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8:27 p.m. - Thursday, May. 01, 2003 Honors American Studies Mr. Wing May 1, 2003 Teenaged Subculture and the Conservative Movement Day-Glo legwarmers, spandex, leather jackets, studs, eye patches?! What in the world do this things have in common? These were adapted by the youth of the 1980’s as uniforms, signifying their connection with a group. Thesis Teens vs. Conservatism Among many of the innovations that accompany a new decade were the ideas held by the youth of the generation, the leaders to be. The political views of skinheads vary because skinheads are individual people. Some skinheads have no political preference and pride themselves on this. The politics of most skinheads is in favor of the working class because this is an important aspect of the skinhead culture. Most racist skinheads have belief in the politics of fascist or national socialist (Nazi) way of thinking. The politics of skinheads vary; so, there are many skinheads who have communistic or socialistic beliefs, among other things. So, the politics of skinheads vary across the field and are not restricted to the reactionary right way of thinking that the media portrays all skinheads as having. As the pols and pundits took stock after the 1980 election, a variety of opinions arose regarding the impact of the religious right. Some, especially those with sympathetic views, ascribed the movement almost mythical powers, crediting the Moral Majority and related organizations with electing the President. Others admitted the religious right had played a significant role in the race, but were unwilling to quantify their impact. A third reaction, primarily hostile and suspicious of religion in politics, was not uncommon. Regardless of opinion, all agreed that the movement deserved attention. Foremost on their minds was the question of who the group represented, how many registered voters there were and what geographic region, income level, social class, and educational background described the average member. This of course, was not an easy question to answer. While by the late 1980's the televangelist scandals had come to characterize the religious right (or at least its leaders) in the mainstream media, in 1981 a common conception of the religious right had not yet emerged. This confusion was due in part to the diverse origins of the variety of organizations that where suddenly being classified as a single movement. The most visible of the leaders, the Rev. Jerry Fallwell, was a Baptist minister and active in parish ministry. Other figures such as Pat Robertson and Jim Bakker were labeled Pentecostals but did not lead individual churches. These religious leaders were in turn linked through political ties to such figures as direct mail wizard Richard Viguerie, Senator Jesse Helms, John Dolan and members of groups such as the National Conservative Political Action Committee. These alliances embraced many conservative single-issue associations, including several which have come to characterize the religious right; the National Right To Life Committee, Eagle Forum, National Rifle Association, Moral Majority, and the Religious Roundtable stand out on a list of dozens of organizations linked to the religious right in the early 1980's. Clashes Rise of Subculture Psychology Music Media Nerd's became a hot commodity in the 1980s. Wealthy and brainy computer wizards like Stephen Wozniak helped. So did movies like Revenge of the Nerds, Lucas, Stand by Me, and Peggy Sue Got Married. TV joined the nerd ranks with ABC's hit series Head of the Class. Food of the 80s included the popular fast food places like Taco Bell and McDonald's McDLT and McRib. Kids loved Sweetarts, Skittles, Nerds, Runts, Hubba Bubba Chewing Gum, and Five Alive. Conservative Movements PMRC Parental Advisory Fearing association with its theme, Mercury Records refuses to release Frank Zappa's single "I Don't Wanna Get Drafted."
A representative of the New York State Division of Substance Abuse Services suggests a tax on musicians whose songs promote drug use. In October, Youth Minister Art Diaz organizes a group of local teenagers who conduct a record burning at the First Assembly Church of God in Des Moines, Iowa, including albums by the Beatles, Ravi Shankar, Peter Frampton, and the soundtrack to the movie Grease. A similar burning takes place a few months later in Keoku, Iowa, where a church group burns the work of The Carpenters, John Denver, and Perry Como. Believing that rock condones drug abuse and promiscuous sex, Carroll, Iowa, nightclub owner Jeff Jochims renounces his transgressions and sets fire to $2,000 worth of rock records. The morals of Provo and Salt Lake City residents are saved when two radio stations ban Olivia Newton John's hit single "Physical." The stations fear that the song's lyrics may be a bit too suggestive much for their heavily Mormon audiences. Affects on Music Industry Marketing MTV http://www.jahsonic.com/ScottMcLemee.html http://216.239.53.100/search?q=cache:x8qs9UD94qIC:ucsub.colorado.edu/~broadfoo/Skins.html+1980%27s+young+political+views&hl=en&ie=UTF-8 http://employees.csbsju.edu/dlarson/Writings/HTML%20copies/Religious%20Right.htm
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