A new poll has found that nine per cent of Canadians have an “unfavourable” opinion of Jewish people, but that figure rises to 21 per cent in Quebec, the highest level in the country.
On Dec. 6 and 7, Toronto-based Forum Research surveyed 1,304 randomly selected Canadian adults by interactive voice response telephone.
Overall, the pollsters found four in 10 expressed some degree of negative sentiment against at least one identifiable group, with the most unfavourable feelings being directed at Muslims, by 28 per cent of respondents. Again, the highest level of negative opinion by far against this group was expressed by Quebecers, of whom 48 per cent expressed negative sentiment against Muslims.
Forum also correlated the data with respondents’ federal political party preference and found that those who said they prefer the Conservatives were most likely to hold unfavourable opinions about identifiable groups.
“It is clear from these findings that respondents in Quebec are the most likely to hold unfavourable feelings towards Jewish and Muslim people,” said Forum president Lorne Bozinoff.
“It is also clear that out of the three main political parties, the Conservatives are the most likely to hold unfavourable feelings towards at least one group.”
Forty per cent of Conservatives had a negative view of Muslims, while seven per cent did of Jews.
The other groups listed in the survey followed by the total level of unfavourable feeling against them were: First Nations, 16 per cent; South Asians, 11 per cent; Asians, 10 per cent; and blacks, 8 per cent.
A fairly high proportion said they didn’t know how they felt – from 12 to 19 per cent.
On Jews, the total sample was fairly consistent across the age categories and only a slightly higher percentage of men than women expressed unfavourable feelings.
Those with incomes under $20,000 answered at a somewhat higher level than those better off that they had unfavourable feelings about Jews.
Nationally, considerably more francophones – 22 per cent – than anglophones – five per cent – held negative sentiments about Jews.
After Quebec, the Atlantic provinces has the most negative opinion about Jews, at 15 per cent. The least negative opinion was found in Manitoba/Saskatchewan, where only one per cent held such opinions.
In the other provinces, 77 to 79 per cent of respondents had favourable feelings about Jews. The national average was 74 per cent.
Those who said they support the Bloc Québécois held the most bias toward Jews, at 27 per cent, compared to between seven and 11 per cent among Conservatives, Liberals and New Democrats.
Forum Research says results based on the total sample are considered accurate plus or minus three per cent, 19 times out of 20, while subsets are less accurate.
