In the late 1960s, a stereotype came to life about the Vietnam War, dividing Americans into two groups: “elite doves” who opposed the war and “reactionary hardhats” who supported it. But this narrative wasn’t entirely accurate. The white working class was actually more anti-war than people assumed, while non-working-class tended to be more pro-war. Despite this, the media made the working class seem as war supporters especially after the “Honor the Flag” march on May 20, 1970.
Politicians like George Wallace and Richard Nixon took advantage of these stereotypes. Wallace portrayed anti-war protesters as disconnected from the struggles of everyday workers, and showed himself as the one who actually understands. On the other hand, Nixon spoke directly to the “silent majority” , the people who wanted stability and were tired of protests “You, the great silent majority of my fellow Americans, I ask for your support.” (Nixon). He promised to bring back traditional values and to focus on working-class concerns. Even though many working-class voters were against the war, they began shifting from the Democratic to the Republican Party because Nixon listened to their concerns.
But their frustration wasn’t just about the war. The white working class was dealing with economic struggles like job insecurity, instability unlike the wealthier one– Economic conditions had worsened since the peak of the boom, increasing the insecurity of all workers (Article). On top of that, they felt ignored by politicians (democrats) who made policies without addressing their real concerns and seemed more focused towards “elite-doves” concerns.
The Democratic Party probably couldn’t have stopped this shift entirely, but they might have slowed it down if they had paid more attention to working-class frustrations. It would have been less hard if they listened more to working class people and focused on their economic concerns more and made actual plans that worked. But instead, they distanced themselves from working-class struggles, which allowed Republicans to step in and fill the gap, as a result, they gained a lot of support.
Will Wright 
I think you are right to point out that the Democratic Party did not pay enough attention to working-class individuals. The Republican Party took advantage of this lapse and has profited from this change for decades. The Democratic Party fell behind in uplifting the concerns of certain groups and now, even to this day, they are playing catch up. Today, we are seeing a similar scenario. In recent years, certain groups have felt isolated or not paid enough attention to. Things have been hard, especially in the aftermath of a global pandemic. When a politician says all the right things, people cling to them. When promises are made, people want to believe (at times blindly) that things will get better. I think how Trump’s political career ends will be interesting to observe in comparison to Nixon’s career. I’m not sure if they’ll have the same ending to their respective stories, despite the parallels between the two of them.
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