Student Anti War Movement

Strong indeed.
-------------------------------------------
New Harvard poll indicates firm support for war on college campuses

By Associated Press, 11/1/2001 16:25

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) College students firmly support the U.S. war effort in Afghanistan, though not as strongly as the general population, a new Harvard University poll indicates.

The U.S.-led airstrikes are supported by 79 percent of college students, while 68 percent support the use of ground troops, according to a survey by the Institute of Politics at Harvard\'s John F. Kennedy School of Government.

That\'s compared with 92 percent support in the general population for the air strikes in an ABC news poll on Oct. 8 and Oct. 9, and 80 percent support for the use of ground troops in a CNN survey from Oct. 19 to Oct. 21.

A CBS-New York Times poll this week found almost nine out of 10 Americans supporting the attacks.

The Harvard survey also indicated that 71 percent of male undergraduates would serve if the draft were reinstated, while 26 percent would seek other options.

The poll of 1,200 undergraduates around the country was conducted between Oct. 17 and Oct. 25. It has a 2.8 percent margin of error.

\'\'This year\'s survey of undergraduates is critical because the bulk of the soldiers called to serve are young people,\'\' said former Arkansas Sen. David Pryor, director of the Institute of Politics.

The poll also showed a dramatic increase in trust in the federal government, with 60 percent of undergraduates saying they trust it to do the right thing, compared with 36 percent in 2000. Seventy-five percent trust the military, while 69 percent trust the president, and 62 percent trust Congress.

In addition, 71 percent of students said they have donated blood, given money or volunteered in relief efforts stemming from the Sept. 11 attacks.