MAJOR 1990-7 CHAPTER 19 Flashcards
society
THE EXTENT OF SOCIAL LIBERALISM
- Both the social conservatism of Thatcherism and the changes in attitudes in this period can be exemplified in attitudes to homosexuality -
negative attitudes reached a peak in 1987, partly due to the identification of AIDS.
THE EXTENT OF SOCIAL LIBERALISM
- The first case was recorded in 1981 and because gay men were particularly at risk, it became known as the gay plague.
- Fear of AIDS
led to
greater prejudice about gay people – looney left councils were accused of promoting gay lifestyles by funding support groups.
THE EXTENT OF SOCIAL LIBERALISM
- 1988 - section 28 passed, banning the promotion of
homosexuality by local authorities.
THE EXTENT OF SOCIAL LIBERALISM
Outrage!’ used direct action threatened to
out gay clergy and MPs.
THE EXTENT OF SOCIAL LIBERALISM
- Stonewalls challenge to the unequal age of consent and the ban of homosexuals in army eventually led to
age of consent
the age of consent being lowered to 16 and lifting the ban to join the army in 2000.
THE EXTENT OF SOCIAL LIBERALISM
- A survey found that the % of people who believed that sexual relations between the same gender were mostly wrong reduced from
in %
75% in 1987 to 50% in 1998.
THE EXTENT OF SOCIAL LIBERALISM
- Series of other moral panics - divorce rates hit record high and the % of babies being born to unmarried parents increased from
12% in 1980s to 30% by the 1990s. single mothers / fathers were particularly criticised.
THE EXTENT OF SOCIAL LIBERALISM
- 1993 Child Support Agency set up to ensure
absent parents paid maintenance for their children.
THE EXTENT OF SOCIAL LIBERALISM
Concern about under- age sex seen in the campaign against the
availability of contraceptive advice to girls under the age of consent without their parents’ knowledge.
THE EXTENT OF SOCIAL LIBERALISM
Initially the high court ruled that contraceptie advice could only be given with the consent of a parent or guardian, though this was
overruled in 1985 by the House of Lords.
THE EXTENT OF SOCIAL LIBERALISM
It is also clear from the impact of the scandals that enveloped Conservative MPs during the 1990s that public expectation about the behaviour of public figures was still high
give examples of why mps resigned
extramarital affairs, illegitimate children and issues of sexuality all led to MPs resigning as ministers or stepping down.
ANTI-ESTABLISHMENT CULTURE
ajor outlined an aim to create a classless society so this period saw an increase in
people’s willingness to challenge traditional sources of authority – e.g. increasing criticism of the monarchy.
ANTI-ESTABLISHMENT CULTURE
- Changing attitudes against the royal family reflected a general decline in deference to the establishment - the marriages of 3 out of 4 children of the queen
broke down between 1987-97 and details of extramarital affairs including records of telephone conservations were leaked.
ANTI-ESTABLISHMENT CULTURE
- 1992 – Windsor Castle fire led to public disquiet about the financing of its restoration and this led to
queen agreed to pay tax on her private income and reduced the civil list (members of the royal family supported by public funds).
ANTI-ESTABLISHMENT CULTURE
- Damaging revelations, especially from the Princess of Wales about her treatment at the
hands of the royal family continued to damage its reputation.
ANTI-ESTABLISHMENT CULTURE
- 1997 – the aftermath of the death of the Princess of Wales in a car crash
impact on public support for the monarchy
plummeted public support for the royal family and the Queen was accused of not caring.
ANTI-ESTABLISHMENT CULTURE
- Youth culture also challenged the Establishment - 1989-9 nicknamed summer of love as they saw explosions of
what and what did they lead to (response from government)
raves and free parties, which were lined to the use of ecstasy, provoking a moral panic about drugs.
* In response, the government passed the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act in 1994 gave police powers to break up free parties.
ANTI-ESTABLISHMENT CULTURE
- The rave movement also overlapped with the growing direct action environmental movement.
protests against roadworks - where and when
- Series of protests against road developments started against the M3 expansion in 1992 and brought together a wide range of people, ranging from local residents, middle classes, etc.
- The protesters used direct action such as blocking road works, chaining themselves to trees and building tunnels to live underground.
THE POSITION OF WOMEN
- 1990s third wave feminism started – included more emphasis on
breaking down stereotypes about women involving race, gender, and sexuality.
THE POSITION OF WOMEN
- While Thatcher’s position as PM showed that women could achieve highly, her own relationship with feminism was difficult to measure – critics argued
why? what did she say
she did little for women when she was in power; she only had one female cabinet minister and did nothing to encourage other women in the parliament, famously saying ‘I have nothing to do with Women’s Lib’ in 1982.
THE POSITION OF WOMEN
- Nevertheless, there were further indications of progress in women’s rights in this period.
give 2 examples of women in high government positiosn
The first female Speaker in the House of Commons, Betty Boothroyd, and the first female head of MI5, Remington, were both appointed in 1992.
THE POSITION OF WOMEN
- rape within marriage became a criminal offence in
1994
THE POSITION OF WOMEN
- It also became increasingly normal for women to work; by 1995,
% of women at work
68% of women of working age were in employment and by 1996, 50% of employees were women.
THE POSITION OF WOMEN
- Women’s pay also improved relatively in the period and married women were able to be taxed separately from their husbands for the first time.
what % of womens earnings were of mens
it remained at 80% of men’s earnings
RACE RELATIONS
- By the later 1980s there were some signs of progress in race relations.
how many non white MPs were selected?
Moreover, in the 1987 general election, 4 non white MPs were elected, all held their seats in 1992.
Britain started to be seen as more comfortable with multiculturalism.
RACE RELATIONS
Nevertheless, progress was not always consistent:
2 instances of racism
- 1992 the black Conservative candidate for Cheltenham, Taylor, lost to the Liberal Conservative amid rumours of racism from some local Conservatives.
- Similarly, tensions between young black men and the police remained - this was best exemplified by the murder of Stephen Lawrence.
RACE RELATIONS
1993 a black A-level student, Stephen Lawrence, was murdered in a racially motivated attack by a gang of white youths at a bus stop in southeast London. The identity of the youths was believed to be known but the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) decided that there was not sufficient evidence to convict them.
what were the effects of this
The actions of the police were widely criticised for failing to investigate the case properly and for assuming that a black teenager was likely to be a perpetrator of crime rather than a victim. The murder and the failure to convict became a national issue and eventually a landmark in race relations.
Following a campaign in the Daily Mail, in 1998 the Labour government ordered a public enquiry into the case chaired by a High Court judge. The MacPherson Report concluded that the Metropolitan Police, while not corrupt, had been incompetent and was ‘institutionally racist.
RACE RELATIONS
New stresses on social cohesion also arose:
increase in asylum seekers and migration - many muslim - problems of?
- 1990s sharp increase in the number of asylum seekers, fleeing from violent upheavals in places such as Somalia, Afghanistan, and Iraq.
- As well as this, migration into Britain continued to include many immigrants from New Commonwealth countries such as India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh; these were often relatives of people already living in the UK.
- Many of these immigrants were Muslims and concerns started to be raised about Muslim integration into British society.
RACE RELATIONS
- It was clear that some Muslims found it difficult to reconcile the tension between British societal values and their Islamic beliefs:
issues with the novel the satanic verse
- In 1988 the British Indian author Rushdie published a novel, The Satanic Verses, which was considered blasphemous by many Muslims. The Iranian Ayatollah issued a fatwa sentencing the author to death, and Rushdie had to go into hiding. Many British Muslims did not agree with the issuing of the fatwa.
- Some accepted that publishing the book was acceptable in British culture; others protested and burned the book.
