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Republican Far Right Cult History and What We Can Do [1]

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Date: 2025-07-13

Republican Far Right Cult History and What We Can Do

Since I was born in 1952, arrived in Anchorage at age 3, I’ve observed the evolution of and de-evolution of the right. First it was the cult of McCarthyism and its persecution and intimidation of alleged communists without evidence which ruined many lives. The John Birch Society was just another version of McCarthyism founded in 1958 and still exists today as another far right organization that is also anti-communist but additionally racist in that it opposed the civil rights movement in the 1960’s and the Equal Rights Amendment in the 1970’s. I can remember a classmate at Dimond High School in Anchorage (where I was student body president 1970-71) handing me a brochure on the John Birch Society trying to convince me that it was a great institution—as a lifelong liberal, I was not convinced.

As a backlash to civil rights, the right brought us Dick Nixon who stated “…when the president does it, that means that it is not illegal” and the continuation of an authoritarian movement on the right. When I left for the University of Oregon for my Architecture education in 1971, Alaska was a blue state that was dominated by Democrats. When I returned in 1977, Alaska was a red state due to the immigration of the oil industry from southern states and it’s become redder over time not to the benefit to Alaskans.

Reagan brought us the “trickledown theory” which as we all know never worked and never will. Reagan destroyed the middle class. W. Bush brought us the “neo-con” and the “compassionate conservative”—both which were oxymorons. Neither was new or compassionate—they just rehashed old anti-Semitism, bigotry, misogyny, racism, and white supremacy.

The “Tea Party” was just more of the same especially directed at the first African American president and the unwillingness to accept that fact. Which all brings us to the most recent right wing cult—“MAGA”, Make America Great Again which really means “Make America White (Male) Again”. As white males see the country become browner and blacker they fear they are losing their power. Those brown, black, Asian, Semitic males and/or females that somehow see the return to the good ole days of white male supremacy as a good thing continue to vote against their own best interests.

Many voters thought that “Project 2025” would never be instituted and yet here we are as a result of misinformed and uninformed voters dealing with a would-be dictator whom many of us hoped we would never see or hear his voice again. And that has brought us to the “Big Beautiful “Death” Bill” that will cause many more to lose their jobs, lose their healthcare and may eventually lose their lives.

What can we do? 1. We can march and protest as we have. 2. We can join organizations such as the ACLU, SPLC (Southern Poverty Law Center), Amnesty International that protect democracy and work to protect the vulnerable. 3. We can email or call our members of Congress (which I’m afraid has accomplished little lately in Alaska). 4. We can involve ourselves with local groups that still believe in democracy and are passionate to others. One such is the Bartlett Community Forum (named after Senator Bob Bartlett who was a prime mover in Alaska statehood) that meets every Thursday at the Senior Center at noon in Anchorage. 5. We can speak out at every opportunity, write letters to the editor to promote democracy and refrain from reacting to any MAGA negativity on social media. 6. Make sure we take care of ourselves and our loved ones and try to find some humor in our lives. Watching the Daily Show, Steven Colbert, John Oliver’s Last Week Tonight and yes, even Bill Maher’s Real Time will help. Subscribing to such humorous views of our society as Andy Borowitz’s “Borowtiz Report” and historic views as Heather Cox Richardson’s “Letters from an American” will additionally help. 7. We may feel that some of our friends and family need an intervention to help release them from their MAGA cult, but if past is prologue they may just move on to the next one. 8. And finally, we can vote for Americans that believe in Democracy!

Sam Combs, AIA, Architect, 2015 Bartlett Award for Promoting Democracy

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