May 12, 2000 The New York Times Support Down in Poll on Gun Restrictions By ROBIN TONER WASHINGTON, May 11 -- Against the political backdrop of Sunday's Million Mom March for gun control, a new poll shows that overall support for restrictions on guns has declined in the last two months, mostly because men have grown increasingly sympathetic toward the rights of gun owners. The survey, conducted by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, found that the gender gap on the gun issue is growing. When asked what was more important, gun-owners' rights or gun control, 49 percent of the men polled said rights were, while 46 percent said control was. In contrast, 28 percent of the women polled called rights more important, while 67 percent said control was. Over all, 57 percent of the public put the priority on gun restrictions in the new poll, 38 percent on the rights of gun owners. A Pew survey in March found that 66 percent supported gun restrictions and 29 percent gun owners' rights. After the shootings last year at Columbine High School, which left 15 dead, many pollsters found that support for gun control soared. But Andrew Kohut, director of the Pew Poll, said the latest survey hints at a pro-gun backlash among men, and suggests the effectiveness of groups like the National Rifle Association. The survey was conducted May 2 to May 6 and was based on a sample of 1,303 adults, with a margin of sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points. -------[Cybershooters contacts]-------- Editor: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Website & subscription info: www.cybershooters.org
