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Poll: 56% Of Americans Believe Police Are Behaving Appropriately Or Not Being Aggressive Enough

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A new NPR-Marist poll found that 56% of Americans believe that the police are behaving appropriately or not being aggressive enough during the nationwide demonstrations after George Floyd’s death. 

The survey, which was conducted Tuesday through Wednesday, asked 1,062 American adults about police behavior in relation to the protests about George Floyd’s death with a margin of error of +/- 4 percentage points.

Out of all respondents, 18% said that the police were not being aggressive enough. The answers differed significantly along partisan lines, with 43% of Republicans saying that the police were not being aggressive enough compared to just 2% of Democrats. Responses also differed by race; 20% of white respondents thought the police were not being aggressive enough while only 6% of African Americans agreed, according to the poll

35% of the total respondents thought that the police were being too aggressive during the protests, and answers were also split along party lines. 55% of Democrats believed that police were being too aggressive, while only 55% of Republicans thought so. (RELATED: Lego Pulls Marketing Campaign For Police And WH Sets Amid Protests Following Floyd’s Death)

The two parties were more similar when asked if they thought the police were mostly behaving appropriately, with 35% of Democrats and 39% of Republicans saying they believed so. Overall, 38% of respondents said the police were responding appropriately. 

Discussions about police brutality have been a center of public discourse in the wake of George Floyd’s death after a police officer kneeled on his neck for several minutes. His death sparked nationwide protests, many of which have escalated into violent riots. 

Viral videos have emerged of protesters clashing with officers, which has often resulted in injuries. Most recently, a video circulated showing a 75-year-old man bleeding from his head on the sidewalk after police pushed him to the ground.