The last decades of the 20th Century saw the rise
to dominance of the New Right. Historians have argued why, from economic
turmoil, the rise of the Sunbelt, white backlash, disillusionment with government
welfare programs, or simply the ideological exhaustion of liberalism. Why do
you think the New Right became such a strong force in American life? (100-150
words, by 5pm Friday May 17).
The rise of the New Right was largely a response (or counter response) to the New Left. The new left had had sweeping criticisms of American traditions and institutions: Gender, family, sex, race, economics, religion, patriotism- all had gone through major changes as influenced by the left.
ReplyDeleteIt is important to recognize that the new left was not always unified, for example, those fighting for gender issues were often lacking in recognition of race issues. In the same way, it is important to recognize that the new right was not uniformly holding the same beliefs, or motivated to fight against the same issues. Anti affirmative action writers for example, were less interested in the growth of secularism, than Evangelical lobby groups.
The New Rights Movement became such a strong force in American life because it was a counter reaction to the one previously taken, and gained the support of some important individuals. Due to the changes that were and had been occurring in American society, like affirmative action, women's rights movements, abortion, divorces, and many more there was going to be a reaction. This reaction came with conservative Americans wanting to go back to the way society had been. This New Rights Movement became a strong force due to the support of many Americans,but especially Jerry Falwell and Ronald Reagan. With this support and influence the New Rights Movement came to the forefront.
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ReplyDeleteThe New Right appears to have had such success as it articulated a return to traditional values in both economic and social life that many Americans felt attractive – even if this ‘return’ was somewhat constructed with ‘imagined history’ and viewed with rose-coloured glasses.
ReplyDeleteThe movement gave voice to many Americans who felt disenfranchised by ‘big government.’ This includes people who had ironically seen their fortunes take a downturn due to FDR’s ‘New Deal’ or Johnson's ‘Great Society’ economics plans. It also featured those who felt traditional ‘family values’ were under attack from an immoral/amoral government.
While many historians feel the success of the new right is clearly visible; e.g. Strong defence contributing to Cold War’s end, Reaganomics bringing a return to ‘Morning in America’ the reversal or at least forestalling of progress for many minorities during this period remains a substantially regrettable feature of its legacy.
It was an emergence of large support for traditional values in response to the 1960s and 1970s culture shift that enabled the New Right to become such a strong force in American life. In particular, the support from many Americans wanting a return to family values and who were opposed to abortion, women’s rights and divorce gave momentum to the New Right. The conservative view of the New Right gained support from influential religious leader Jerry Falwell, which was significant in further consolidating its power and resulted in promotion on a public platform. This was elevated again through the support of Ronald Regan. The New Right became such a strong force in American life because it appealed to the many Americans who were unhappy with the radical social change.
ReplyDeleteThe emergence (or re-emergence) of the New Right towards the end of the century was largely a "push back" against the changing nature of values held by society on behalf of members of right-wing groups, such as evangelicals. The liberal ideals that arose throughout much of the 1960s and led to a shift in morals (such as views regarding the topics of abortion and affirmative action) left conservatives disenchanted with the general direction of America and a move away from what they considered to be traditional and wholesome values. Important figures such as evangelist leader Jerry Falwell and President Ronald Reagan would only prove to harden such beliefs, also helping to garner recognition and support for the movement.
ReplyDeleteThe new right gave an outlet for many people within the United States to support in response to the recent "left" outlooks that had occured in the past in the U.S from people such as FDR. The movement gave voice to those who embarced the traditional american values that had previously been criticised by the left movement. The right movement wanted to conserve what they believed america was about and the movement attracted a lot of support within the USA with people such as Jerry Falwell who helped bring the movement together by encouraging like minded people to unite and vote.I believe that the movement was allowed to become so strong as as result of people like Jerry Falwell and in addition to this the use of the movement by Reagan who gained the support of the movement to vote for him.
ReplyDeleteThe New Right became such a strong force in the American life as the authority of the Democrats began to deteriorate. Many Americans began to observe a new America emerging where past values which were once held by society, were challenged. Americans became sceptical towards civil/minority rights, traditional sexual and gender norms and religious faith which saw a turn towards the Conservative right. Many desired the return of family values. The Evangelicals for example became concerned with the moral attitude of the American nation. Attitudes towards religion, abortion, divorce and so on were causing the organisation to worry about the spiritual health of the American people. Ronald Reagan who was a conservative, promised to respond to such concerns and in turn resolve them which gained the vote of the Evangelicals which took the majority of the population. Furthermore, many Americans were becoming fed up rights movements, student riots and the Federal Government. The Federal Government was seen as the enemy for many in response to their failure in aiding citizens. Born out of such frustration, many American’s turned toward the Conservative right. Richard Nixon had supported such ideals which attracted supporters.
ReplyDeleteEmily Simoes
The rise of the new right in the seventies and eighties was attributed to the backlash of radicalism in the 1960’s, as well as the ideals of the ‘liberal elites’ that were argued by conservatives as not incorporating the rights of average American. Conservative Americans as well as religious groups such as the Evangelicals were not willing to compromise on issues such as sexual liberation for women, gender roles, abortion and homosexuality. Conservatives and the Republican Party desired political dominance over the leftists who they felt only took interest in minorities and special interest groups. They also called for welfare cuts that were seen to only benefit minorities and were sceptical of the highly centralised federal government and it’s power, ideas that were shared by many conservative American’s who felt left out of the progress made in the sixties.
ReplyDeleteThe rise of the New Right was mainly a response to the progressive movements of the 1960s and 70s; women’s rights, gay rights and of course, civil rights. The New Right was dedicated to bringing back a more traditional America focusing on family values and traditional gender roles. The New Right was also focused on lessening the role government played in the lived of it citizens- small government as opposed to big government. The religious side of the New Right was also key to its success, Reagan’s support of evangelicals and the creation of the Moral Majority also helped to bring in support for the movement.
ReplyDeleteIncreasing discontent with liberalism and changing societal values within America led to the growth of the New Right. With strong traditional values, the growing activism of feminism movement, the rise of the sexual revolution since the 1960s and particularly the debate regarding abortion led to the emergence of leaders such as Jerry Falwell. Combining his religious background with his core political beliefs, Falwell led the Moral Majority and advocated for a return to traditional family and economic values. The reason that the New Right ideals appealed to many Americans can perhaps be attributed to the increasing amount of Americans identifying as ‘born again’ Christians and thus were enticed with the idea of Christian values influencing political policy.
ReplyDeletethe New Right's popularity was a response towards social movements of the sixites that threatened traditional American concepts of family, economy and government. The white majority felt discriminated against by governmental measures such as affirmative action that gave special consideration to marginalised groups such as women, African Americans and immigrants. Nixon's southern strategy and later, Reagan's conservative approaches to economic issues appealed to Americans who thought they were being restricted by a large government that was too preoccupied with the minority, at the financial expense of the right majority. The growth of evangelicalism manifests a strong reaction to the rising popularity of notions of darwinism and abortion that conflicted with Christian values and beliefs.
ReplyDeleteAmber Jennings
ReplyDeleteThe New right could be seen as a response to the move towards liberalism that took pace during the 1960’s. It seem like a natural response for conservatives to take a stronger position. Their association with religion along with new electoral strategy made them a force to be reckoned with. The Religious right still seems to have a big impact on the wider worlds perception of America or at least mine as when I think of activism in conjunction with christianity I think of the US.
The rise of the New Right came in a response to the Civil Rights Movements that were gaining momentum during the 1960's and 70's. These included the gay rights movements, the extension of women's rights and overall civil rights. These radical changes sparked a need in the majority of American society to move back towards more traditional American values through gender roles and also a heavy focus on family oriented values. The push for large change evoked fear and anxiety in many American's, who believed that the nations cultural and ideological integrity were under threat.Ronald Reagan played a defining role within the New Right, as his conservative actions appealed to Americans who were being disenchanted by minority groups receiving aid through affirmative action measures
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