Social conservatism in the United States

Social conservatism in the United States is a political ideology focused on the preservation of traditional values and beliefs. It focuses on a concern with moral and social values which proponents of the ideology see as degraded in modern society by liberalism.^[1] In the United States, one of the largest forces of social conservatism is the Christian right.^[2]

Social conservatives in the United States generally take fundamentalist, familialist, moralist stances on social issues. This is exemplified by their opposition to abortion, opposition to feminism, support for traditional family values, opposition to pornography, support for abstinence-only sex education, opposition to LGBT rights, support for school prayer, support for school vouchers, support for Sunday blue laws, opposition to gambling, and opposition to recreational drug use, among others.^[3]^[4]^[5]

As many of them are religious, especially Christian fundamentalists, social conservatives push for a focus on Christian traditions as a guiding force for the country on social issues.^[6] This includes advocacy for the presence of religion within the public sphere, such as the display of Judeo-Christian statuary in general and especially during Christmastide and Eastertide, as well as supporting the presence of religion in the education system, along with backing parochial schools, as social conservatives believe that "religion is the firmest foundation for the moral development that students need to become productive, law-abiding citizens."^[7]^[8]

As a term, social conservatism describes conservative stances on socio-cultural issues such as abortion, same-sex marriage, and school prayer as opposed to what is termed social liberalism (cultural liberalism).^[9]^[10] A social conservative in this sense is closer to the meaning of cultural conservatism than the broader European social conservatism and may hold various different views on fiscal policy.^[11]

^ Bell, Jeffrey (2012). The Case for Polarized Politics: Why American Needs Social Conservatism. New York: Encounter Books. pp. 6–10. ISBN 9781594035784 – via Proquest ebrary. The Case for Polarized Politics: Why American Needs Social Conservatism.
^ Marsden, Lee (December 28, 2012). The Ashgate Research Companion to Religion and Conflict Resolution. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 978-1-4094-7128-8. Even within the secular heartlands of Western Europe and the United States religion began to force its way into the political agenda with the emergence of the American Christian Right as a new force in social conservatism in the late 1970s and in the UK with the issue of fatwas calling for the death of British author Salman Rushdie, promoted by the publication of his book The Satanic Verses, which was declared blasphemous by Ayatollah Khomeini, Supreme Leader of Iran, in 1989.
^ Cite error: The named reference 2016Quantz was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Cite error: The named reference Chambers2011 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Thompson, Michael (2007). Confronting the New Conservatism: The Rise of the Right in America. NYU Press. pp. 2–3. ISBN 9780814782996.
^ Marietta, Morgan (2012). A Citizen's Guide to American Ideology: Conservatism and Liberalism in Contemporary Politics. New York: Routledge. p. 32. ISBN 9781136593659.
^ Wenz, Peter S. (February 10, 2012). Beyond Red and Blue: How Twelve Political Philosophies Shape American Debates. MIT Press. p. 7. ISBN 978-0-262-26127-2. Social conservatives favor vouchers because they allow religion to be taught in government-funded schools, and they think religious is the firmest foundation for the moral development that students need to become productive, law-abiding citizens.
^ Quantz, Richard A. (January 8, 2016). Sociocultural Studies in Education: Critical Thinking for Democracy. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-26075-2. Social conservatives tend to advocate for abstinence education, church attendance, prayer in school, public Christmas displays, patriotism, the military, and gun rights. ... Whereas religion is considered to be in the private realm, social conservatives often argue that the cultural history of the United States makes it perfectly legal to allow some aspects of religion to move into the public sphere. Primarily they advocate the public space be open to the display and expectations of broad Judaic-Christian traditions and often specifically Christian traditions.
^ Cite error: The named reference RozellWilcox2017 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Cite error: The named reference Walmer2017 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Chideya, Farai (2004). "The Red and the Blue: A Divided America". Trust: Reaching the 100 Million Missing Voters and Other Selected Essays. Soft Skull Press. pp. 33–46. ISBN 9781932360264.

[1] Bell, Jeffrey (2012). The Case for Polarized Politics: Why American Needs Social Conservatism. New York: Encounter Books. pp. 6–10. ISBN 9781594035784 – via Proquest ebrary. The Case for Polarized Politics: Why American Needs Social Conservatism.

[Marsden2012-2] Marsden, Lee (December 28, 2012). The Ashgate Research Companion to Religion and Conflict Resolution. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 978-1-4094-7128-8. Even within the secular heartlands of Western Europe and the United States religion began to force its way into the political agenda with the emergence of the American Christian Right as a new force in social conservatism in the late 1970s and in the UK with the issue of fatwas calling for the death of British author Salman Rushdie, promoted by the publication of his book The Satanic Verses, which was declared blasphemous by Ayatollah Khomeini, Supreme Leader of Iran, in 1989.

[2016Quantz-3] Cite error: The named reference 2016Quantz was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[Chambers2011-4] Cite error: The named reference Chambers2011 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[5] Thompson, Michael (2007). Confronting the New Conservatism: The Rise of the Right in America. NYU Press. pp. 2–3. ISBN 9780814782996.

[6] Marietta, Morgan (2012). A Citizen's Guide to American Ideology: Conservatism and Liberalism in Contemporary Politics. New York: Routledge. p. 32. ISBN 9781136593659.

[7] Wenz, Peter S. (February 10, 2012). Beyond Red and Blue: How Twelve Political Philosophies Shape American Debates. MIT Press. p. 7. ISBN 978-0-262-26127-2. Social conservatives favor vouchers because they allow religion to be taught in government-funded schools, and they think religious is the firmest foundation for the moral development that students need to become productive, law-abiding citizens.

[Quantz2016-8] Quantz, Richard A. (January 8, 2016). Sociocultural Studies in Education: Critical Thinking for Democracy. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-26075-2. Social conservatives tend to advocate for abstinence education, church attendance, prayer in school, public Christmas displays, patriotism, the military, and gun rights. ... Whereas religion is considered to be in the private realm, social conservatives often argue that the cultural history of the United States makes it perfectly legal to allow some aspects of religion to move into the public sphere. Primarily they advocate the public space be open to the display and expectations of broad Judaic-Christian traditions and often specifically Christian traditions.

[RozellWilcox2017-9] Cite error: The named reference RozellWilcox2017 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[Walmer2017-10] Cite error: The named reference Walmer2017 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[11] Chideya, Farai (2004). "The Red and the Blue: A Divided America". Trust: Reaching the 100 Million Missing Voters and Other Selected Essays. Soft Skull Press. pp. 33–46. ISBN 9781932360264.

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