The Religious Right In The 1970's

Since the 1970’s, the Religious Right has been a force to be reckoned with in American society, much to the chagrin of progressives. Although religion has always played some role in American culture going back to the founding of the nation, the history and tactics of the religious right explain why they have gained such a foothold in recent times.

First, an analysis of the Religious Right requires an understanding of their origins. The modern Religious Right is mostly comprised of orthodox white evangelical Christians who became enraged at the rapid social changes that occurred in American society by the 1960’s such as the ruling for the removal of organized prayer in schools, the stoppage of southern segregation, protests against the Vietnam War, challenges to the traditional roles of women, and the so-called sexual revolution (Brown 20). These

One of these individuals is 700 Club and Christian Coalition founder Marion Gordon “Pat” Robertson. A former drinker, womanizer, and gambler, Robertson was able to use his charisma to become one of the most viewed televangelists, reaching out to an estimated 110 million viewers in the 1970’s with his is Christian Broadcasting Network (Utter and Storey 109). In 1987, Robertson even entered the Republican presidential race (18 Hadden and Shupe). Another prominent leader was Jerry Falwell, who used fund-raising to generate a million dollars a week and, with the assistance of conservative political strategists, later founded a political organization for the Religious Right called the Moral Majority (Utter and Storey 85). These leaders and other firebrands use the power of the pulpit to rally the Religious Right to battle the issues seen as against traditional Christian