During the 1980s, the political center of the United States continued to shift toward conservatism. Under the Reagan administration, the nation remained committed to fighting the Cold War, through traditional methods of diplomacy and military intervention as well as the development of new technologies. On the domestic front, the Reagan administration struggled against the crises of HIV and AIDS, homelessness, and the epidemic use of crack cocaine, while also taking a hardline stance against powerful labor unions. This set of speeches, interviews, political cartoons, and artifacts allows you to explore the rise of conservatism in these areas, as well as the critiques that were posed by activists and politicians. How was conservatism redefined during the 1980s?
An excerpt from a 1987 interview on foreign policy with Reagan administration official Kenneth Adelman.
A 1985 description of the Reagan administration’s Strategic Defense Initiative.- An excerpt from a 1988 interview with Albert Carnesale about the Reagan administration’s foreign policy and legacy.
A 1981 letter from Jerry Falwell fundraising for the “Old Time Gospel Hour.”
A poster criticizing the Reagan administration’s policies on HIV and AIDS.
A 1988 cartoon satirizing the Reagan administration’s policies on homelessness.
An excerpt from the 1986 testimony of a former employee of a crack house in Washington, DC.- An excerpt from a 1986 speech in which First Lady Nancy Reagan urges America to “just say no” to drugs.
An excerpt from 1981 letters in which the president of the Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization offers reasons for a strike.- News coverage of plans for the Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization strike in 1981.
A 1988 cartoon satirizing debt during the Reagan administration.
