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Are there previous historical examples of cult-like followings of US political candidates? (lemmy.sdf.org)

submitted 2 months ago by circuitfarmer@lemmy.sdf.org to c/asklemmy@lemmy.world

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(This post was intended for politics@lemmy.world, but as it seems they don't allow text posts, I'm posting it here)

This post will likely not go over well with everyone and some people may not agree with the premise of the question. Mods please remove if not allowed.

I am curious if the MAGA-esque approach to politics is new for the US, or if there have been other examples of similar political movements which may be considered "cult-like". To better define what I mean, here are some examples:

Large amounts of signs bearing a candidate's name being shown by single individuals (e.g. big trucks covered in Trump signs everywhere)
Use of a candidate name over the US flag
Use of a kind of supporter uniform (e.g. the red MAGA hat)
The "alternative facts" of MAGA, where debate can be impossible because supporters believe anyone who is a detractor must be lying
In some cases, voter intimidation or coercion from staunch supporters

It seems to me that some of this is new but I'd love to hear other thoughts. I have heard and seen many relatively obvious parallels to German politics in the 20s-40s, but I'm specifically wondering if anything similar has ever been seen in the US before.

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[-] circuitfarmer@lemmy.sdf.org 8 points 2 months ago

I take that more as a general nationalistic symbol. Yes, nationalism is also pretty cultish in a way, but it is less reliant on a single individual.

(And the faces of Mt. Rushmore are very much a blight on what the Lakota call Six Grandfathers).

[-] shinigamiookamiryuu@lemm.ee 4 points 2 months ago

What about Roosevelt then? He got voted into serving four terms before he established a term limit. This was two hundred years after anyone thought to add term limits, because the issue of voting people in for more than two terms had never happened before.

Or John F Kennedy, whose face defined a decade the same way Princess Diana defines a decade in the UK? Or Ronald Reagan, who almost any American can quote? Or Barack Obama whose likeness was plastered on the walls of schools everywhere in the nation even despite orders not to impose on faith or political groups.

[-] circuitfarmer@lemmy.sdf.org 5 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

What about Roosevelt then? He got voted into serving four terms before he established a term limit.

But how were his voters? Did you see the kinds of things I listed in the post? I'm not saying it isn't the case, but I wouldn't think that FDR being reelected multiple times necessarily means his supporters were doing culty things as I listed.

Same with JFK, etc. (modulo Reagan who is mentioned in another comment). I'd say all of them have definitely been elevated to a weird status after the fact, but I'm not sure that puts them in this group.

this post was submitted on 11 Sep 2024

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