From inception to modernity, Texas political policy has been influenced by the arts, the civil rights movement, worker unionization and the presence of socialist organizations within her borders. Yes, that is correct; socialist organizations. Since the 1920’s Americans have loathed and feared the reach of communism and it’s real and perceived evils but have ignored the reality of socialist ideas that have influenced our political reality. Socialist organizations, colonies and unions with commune based charters have existed in the state long before the “Red Scare” of the 1920’s.
Like every other Texas colonist, those with socialist ideological leanings supported the move toward Texas independence. The human desire for self-governance and…show more content… In essence, those in a socialist community would surrender rights of ownership to the collective in an effort to ensure the “greater-good” of the community. One of the most common form of lifestyle based socialism in Texas was Fourierism. Sourced from Western Europe, Fourierism is a system of social reform that advocated by Charles Fourier in the early 19th century, proposing that society be organized into small self-sustaining communal groups. Social leaders like Victor Prosper Considerant and E.O. Meitzen imported forms of Fourier’s brand of socialism. These men believed in the possibility of a “Utopian” society, free of crime and conflict that resulted from universal equality. Many would still consider a socialist way of life to be restrictive on human potential. Alternatively, others would consider cooperative social living to be living in a perfect world. Political governance by way of Socialism focuses on the assignment of ownership of property and business to the government. Citizens under the authority of socialist governments relinquish control of their lives to the will of the government. The thought is that an all-seeing government can better determine what is best for all people opposed to social individualism. This government process conflicted with every version of the Texas constitution and could not be implemented as an overarching form of governance in