It's About Coalitions Not Purity, Part Six

First published in September 2012, but slight edit/clarification added August 20, 2017


As noted in the previous segments to this series, during the Great Depression, Democrats assembled a coalition which kept their general philosophy the dominant one for decades. But the coalition was so varied, it is amazing that it held together for so long. Black Americans abandoned the Republican Party for the Democratic Party in the election of 1936 (incumbent Democrat Franklin Roosevelt vs. Republican Alfred Landon), where they have remained ever since. White, often "ethnic,"* workers, both union and non union, previously had often supported Republicans, especially during the Teddy Roosevelt era, but also because of  Republican support for high tariffs on imported goods from the Civil War era clear up until the beginning of the Great Depression. Democrats, on the other hand, tended to favor lower tariffs in those times.** The Great Depression brought such calamity to American industry (a nearly 50% decline by 1933!!!), and also generally overseas, that tariffs became less of an issue, and thus far less of a political advantage to Republicans. Unemployment, the depressed economy and fairer distribution of income took center stage with all workers, union and non union. Franklin Roosevelt and many Democrats and progressive Republicans clearly favored helping workers and unions, in general, and workers shifted to the Democratic Party in droves. The era of Prohibition even played a part in the political realignment of the country.*** In many of the "ethnic neighborhoods" previously mentioned, residents, often, but not always Catholic, were more tightly cemented to the Democratic Party when many Democrats advocated, and got, the repeal of Prohibition in 1933 (the 21st Amendment).(Note: Many immigrants, both Protestant and Catholic, came from cultures where alcoholic beverages, wine, beer or special liquors, were part of their every day lives. People of fundamentalist religious beliefs generally supported Prohibition. I must admit, I'm not sure how many Jewish immigrants or Asian immigrants viewed alcohol in those times.)

By the 1970s, the old Democratic coalition from the 1930s was showing more than a few strains. The Civil Rights legislation of the 1960s (supported by a majority in both parties in both Houses of Congress), but with major opposition by southern Democrats) had brought a backlash from southern whites, and the movement of many blacks northward, mainly into large industrial cites, strained relations with white working class Americans.**** In old city neighborhoods, the general prosperity of the post World War Two era gave working class people a chance to move into developing suburbs and the middle class. Interestingly, the help by progressives in both parties, but mainly in the Democratic Party in that era, in fostering a fairer distribution of income (often by supporting unions) helped make at least some, if not much, of this possible, but once in suburban areas, voters began to be much more selective in their choice of candidates, often turning more conservative and casting their lot with Republicans. To be fair, change is not always easy for people to accept quickly, but until recently, time gradually brought general acceptance of the changes, except for some who have remained angry and determined to turn back the clock. This angry segment of society, often, but not in every case, white and male, became a part of the Republican coalition, although many maintained their registration as Democrats (I told you, change is not always easy or quick), being termed "Reagan Democrats" during the 1980s. Thar's NOT to say there aren't angry members of the Democratic Party too. Remember, by essentially maintaining a two-party system, it isn't easy to keep voters happy with every position announced by respective party candidates. That's part of the coalition building needed to gain and retain political power.  

So what about women? That's next in Part Seven...

* "Ethnic" in the sense that many immigrants had poured into America from the late 1800s and well into the 1900s, often congregating in specific neighborhoods of cities or towns, where they lived and worked. The prosperity of the post-World War Two era helped many of these people, or perhaps more so their children or grandchildren, to move into then developing suburbs of the nation, which then often brought a change to their political views, as will be seen.

** I'm certainly generalizing here, as how tariffs affected markets and prosperity is another debate, but let's keep this simple and common sense. If a company in a foreign country could ship some product to the U.S. cheaper than you could make it here, either as an owner or employee, your business or job was threatened. The higher the tariffs imposed on such imported goods, the less threatened your business or job was. The theory was, with industry doing well, workers would do well, and both business people and workers would spend their earnings on goods in other businesses, thus spreading the prosperity. The main problem was, profits from "protected" industries were not often shared in any sense of a fair manner with workers. Further, the other side was, high American tariffs brought high counter tariffs by foreign countries on American goods sold overseas; so, if you were an exporter, you hated high tariffs. Tariffs were the main source of revenue for the Federal government until the early 1900s. Republicans generally saw tariffs as a "money maker" for Uncle Sam, while Democrats preferred that tariffs only be used to keep the government solvent, and that lesser tariffs could be used to promote the export of American goods.    

*** Prohibition forbid the manufacture, sale or transport of intoxicating beverages in America. It became the law of the land with the 18th Amendment, which went into effect in early 1920. It also spawned the growth and proliferation of organized crime in America, as opponents of the law, often, but not always, Catholic Americans (and hypocritical supporters who liked a little nip once and a while or more) wanted alcoholic beverages, against the law or not. "Bootlegging" soared, as various alcoholic beverages were produced in basements, bathtubs, and backyards. Some of the alcohol produced was downright dangerous, containing impurities that could cause blindness and even death. For those familiar with "The Beverly Hillbillies," the highly popular television comedy of the 1960s, you may recall how Granny kept a still to produce what she called her "rheumatiz medicine," a beverage that could eat right through the table if spilled. Son in law Jed said it was so powerful, he used it to "blow (tree) stumps." The gangster era became famous, as organized crime groups established "business" territories in cities, large and small, where they made money by the shovel full, or maybe, the "bathtub full," would be a better way of putting it. As one group tried to move into another group's territory, fighting would break out, with paid gunmen on both (or all) sides, but casualties of innocent passersby was not uncommon. Chicago's Al Capone is the most famous of the Prohibition era gangsters to most Americans.

**** The immensely popular television comedy "All In The Family" clearly demonstrated the strains in American society, as character Archie Bunker, a working class New Yorker, was appalled and angry over the changes going on around him, including the addition of a black family next door to him. While not a faithful voter (see note), Archie was a Republican, showing how white working class Americans were changing political allegiance from Democrats to Republicans. (Note: In one episode, Archie goes to vote, only to be turned away for expired registration, because he hadn't voted in such a long time.)    

WORD HISTORY:
Wheat-This word, closely related to "white," goes back to Indo European "kweytos/kwi(n)dos," which had the notion of "bright, shining." This gave Old Germanic "(k)hwaitijaz," literally "the bright or shining grain." This gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "hwaete," which then became "whete," before the modern version. Common in the other Germanic languages: German has "Weizen," Low German Saxon has "Weet," West Frisian has "weet," Dutch has "weit," Danish has "hvede," Icelandic has "hveiti," "Norwegian has "hveti,"
and Swedish has "vete.