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LostInParadise's avatar

Do changing U. S. demographics point to the right wing having its last hurrah?

Asked by LostInParadise (31916points) July 5th, 2011

If current trends continue, the U. S. is expected to have a majority of minorities in the next generation. This would make whites just another minority. The facts

One view is that this will cause the U.S. to become increasingly progressive.

An opposing view.

I think that in the short term the right wing is in trouble. It is not clear what will happen once minority groups become fully assimilated, which I believe they eventually will.

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11 Answers

roundsquare's avatar

I didn’t read your links (yet) but, in short: no.

They will adapt and the world will change. Wanting racially segregation started as “normal” changed “conservative” and eventually became “bigoted.”

Some views on the right will go the same way. Others will stand the test of time.

Hypocrisy_Central's avatar

Gadzooks, I guess we, Especially here in the US will never get over nationalities and races. I don’t quite see right wing as being just Caucasian people. I think more goes into it than that. I suppose if the projections are right, Hispanics won’t have so many dumping on them and their path to American Citizenship would be smoother. Blacks will make up about 14% of the population but will still occupy 60–70% of the prison real estate. I think where the real Mason Dixon line will be is in income. Those who are poor at channeling their inner immigrant will find themselves working harder for way less. Ideology wise the US might be greatly more liberal but I would not narrow that to any one race leading it.

LostInParadise's avatar

Minorities currently are disproportionately among the poor. I would expect an increase in government programs to fix that problem. I would also expect greater tolerance of immigrants and a stop to racial profiling.

jlelandg's avatar

Politics and History can shift based on world events that happen continually. Examples would be: Jews supporting Democrats because of Truman and Cubans supporting Republicans because of Kennedy messing up the Bay of Pigs.

Or think about these examples: Less than 100 years ago, Black Americans were a strong voting bloc for the Republican Party, and most women favored Republicans because they were mostly for abolition.

You’re assumptions seem like good “guestimates”, but until you get the gift of prophecy, I’m not completely buying your assertion.

marinelife's avatar

No so far.

dappled_leaves's avatar

The right wing in its current form, maybe. But it will redefine what conservatism means in order to survive, as it has done before.

JLeslie's avatar

The bazaar thing is the poor tend to be more religious and so they line up better with the right wing on social issues. Sometimes this is enough for them to vote Republican. Also, hispanic non-Mexicans many times don’t self identify as a minority, and so don’t really see the need to be protected. Moreover, if they come from countries that have messy political pasts with governments changing from capitalism to more of a socialist form, the citizens who came from those countries many times buy into the socialist scare tactics of the right, and vote for them agaist the liberal socialist democrats.

Still, I do think a growing hispanic population works against the republicans over all, and the younger generation of all races and ethnicities seems a little more liberal in general.

Also, the country moves around more and more, and northerners moving into the south affect the vote. If we keep piling into NC and GA, eventually there will be a tipping point. In fact NC was a swing state this last presidential election if I remember correctly, FL almost always is.

What I think is, if Obama wins the next election, and then the next one after that another Dem wins, then the Republican party will take a real shift in course, pick a topic that will really win over a portion of the country and let go of the topics that offend certain people, and then there will be a huge shift. Similar to when the southern dixiecrats moved over to the Repiblican party. It will be either that or the party dies off.

I read recently that 50% of the Republican party is evangelical Christian, that is much higher than I would have imagined if it is correct. So that is basically a bible belt stronghold for now, probably more than the minority or majority status of people. Religiousity makes a huge difference in how people vote from what I can tell. Even orthodox Jews many times vote Republican right along with the conservatice Christians, not sure about the other religions.

tedd's avatar

Over time the lines of conservative and liberal have blurred and moved. 150 years ago someone who was incredibly liberal, might qualify for extreme right wing conservative today. I suspect the same will happen over time, and the conservative party will take a more liberal stance, whilst the liberal party will become more liberal as well.

As it stands now though, the right wing is screwed.

Ron_C's avatar

I think that the right has enough money, enough support from single agenda voters, and enough control over the voting process and machines to insure a long run if not permanent control. All opposition like unions and liberal voting groups are being attacked and destroyed. Voting laws are changed in at least 30 states to discourage liberals or progressives from voting. If all else fails, then can simply change the vote outcomes on their computer voting machines. We are well on our way to becoming North Mexico.

WestRiverrat's avatar

The dividing line between conservativism and liberalism moves constantly. No matter how far it swings in either direction there will be people considered conservative or liberal Ideologs.

When the pendulum swings too far one way or the other it stops and moves in the other direction until it finds a new balance.

ETpro's avatar

Yes, and with demonization, big lies, voter suppression drives, and packing the courts, they are fdoing everything in their power to make sure they establish single-party authoritarian ruile before it’s too late.

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