Religious movements and religious ideas have played important roles in the United States almost since the formation of the American republic. From those who sought to abolish slavery in the 19th century to the civil rights and anti-war movements of the 20th, Christian clergy and laymen claimed religious inspiration for their involvements. There is another side to this story, however. In addition to championing these progressive causes, Christian, largely Protestant, religious ideas have also been central to the various radical right-wing movements that have surfaced over the course of American history. Or, as the journalist H. L. Mencken once put it in connection with the 1928 presidential election campaign: ‘the Ku Klux Klan is really the secular wing of the Methodist church in the South!’ Xenophobic, Anti-Catholic, anti-Semitic, and especially anti-communist, far-right organisations in the USA have employed religious sentiments to justify their campaigns against important social changes in public life. We propose to tell their story.

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宗教与美国公共生活中的激进权利

自从美利坚合众国成立以来，宗教运动和宗教思想就在美国发挥了重要作用。从19世纪试图废除奴隶制的人到20世纪的民权与反战运动，基督教的神职人员和外行人都以宗教信仰为灵感。但是，这个故事还有另一面。除了支持这些进步的事业外，基督教（主要是新教徒）的宗教思想对于在美国历史上浮出水面的各种激进右翼运动也很重要。或者，正如记者HL门肯（HL Mencken）曾经将其与1928年总统大选运动联系起来：“库克卢克家族（Ku Klux Klan）确实是南方卫理公会教堂的世俗派！” 仇外，反天主教，反犹太人，尤其是美国的反共，极右翼组织利用宗教情绪为反对公共生活中重要的社会变革的运动辩护。我们建议讲他们的故事。