75% of Americans are against the government installing surveillance cameras inside their homes. Only 14% were in favor, according to the latest Cato Institute survey. 10% do not know what to say.
However, the trend turns around when focusing on the population under the age of 30: 29% favor installing cameras in all homes "to reduce domestic violence, abuse, and other illegal activity."
Support for the idea decreases as the age of respondents increases. 20% of people between 30 and 44 years of age were in favor; 6% between 45-54 and 55-64, and only 5% of those aged 65 and over.
Partisan division
Democrats tend to be more comfortable than Republicans with the idea of public cameras inside their homes. While 17% of Republicans are in favor, 72% are against it. 83% of Democrats are in favor vs. 11% who are against it. 67% of independents are in favor while 14% are against.
Those who most support the idea are the "convinced Democrats," with 21% in favor. Within those same ranks are also those who are least tolerant of the proposal: 90% of respondents who "tend" to support the Democratic Party oppose the idea. They are followed by those who tend to support the Republican Party, at 87%, and convinced Republicans, at 85%.
By race
Nearly 84% of the White population expressed their opposition to the measure. It is surpassed only by the "other" category, with 85%. This is followed by Asians at 66%, Hispanics at 58%, and Blacks at 51%. Of the latter, 33% were in favor of placing video surveillance devices inside homes.
Partisan division
Cato Institute asked these questions as part of a survey on digital currencies. Should the central bank issue a digital currency? Only 16% of Americans say yes while 34% are opposed and 49% do not know.
Among the less than 20% who support the creation of the centralized digital currency, 53% support surveillance cameras. So the institution points out:
Part of the psychology behind support for a centralized digital currency stems from an above-average comfort level with trading some personal autonomy and privacy for the order and security of society.
