Poll: Majority of Americans support preserving Confederate history

A slim majority of Americans (52%) support efforts to preserve the legacy and history of the Confederacy, while 44% oppose such efforts, a new poll finds.

Why it matters: As Juneteenth gains popularity as a national holiday, most Americans still support keeping alive the "Lost Cause" myth, which arose after the Civil War and romanticizes the Confederate uprising, ignoring slavery as its root cause.

The "Lost Cause" popularity persists even after the 2020 murder of George Floyd prompted cities and states to remove Confederate monuments and names of former Confederates from schools amid a racial reckoning.

Zoom in: The 52% in support for preserving the history of the Confederacy is almost identical to results of 2022 survey, the nonpartisan Public Religion Research Institute poll found.