A recent survey has found 70 percent of Millennials say they are likely to vote for a Socialist. The survey conducted by the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation also found just one in two have a favorable view of Capitalism.

According to the survey breakdown, 50 percent of Millennials say they are “somewhat likely” and 20 percent say they are “extremely likely” to vote for a socialist candidate, an increase of 10 percent over last year. The good news is 53 percent of Americans overall are hesitant about voting for a “democratic socialist,” which is an increase of 6 percent over 2018.

The Foundation’s executive director attributed the findings to this generation’s lack of educational awareness. “The historical amnesia about the dangers of Communism and Socialism is on full display in this year’s report,” said Marion Smith. “When we don’t educate our youngest generations about the historical truth of 100 million victims murdered at the hands of communist regimes over the past century, we shouldn’t be surprised at their willingness to embrace Marxist ideas.” The survey showed 72 percent of Americans did not know Communism killed more than 100 million people in 100 years.

More than a third of Millennials (36 percent) view Communism favorably, and 22 percent believe “society would be better if all private property was abolished.” Fifteen percent believe the world would be a better place if the Soviet Union still existed.

Despite the latest crackdowns on freedom of speech in China and Hong Kong, just over half of Generation Z (57 percent) and nearly two-thirds of Millennials (62 percent) believe China is a communist country.

The survey reader does wonder about these generation’s interpretations of the concepts of freedom and liberty when discovering just over half (57 percent) of Millennials believe the Declaration of Independence better guarantees freedom and equality over the Communist Manifesto.

Democrat presidential candidate Bernie Sanders is open about his socialist politics as are several other Democrat party members including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY). Both are popular with Millennials and Gen Z as are the socialist programs promoted by the Democratic Party.

The late British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher said, “The trouble with Socialism is that eventually you run out of other people’s money.” It’s to be determined if the younger American generations will heed that warning or learn the lesson.

View the entire survey results at https://www.victimsofcommunism.org/2019-annual-poll.

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Less than 20 years into the 21^st Century and it seems that many Americans have either forgotten, or simply do not know about, what could arguably be described as the largest worldwide scourge of the 20^th Century.  Roughly 97 million people died in two world wars.  However, more than 100 million people died under the governing system of Communism in what many historians have called the bloodiest century in the history of man.

Each year the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation commissions a poll of Americans to find out what they know about Socialism, Marxism and Communism, the triplets of totalitarianism.

Here is what their newly released 2019 survey has found:

•  The percentage of American Millennials who say that they are likely to vote for a socialist is 70%.   The number who say they are “extremely likely” to vote for a socialist candidate has doubled from 10% in 2018 to 20% in 2019.

• Young people aged 23-38, known as Millennials, and those aged 16-22, known as Generation Z, views of capitalism has taken a big hit with only one-in-two having a favorable view of capitalism.

• Communism is viewed favorably by more than one-in-three Millennials (36%), up 8 points since 2018.

• Marxism has the highest favorability among Millennials at 35%, up 6 points since 2018.

• 7 in 10 Americans do not know that communism has killed over 100 million people.

• Only 57% of Gen Z and 62% of Millennials, compared to 88% of Baby Boomers and the Silent Generation, think that China is a communist country.  (I’d bet that a poll of NBA players and owners is closer to 1%. Most of them seemed to have had no idea that Twitter has been banned by the government of China since 2009.)

• While 80% of Americans say that they trust themselves more than government or community to take care of their own interests, younger generations are 25% less likely to say this.

• Overall, capitalism is still viewed favorably by 61% of all Americans.

• Overall, among all Americans there is more hesitancy to vote for a “democratic socialist” than there was last year.

• Perceptions of communism and Marxism vary widely across generations.

• Only 57% of Millennials, compared to 94% of the Silent Generation think the Declaration of Independence better guarantees freedom and equality over the Communist Manifesto.

• Millennials are the least likely to have studied communism in high school, but they are more likely to have studied it in college.

• Millennials are much more likely to report communism being presented favorably in K-12 and college than are older generations.

• While 83% of Americans say that they know at least a little about socialism, 66% of Americans cannot accurately define socialism.

• Baby Boomer opposition to voting for a democratic socialist has increased by 8 points since 2018.

• Nearly half of Millennials think that the government should provide a job for everyone who wants to work but can’t find a job.

• 37% of Millennials think America is one of the most unequal societies in the world.

• One in four Americans say that Donald Trump is a bigger threat to world peace than figures like Kim Jung-un, Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin.

This article was originally published by AFA of Indiana.