Social conservatism encyclopedia topics

Present social conservative issues in the United States

favor the pro-life position in the abortion controversy
support restriction of civil marriage and child adoption rights to couples in homosexual relationships
promote public morality and traditional family values
promote the nuclear family model as society's foundational unit
oppose secularism and privatization of religious belief

Social conservatism and economic systems

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 economic intervention 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 conservatism and confessionalism

Many Christian Democratic Parties and Muslim parties around the world are socially conservative.

Social conservatism and nationalism

In Europe, some social conservative parties also support nationalism, regionalism and to a certain extent xenophobia, based on ideas according to which the national wealth and the traditional values would loose from free immigration and free trade.

However, these positions are contradictory with Christian religious beliefs and repetitively criticized by representatives of Catholic and Protestant churches. Dominant conservative parties, also called moderate right parties refrain from nationalism, trying to integrate citizens from ethnic minorities.

List of social conservative political parties

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 including far right and separatist ideas

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

and, including far right and nationalist ideas

Germany

India

Ireland

Muintir na hÉireann

Italy

and, with nationalist and separatist ideas

Lega Nord (LN), Northern League

Japan

New Komeito Party

Nigeria

Sweden

Sweden Democrats

United Kingdom

United States

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.