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American Conservative Union

 Organization

Biography

The American Conservative Union, or ACU, founded in 1964, is an American lobbying organization that also serves as a form of representation for American political conservatives.

Historians believe that conservatism as a political movement really gained a new foothold in the 1960s, and with that came the founding of many conservative organizations, including the ACU in 1964. It claims to be the United States' oldest conservative grassroots organization. The ACU's first founders created only a 50-person board of directors, but by 1972 the organization had grown to 45,000 members. As the ACU gained more funding, it worked to oppose different policies with huge campaigns. For example, they used a mass mailing campaign in 1977 to try to oppose the Panama Canal treaties, which cost them $1.4 million. The organization also began hosting the annual Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, in 1974. The ACU advertises itself in the present more with CPAC. They claim that it "seeks to preserve and protect the values of life, liberty, and property for every American."

Citation:
Wikipedia, November 13, 2023 (The ACU is an organization started around the time conservatism grew popular in the USA. Its membership grew from seemingly 50 to 45k in 1972. It worked to oppose the Panama Canal treaties in 1977) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Conservative_Union

CPAC, via WWW, November 13, 2023 (The ACU runs an annual CPAC conference, it now brands itself as CPAC online instead of ACU, it "seeks to preserve and protect the values of life, liberty, and property for every American") https://www.digital.cpac.org/us/about

Found in 1 Collection or Record:

American Conservative Union photographs

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS P 175
Scope and Contents

Photographs taken at meetings of the American Conservative Union. The photographs show various members of the organization as well as Nancy and Ronald Reagan, who was then governor of California. These shots were taken by John Troha of Bethesda, MD. Photographs are primarily gelatin silver prinnts, some with corresponding acetate negatives. Also includes some color prints. Dated 1966-1975.

Dates: 1966-1975
Found in: L. Tom Perry Special Collections / American Conservative Union photographs

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  • Subject: Photographic prints X

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