Social conservatism

Social conservatism is a political or moral ideology that affirms fidelity to the behaviours associated with a culture's traditions and beliefs which keep people civilized and decent. However, the accepted meaning of traditional morality often differs from group to group within social conservatism. Thus, there are really no policies or positions that could be considered universal among social conservatives. There are, however, a number of principles to which at least a majority of social conservatives adhere.

A second meaning of the term has developed in the Nordic countries and Continental Europe. Here it refers to liberal conservatives supporting modern European welfare states.

Present Social Conservative Issues in the United States

• favor the pro-life position in the abortion controversy
• favor restriction of civil marriage and child adoption rights to couples in heterosexual relationships
• promote public morality and traditional sexual values
• protect key American industries like defense, certain raw materials, and agriculture from foreign competition
• promote a traditional family model as society's foundation
• support government's involvement in values education and character development
• oppose secularism and privatization of religious belief
• support prison reform, with greater focus on punitive measures rather than rehabilitation
• oppose human cloning and federal financing for embryonic stem-cell research
• protect Second Amendment rights
• oppose illegal immigration and support extensive government monitoring of national borders
• reduce, reform or eliminate federal assistance programs and the United States' welfare system
• support lower taxes, with spending focused on education, defense, and infrastructure

Social vs. Other Conservatisms

There is no necessary link between social and fiscal conservatism. In fact, some social conservatives are otherwise apolitical or even left-wing on fiscal issues. For example, social conservatives may also support a degree of government intervention in the economy, and as such will tend to support the concept of a social market economy to further this aim. This concern for material welfare, like advocacy of traditional mores, will often have a basis in the religion of the social conservatives in question. Whereas a fiscal conservative is only concerned with conserving limited taxes to protect their money, a social conservative is more concerned with conserving traditional values, beliefs, and ideals. Examples include the Christian Social Union of Bavaria, the Family First and Democratic Labor Party of Australia, the so-called red tory movement in Canada, and the Communitarian movement in the United States.

There is more overlap between social conservatism and paleoconservatism in that they both have respect for traditional social forms. However, paleoconservatism has a strong cultural conservative strain which social conservatism, in and of itself, is not necessarily allied with. For example, John Burger, writing in Crisis Magazine in 2005, said:

"The presence of a significant population of culturally Catholic immigrants offers hope that their culture will permeate a decadent American society and contribute to the re-evangelization of native-born Catholics. . . Abortion is still illegal in most Latin American countries. And in most areas, it’s not even part of a person’s consciousness."

Social Conservative Political Parties

Many Christian Democratic Parties around the world are socially conservative.

Australia

• Democratic Labor Party
• Family First
• Christian Democratic Party
• A large number of Liberal Party, National Party, and to a lesser extent Labor Party members in Australia are also considered socially conservative.

Belgium

• Vlaams Belang

Canada

• Family Coalition Party of Ontario
• Christian Heritage Party of Canada
• A large number of Conservative Party members in Canada are considered socially conservative.

Chile

• Independent Democrat Union

France

• Movement for France
• Forum of Social Republicans
• Union for a Popular Movement
• National Front

Germany

• Christian Social Union of Bavaria
• Partei Bibeltreuer Christen

India

• Bharatiya Janata Party

Ireland

• Muintir na hÉireann

Italy

• Unione dei Democratici Cristiani e di Centro

Japan

• New Komeito Party

Nigeria

• People's Democratic Party (PDP)
• All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP)

Sweden

• Sweden Democrats

United Kingdom

• Democratic Unionist Party

United States

• Constitution Party
• A large portion of members of the Republican Party are self-identified social conservatives.

Resources

External Links

• What is a social conservative?

Books

• Carlson, Alan, The Family in America: Searching for Social Harmony in the Industrial Age (2003) ISBN 0-7658-0536-7
• Carlson, Alan, Family Questions: Reflections on the American Social Crisis (1991) ISBN 1-56000-555-6
• Fleming, Thomas, The Politics of Human Nature, (1988) ISBN 1-56000-693-5
• Gallagher, Maggie, The Abolition of Marriage: How We Destroy Lasting Love (1996) ISBN 0-89526-46 4-1
• Himmelfarb, Gertrude, The De-moralization Of Society (1996) ISBN 0-679-76490-9
• Hitchens, Peter, The Abolition of Britain. (1999) ISBN 0-7043-8117-6
• Jones, E. Michael, Degenerate Moderns: Modernity As Rationalized Sexual Misbehavior. (1993) ISBN 0-89870-447-2
• Kirk, Russell, The Conservative Mind, 7th Ed. (2001) ISBN 0-89526-171-5
• Magnet, Myron, Modern Sex: Liberation and Its Discontents (2001) ISBN 1-56663-384-2
• Medved, Diane and Dan Quayle, The American Family: Discovering the Values That Make Us Strong (1997) ISBN 0-06-092810-7
• Sobran, Joseph, Single Issues: Essays on the Crucial Social Questions (1983) ISBN 1-199-24333-7.

Social Conservative News Services

• The Interim

Social Conservative Web Sites

• Alliance of Social Conservatives of the United States

See also

• Christian Democracy
• Conservatism
• Paleoconservatism
• Pro-life
• Communitarian
• Traditionalist world view (American)
• Social conservatism (Canada)
• Distributism
• Social progressivism