10 years later, a look at safety, terror and security after 9/11
Majorities anticipate another attack in next ten years and one-third more concerned about their personal safety since September 11, 2001 Ten years ago life in the United States changed when for the first time Americans were attacked by foreign terrorists within the borders of the U.S. Afterwards it became “normal” to take shoes off before boarding an airplane, to see heavily armed soldiers in airline terminals, and to think about the phrase “if you see something, say something” when on public transportation.
In this new environment, one-third of Americans (32%) say they are more concerned for their personal safety now than they were before September 11, 2001, one in ten (9%) are less concerned, and three in five (60%) say their level of concern is about the same. In November 2001, right after the attacks, more than two in five Americans (42%) said they were more concerned about their personal safety, just 1% said less concerned and about three in five (57%) said their level of concern over their personal safety was about the same as it was before the attacks.
These are some of the results of The Harris Poll of 2,073 adults surveyed online between August 23 and 25, 2011 by Harris Interactive.
Hatred towards the “American way” was one reason for the attacks and ten years later, seven in ten U.S. adults (71%) believe there is more hatred towards the United States of America around the world today compared to what their was before 9/11 while just one in ten (11%) say there is less hatred today. It could be for this reason that large majorities of Americans believe the U.S. will experience a terrorist attack in the next decade. More than four in five U.S. adults believe it is likely the U.S. will experience a terrorist attack by a foreign citizen (84%) or a foreign organization (84%) in the next ten years while almost two-thirds say it is likely there will be an attack by a foreign country (64%). But it's not just foreign entities Americans are worried about. Eight in ten U.S. adults (79%) say it is likely there will be a terrorist attack by a U.S. citizen associated with an organization and seven in ten (70%) say there will be an attack by a lone U.S. citizen not associated with an organization.
Reducing terrorism in the U.S.
When it comes to reducing terrorism in the United States since 9/11, many individuals and organizations have been involved. Four in five Americans give a lot or some credit to the FBI (81%) and the CIA (79%) for helping to reduce terrorism in the United States while seven in ten give a lot or some credit to the Cabinet office formed after the attacks, the Department of Homeland Security (71%). Two-thirds of U.S. adults give a lot or some credit to local and state police (67%) while almost three in five give a lot or some credit to the Transportation Safety Administration (58%). Finally, looking at the two presidents since September 2001, over half (55%) give a lot or some credit to President George W. Bush for helping to reduce terrorism in the United States while just under half (48%) give a lot or some credit to President Barack Obama.
Since September 11, 2001, there have been a lot of changes in the way law enforcement agencies deal with people suspected of terrorist activity. As it has been since the attacks, strong majorities favor each of the following: expanded under-cover activities to penetrate groups under suspicion (86%); expanded camera surveillance on streets and in public places (70%); stronger document and physical security checks for travelers (69%); closer monitoring of banking and credit card transactions, to trace funding sources (65%); adoption of a national ID system for all U.S. citizens (61%); and law enforcement monitoring of Internet discussions in chat rooms and other forums (55%). Right after the attacks, a majority of Americans (54%) favored expanded government monitoring of cell phones and email, to intercept communications. That number dropped to 44% in March of 2002 and February of 2003 and currently just 38% would favor government monitoring of cell phones and email while 62% oppose it.
While Americans may favor most of the government's expanded powers, there is still a question of whether U.S. law enforcement is using its expanded surveillance powers in a proper way or not. One-third of Americans (34%) believe they are using it in a proper way, one in five (20%) say they are not using it in a proper way but almost half (46%) are not at all sure.
So What?
Almost everyone (95%) says they remember clearly where they were when they heard about the events on September 11th for the first time, with 84% saying they remember very clearly. For many Americans, it was a phone call or someone running into a room saying “turn on the TV” as the images of that day played on and on. And, two-thirds of U.S. adults (68%) say the events of 9/11 changed their behavior in some lasting way. In fact, two in five (38%) say they appreciate life more and that number jumps to almost half of those who were in New York City or Washington, DC on the day of the attacks (46%).
With the passing of ten years, there are many other events that now frame how we approach this anniversary. Wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the presidential election of 2008, and watching the events unfold in the Middle East this past spring are some, but the largest is probably the death of Osama bin Laden just a few short months ago. While each anniversary since 2001 has been poignant, there is always something notable about looking back a decade. TABLE 1 CONCERNED FOR PERSONAL SAFETY “September 11th of this year will mark the 10 year anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the United States. In light of the upcoming anniversary, we would like to ask you a few questions. Are you more or less concerned for your personal safety now than you were before September 11th, 2001, or is your level of concern about the same?” Base: All adults Total Nov. 2001 Total Age Gender 18-34 35-44 45-54 55+ Male Female % % % % % % % % More concerned 42 32 30 30 26 38 28 36 Less concerned 1 9 10 11 9 6 12 5 About the same 57 60 60 60 65 56 60 59 Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding TABLE 2 HATRED TOWARD THE U.S. “Do you think there is more or less hatred toward the United States of America around the world today, compared to what there was before 9/11?” Base: All adults Total Region Gender North- east Mid- west South West Male Female % % % % % % % Less hatred (NET) 11 9 10 13 12 14 9 Much less hatred 3 1 2 4 3 4 2 Somewhat less hatred 9 7 8 9 9 10 7 More hatred (NET) 71 70 72 71 71 72 70 Somewhat more hatred 42 42 43 40 43 43 40 Much more hatred 29 27 28 32 28 28 30 Not at all sure 18 22 19 16 17 15 21 Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding TABLE 3 TERRORIST ATTACK IN NEXT 10 YEARS “How likely, if at all, do you think it is that the U.S. will experience a terrorist attack by each of the following in the next ten years?” Base: All adult s Likely (NET) Very likely Somewhat likely Not likely (NET) Not very likely Not at all likely % % % % % % A foreign citizen 84 34 50 16 12 4 A foreign organization 84 34 49 16 13 3 A U.S. citizen associated with an organization 79 25 54 21 17 4 A lone U.S. citizen not associated with an organization 70 25 45 30 23 6 A foreign country 64 23 41 36 28 8 Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding TABLE 4 CREDIT FO R REDUCING TERRORISM “How much credit, if any, do you give each of the following individuals or organizations for helping to reduce terrorism in the United States?” Base: All adults A lot/ some credit (NET) A lot of credit Some credit Not much/ No credit (NET) Not much credit No credit at all % % % % % % The FBI 81 26 55 19 14 5 The CIA 79 28 51 21 15 6 The Department of Homeland Security 71 24 47 29 18 11 Local and state police 67 16 52 33 24 9 The TSA (Transportation Security Administration) 58 13 45 42 26 16 President George W. Bush 55 18 37 45 21 24 President Barack Obama 48 13 35 52 23 29 Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding TABLE 5 FAVOR OR OPPOSE INCREASED POWERS OF INVESTIGATION “Here are some increased powers of investigation that law enforcement agencies might use when dealing with people suspected of terrorist activity, which would also affect our civil liberties. For each, please say if you would favor or oppose it.” Base: All adults Trend of those saying “Favor” 2011 Sept 2001 March 2002 Feb 2003 Feb 2004 Sept 2004 June 2005 Favor Oppose % % % % % % % % Expanded under-cover activities to penetrate groups under suspicion 93 88 81 80 82 76 86 14 Expanded camera surveillance on streets and in public places 63 58 61 61 60 59 70 30 Stronger document and physical security checks for travelers 93 89 84 84 83 81 69 31 Closer monitoring of banking and credit card transactions, to trace funding sources 81 72 67 64 67 62 65 35 Adoption of a national ID system for all U.S. citizens 68 59 64 56 60 61 61 39 Law enforcement monitoring of Internet discussions in chat rooms and other forums 63 55 54 50 59 57 55 45 Expanded government monitoring of cell phones and email, to intercept communications 54 44 44 36 39 37 38 62 Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding TABLE 6 LAW ENFORCEMENT'S EXPANDED POWERS “Overall, thinking about the possibility of terrorist threats, do you feel that U.S. law enforcement is using its expanded surveillance powers in a proper way, or not?” Base: All adults Total 2011 Region Age Gender North- east Mid- west South West 18-34 35-44 45-54 55+ Male Female % % % % % % % % % % % Using it in a proper way 34 38 29 38 28 34 33 34 34 38 29 Not using it in a proper way 20 15 20 20 26 22 25 18 17 24 16 Not at all sure 46 46 51 42 46 44 42 48 48 37 54 Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding TABLE 7 REMEMBERING SEPT 11 “How clearly, if at all, do you remember where you were when you heard about the events on September 11, 2001, for the first time?” Base: All adults Total Location on 9/11 Age NYC/ DC Tri-state area 18-34 35-44 45-54 55+ % % % % % % % Clearly (NET) 95 98 99 93 94 97 97 Very clearly 84 71 87 75 88 87 89 Somewhat clearly 11 26 12 18 6 10 8 Not clearly (NET) 5 2 1 7 6 3 3 Not very clearly 3 2 1 4 4 2 2 Not at all clearly 2 - - 4 2 1 1 Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding TABLE 8 CHANGED BEHAVIOR “Have the events of September 11th, 2011 changed your behavior in any of the following lasting ways? In other words, because of the terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2011, are any of the following true for you today? Please select all that apply.” Base: All adults Total Location on 9/11 NYC/ DC Tri-state area % % % Any (NET) 68 85 72 I appreciate life more. 38 46 44 I am more nervous when I fly. 18 26 17 I choose to fly less. 16 22 16 I feel safer when I fly. 7 24 5 I am more nervous when I take public transportation. 14 22 14 I travel abroad less. 8 9 7 I pay more attention to emergency exit signage and routes. 29 35 29 I spend more time with family and friends. 22 34 18 I feel nervous when I see people dressed in traditional Muslim attire. 20 20 14 I take fire drills more seriously. 14 33 14 Other 6 9 7 None 32 15 28 Note: Multiple response
Methodology
This Harris Poll was conducted online within the United States between August 23 to 25, 2011 among 2,073 adults (aged 18 and over). Figures for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents' propensity to be online.
All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify or estimate, including sampling error, coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments. Therefore, Harris Interactive avoids the words “margin of error” as they are misleading. All that can be calculated are different possible sampling errors with different probabilities for pure, unweighted, random samples with 100% response rates. These are only theoretical because no published polls come close to this ideal.