YouGov poll: Brits associate Muslims with terrorism, “extremist” and “misogynist” also mentioned

By Alison Lesley --
05 Jul 2015 --

A poll claims that British people direct terrorism toward Muslims more than any other issue. YouGov describes it as “extremely worrying.”

A new poll reveals deepening social divisions in multicultural Britain. British people associate Muslims with terrorism more than any other issue, according to a YouGov survey. The words “extremist” and “misogynist” are also associated with Muslims.

YouGov, an international internet-based market research firm, asked 6,640 people what three words and phrases they most associate with the term “Muslim.” 12 percent of the people surveyed said terror, terrorist or terrorism.

Faith was mentioned by 11 percent, mosque by 9 percent and religious by 8 percent of those polled. 5 percent said extremist or misogynist. Another 5 percent of those who participated in the survey associated Allah, Mohammed and prayer with Muslims, RT reports.

The survey also revealed hardened attitudes towards refugees fleeing the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East. 42 percent of those polled said that the United Kingdom shouldn’t offer asylum to those fleeing conflict and persecution. 34 percent were in favor of Britain granting asylum.

Jehangir Malik, director of Islamic Relief in the UK, told the Telegraph and others that “the results of this poll are extremely worrying.” Islamic Relief commissioned the research. Malik added that the results “show that public attitudes towards Muslims are hugely negative and attitudes towards refugees have hardened significantly.”

UK Census 2011 showed that Islam is the second largest religion in Britain. The Muslim population in 2011 was 2,786,635, counting for 4.4 percent of the total population. Recently a report by the Muslim Council of Britain showed that the number of children growing up as Muslims in the UK has almost doubled in a decade, according to the Telegraph.

The report, presented to the British parliament, also showed concluded that the Muslim population will continue to expand for “many decades” to come. All of this could have a profound effect on the British society.