Most Americans value religious freedom, but lots more value it for Christians than Muslims

A large majority of Americans say protecting religious freedom is extremely or very important for the U.S., according to an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll released Wednesday, but that support varies based on the religion being protected. Among all respondents, 82 percent said upholding religious freedom was important for Christians, versus about 70 percent who said the same for Jews, 67 percent for Mormons, and, at the bottom, 61 percent for Muslims.

There was a partisan divide but a clear religious preference: 88 percent of Republicans and 83 percent of Democrats said religious liberty protections were important for Christians, while only 60 percent of Republicans and 67 percent of Democrats said the same of Muslims. "Muslims — they need to be protected just like Christians, unless they pose harm to human life," Helen Decker, 65, of West Texas told AP. Perhaps due to fallout from the Supreme Court's blessing of gay marriage, only 55 percent of respondents said the U.S. government is doing a good job of protecting religious freedoms, versus 75 percent in 2011.

"Religious freedom is now in the eye of the beholder," said Charles Haynes, director of the Newseum Institute's Religious Freedom Center. "People in different traditions, with different ideological commitments, define religious freedom differently." The survey was conducted Dec. 10-13 among 1,042 adults, and has a margin of error of ±3.9 percentage points.

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