Ireland’s youth are ‘considerably more tolerant’ than their parents

A new survey by Youth Work Ireland has revealed that we are becoming a more tolerant and accepting society.

The results were published in conjunction with the launch of the organisation's #Equality17 campaign and showed that Ireland’s youth are more accepting of ethnic minorities and sexuality than previous generations.

In fact, three quarters of the 1,000 14 to 24-year-olds surveyed labelled themselves as more tolerant than their parents.

Unfortunately the results were not as positive when the participants were asked to refer to specific ethnic groups.

80 per cent said they were more accepting of African immigrants, however, figures fell to 66 per cent when the participants were asked about their attitude towards Muslims.

When it came to members of the travelling and Roma communities, 58 per cent of young people felt they were more tolerant than their parents, while 74 per cent believed they showed a greater concern and awareness of people with disabilities.

Spokesman, Michael McLaughlin, has this to say about the findings:

"It certainly shows across a whole range of areas including immigrant populations – that young people would be seen as considerably more tolerant of immigration in Ireland and of ethnic diversity in general.

"It's probably something that we've always expected but it's useful to see it in these figures confirmed for us," he said.

Others findings from the survey suggested that 95 per cent of young people thought they were more accepting of gay people and 91 per cent said they were less likely to be influenced by the Catholic Church than previous generations.