DATE: Friday, May 9, 1997                   TAG: 9705090682

SECTION: FRONT                   PAGE: A1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY ROBERT LITTLE, STAFF WRITER 
DATELINE: RICHMOND                          LENGTH:   53 lines

VA. POLL BACKS HONORING CONFEDERACY STATE NAACP HEAD WONDERS WHETHER QUESTIONS WERE FAIR

Virginians heartily approve of Gov. George F. Allen declaring April ``Confederate History and Heritage Month,'' a new poll suggests.

In fact, even most African Americans are in favor of the designation, according to the poll .

Among all Virginians, 72 percent approve of honoring Confederate history and heritage, according to the poll by Mason-Dixon Political/Media Research. Twenty-three percent disapprove, and the rest aren't sure. Black voters approved of the idea 54 percent to 44 percent.

``It's not surprising,'' said Allen spokesman Ken Stroupe. ``People support the governor on this everywhere he goes.''

Not if he went to a Virginia NAACP meeting. The group has promised to use Allen's proclamation as a ``litmus test'' for political candidates. President Paul Gillis said the organization plans to oppose anyone who won't condemn Allen's proclamation, which calls the Confederate era ``a source of pride, honor and respect.''

Thursday's results will not change the group's mind, Gillis said.

He wondered whether the poll asked questions the right way. Voters might not disapprove of proclamations, Gillis said, but he doubts most want to honor ``the cause'' of the Confederacy, as Allen's proclamation did.

``I don't disagree with the idea of supporting Confederate history,''

Gillis said. ``But there is a problem saying the cause was honorable - slavery is not honorable.''

The poll also asked two questions about the Confederate battle flag, a topic in which whites and blacks seem to disagree.

Half of black voters consider the flag a ``symbol of racism and slavery'' compared with 23 percent of white voters. Two-thirds of whites considered the flag a ``symbol of southern pride and heritage.''

And while most Virginians are against efforts to remove the Confederate battle flag from public display, most black Virginians support such efforts.

Gillis wasn't the only one who thought the questions were suspect. Manley Elliott Banks, an associate professor at Virginia Commonwealth University who studies political attitudes, said the data could be skewed.

Supporting the ``public display'' of a flag might be a vote for free speech, not the Confederacy, for instance. And the question about Allen's proclamation noted that it has been attacked by ``civil rights groups,'' a point that could sway opinions, he said.

But mostly Banks said he wished a more direct question had been asked aimed at finding the level of interest in things Confederate. His suspicion: A lot of people, black and white, really don't care that much one way or another.

``The ultimate pragmatist view is that one doesn't get too upset about this issue,'' Banks said. ``Because, simply put, we know who won the war.''

The margin of error was 3.5 percent for 812 registered voters polled. KEYWORDS: FLAGS CIVIL WAR

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