New Right, New Racism: Race and Reaction in the United States and Great Britain

Political opinion in the United States and Great Britain has, over the course of the last two decades, shifted unmistakably to the right, with people from all parts of the political spectrum forced to adapt or fail. A new breed of right-wing politicians-- here termed the New Right by Amy Ansell-- has succeeded in shifting the ideological agendas in both countries. The result has been the creation of a new climate of public opinion deeply hostile to the consensus of liberal egalitarianism that had marked the political climate of the post-war era. In Race and Reaction, Ansell explores the ways in which the New Right has used panic-inspiring symbols, many subtly slanted to play to race-based anxieties, to make the case for its traditional values and policies. The fears they raise serve both to divert public attention from on-going structural inequalities and injustices, and to present the New Right as a defender of all that is good and pure. The first book to look at the symbolic war behind America and Britain's move to the right, Ansell documents her study with references to a wide selection of primary materials from both countries--including interviews with key New Right leaders, as well as speeches, pamphlets, laws, and position papers, and by closely examining the language contained therein. In a climate where overt racism is no longer permissible, Ansell argues, the New Right has succeeded in using symbolism directly tied to race to make the case for its policies.