Doing the Math: Americans negative about UN
Americans believe the United Nations is doing a poor job.
The polling organization asked whether the U.N. was "doing a good job or a poor job in trying to solve the problems it has had to face." Here are the numbers, released Feb. 25:
- More than half – 57 percent – say the U.N. is doing a poor job.
- Republicans were more likely than Democrats to rate the U.N. negatively. The survey found that 70 percent of Republicans, 61 percent of Independents and 39 percent of Democrats believe the organization is doing a bad job.
- Similarly, Democrats were more likely than Republicans to say the U.N. is doing a good job. Indeed, 52 percent of the polled Democrats thought the organization is doing a good job, but only 25 percent of Republicans and 28 percent of Independents thought the same.
The U.N. charter was signed June 26, 1945. At the time, World War II was drawing to a close – a fact underscored in the organization’s preamble, which sets a goal of saving future generations from “the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind.”
Other goals include reaffirming faith in human rights, establishing conditions in which “respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained,” and to promote social progress and better standards of life.
Toward these ends, the nations agree to “unite our strength to maintain international peace and security.”
But the U.N.’s mission is evolving and increasingly complex. Unlike the disputes that spawned World War I and World War II, some conflicts now involve small, but heavily armed, groups not necessarily identified by uniform or representing a specific country.
Related:
100 years ago: 5 reasons World War I started
