CRFC 2001 Youth Summit Survey Results

2001 Youth Summit Survey is now closed
2229 Responses as of 4/16/01	Note: Percentages have been rounded.

Constitutional Rights Foundation Chicago 2001 Illinois Youth Summit Survey Results
Community Type:	2% Rural	35% Suburban	62% Urban

Gender:	46% Female	39% Male

Age:	13-18: 99%	19+: 1%


I. GUNS

The Illinois Violence Prevention Authority has identified the availability of firearms as a significant factor contributing to violence. Increasingly, young people are gaining access to firearms, carrying them, and even taking them to school.

1. In general, would you say you favor or oppose stricter gun control?
75% Favor	12% Oppose	13% Don't know

2. Is there a handgun in your household?
26% Yes	66% No	7% Don't know

3. Do you agree or disagree with the following proposed policy: Illinois should require trigger locks on weapons in houses shared by children.
85% Agree	5% Disagree	10% Don't know

4. A major gun manufacturer sells realistic video games, without age restrictions, that teach how to load and shoot high caliber guns with the goal of killing as many people as possible. Do you agree or disagree with the following proposed federal policy: Congress shall enact a law that prohibits anyone under 16 from buying these video games.
36% Favor	54% Oppose	9% Don't know



II. PUBLIC MORALITY
Many people in the United States believe that there is a link between recent outbursts of violence among young people and the absence of clear definitions of what's right and wrong in American culture.

1. Thinking just about values and moral beliefs, do you agree or disagree that things in this country are going in the right direction?
17% Agree	65% Disagree	18% Don't know

2. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement: People with very strong religious beliefs are often intolerant of others.
33% Agree	50%Disagree	18% Don't know

3. There is an Illinois State law which allows for a brief period of silence for all students at the beginning of every school day. Do you agree or disagree that this law should be amended to require a brief period of silence?
31% Agree	46% Disagree	23% Don't know

4. Do you agree or disagree with the following proposed policy: Congress should make federal funding available to faith-based organizations to provide moral and character education in public schools.
48% Agree	30% Disagree	22% Don't know



III. DISPROPORTIONATE MINORITY CONFINEMENT/RACIAL PROFILING

Confinement in the justice system is associated with future violence. Disproportionate minority confinement (DMC) for juveniles exists when the proportion in confinement (detention centers, jails, lock-ups) who are members of minority groups exceed their group's proportions for the general population. The Human Rights Watch reports that Illinois ranks #1 for number of African American males (adults) incarcerated for drug offenses.

1. Some experts point to "profiling" as the major cause of disproportionate traffic stops on minorities. While stopping a person solely because of race violates the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, many people believe that using race or ethnicity as one of several factors (partial racial profiling) is a valuable law enforcement tool. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement: Police should be allowed to consider race when deciding whether to stop someone.
10% Agree	80% Disagree	9% Don't know

2. The Illinois Juvenile Court Act mandates that youth, who are 15 or 16 years old, who are arrested for violations of the Illinois Controlled Substances Act within 1000 feet of public housing property be automatically tried in the adult court. Do you agree or disagree that this automatic transfer provision should be repealed so that any youth arrested for this offense is treated the same as other youth regardless of the community in which it occurs?
59% Agree	28% Disagree	12% Don't know

3. Seattle, Washington has formed a joint committee composed of its police department and citizens to investigate why a disproportionate number of minorities are arrested and detained and to develop a plan based on their findings. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement: The City of Chicago and other cities in Illinois with similar problems should form police/citizen committees like the one in Seattle.
49% Agree	21% Disagree	30% Don't know

4. Among other actions, the current federal Disproportionate Minority Confinement (DMC) mandate requires states to assess the reasons why juvenile DMC exists and to develop intervention strategies for DMC. Do you agree or disagree with the following: States must justify any over-representation of minorities at every stage of their juvenile justice systems. States not complying with this mandate will lose federal funding for youth programs.
30% Agree	24% Disagree	46% Don't know

The 2001 Illinois Youth Summit is a program of the Constitutional Rights Foundation Chicago and is part of Youth for Justice, a national violence-prevention initiative sponsored by the United States Department of Justice through the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. Funding is provided in part through the Illinois Violence Prevention Authority and through the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention of the United States Department of Justice. The views and s tatements expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the Illinois Violence Prevention Authority, Youth for Justice, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention of the United States Department of Justice, or any other supporters of the 2001 Illinois Youth Summit.