ELITE TOLERANCE OF NAZI RIGHTS

In: American politics quarterly, Volume 11, Issue 4, p. 403-428

Abstract

This article reports an effort to assess the extent and causes of inconsistency in the political tolerance attitudes of elites, based on the conflict in Skokie, Illinois, over the right of American Nazis to hold demonstrations. Relying on data from a survey of the membership and leadership of the American Civil Liberties Union and of Common Cause, the degree of congruence between abstract civil liberties attitudes and specific opinions on the Skokie dispute is assessed. We conclude that among the members of these elite groups, abstract commitments to democratic norms played a very significant role in structuring responses to the conflict. Thus, this analysis suggests that the attitudes of the democratic elite are vitally important to the protection of the civil liberties of minority political groups.