Here’s What the World Thinks About Freedom of Religion in the US

The United States was established on the notion that people would be free to practice whichever religion they chose, and the nation has kept up this tradition to the present day. In spite of the fact that this is the case, many are claiming that the rights and freedoms of Muslims to practice their religion are frequently curtailed, whereas Christians tend to be given a free pass.

With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that the US has a fairly positive perception across many countries in the Muslim world. 47% of people living in the UAE said that the US had an excellent level of religious freedom, with 20% saying it was fair and just 17% claiming that it was poor or terrible.

The largest Muslim population in the world currently resides in Indonesia, and the people over there seem to have a fairly positive view of religious freedoms in the US as well. Similarly to the UAE, 47% of Indonesians have a very good perception of freedom of religion in the US, with 25% saying that the US is fair in such matters and only 14% claiming that it is underwhelming.

Malaysia is the only Muslim majority country that serves as an outlier here, with only 34% of Malaysians saying that freedom of religion in the US is excellent.

However, it should also be noted that the five countries that seem to have the highest opinion of the US in terms of religious liberties are all Christian majority nations. Kenya comes at the top of the list with a whopping 64% of Kenyans agreeing that the US has excellent freedom of religion laws. Colombia and Ghana came in second with 60% apiece, followed by Poland with 52% and Chile with 51%.

In spite of the fact that this is the case, there are several Western countries that happen to have Christian majorities which have a very poor few of how people of different religions are treated within the United States of America. For example, only 32% of Germans, 26% of Canadians, 21% of Australians, and 19% of UK citizens think that freedom of religion in the US is in any way excellent.

As for people who think that the state of freedom of religion in America is poor or terrible, the numbers are quite high for these western countries. 25% of Canadians believe this, as do 27% of Australians and 27% of people in the UK.

People who responded to this survey generally felt like Muslims were not treated fairly in the US. 41% of Canadians felt like Muslims were treated worse than other religious minorities. 32% of Australians, 39% of Malaysians, and 36% of people from the UK said the same.

Even countries like Indonesia and the UAE that have generally favorable views of religious freedoms in the US agreed. 34% of Indonesians and 37% of UAE residents stated that Muslims are not treated fairly in the US and that they face a lot more discrimination than members of any other religious group which makes America’s image as the land of the free less believable than might have been the case otherwise.

H/T: Morning Consult

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by Zia Muhammad via Digital Information World