a big jump in support for gay rights during that same timeframe, even among Baby Boomer residents.

The top concern for Houstonians overall? Traffic.

For more information go to http://www.khou.com

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