Manifestation of a lack capitalism, democracy, & the Christian identity movement /

by Neilsen, Emily Hall.

Erin Labbie, Advisor During the past twenty years, there has been a major shift among America’s radical right; increased popularity, radicalism, nationalism, anti-Semitism, and terrorism have marked this change. These same years have harkened the era of globalization, a period discernible by the increasingly rapid spread of capitalism and related changes in political subjectivities across the globe. This thesis examines the relationship between these changes in an attempt to shed light on political and economic subjectivity in contemporary America. In order to do so, I focus specifically on the Christian Identity Movement (also called “Christian Identity”). Christian Identity is the most popular religious movement among the radical right and has contributed significantly to the aforementioned change among these groups. In addition, its contemporary manifestation arose in direct response to economic and political disenfranchisement. For all of these reasons, Christian Identity provides a worthy site for investigation. I begin this thesis with a chapter that explores the relationship between the Christian Identity Movement and the history of democracy. I provide a detailed description of democracy’s philosophic and lived history in order to elaborate on the system’s underlying imperfections and conclude by explaining the connections between contemporary political and economic changes and Christian Identity’s existence.