Origin
In the 19th century, the phrase “silent majority” was used to refer to the dead. For example, it would be used to describe a situation in which the number of people who have died is greater than the number of people who are alive. A phrase like “he has gone to the silent majority” was just another way of saying someone has died. For example, the first use of the term in this context was in 1902 when the Supreme Court Justice John Marshall Harlan said, “great captains on both sides of our Civil war have long passed over to the silent majority, leaving the memory of their splendid majority.” This was pretty much another way of saying that they passed away a while ago. Before Nixon used the phrase, it was rarely used in reference to voters. In one instance, Churchill C. Cambreleng, the New York representative, used this phrase in his address to the Tammany Society. Churchill believed a federal bill had not been passed and he pleaded that the silent majority speak out and recognize that the legislation had not been fully examined.
Richard Nixon
“Silent Majority” refers to a group of [people who do not voice their opinions or thoughts. Richard Nixon was the first to make this a popular term. In his speech he said, “And so tonight- to you. The great silent majority of my fellow Americans- I ask for your support.” In this context, Nixon is referring to the public discourse over the Vietnam War. Nixon got the idea to use this in his speech from George Meany, an assertive labor leader who supported the Vietnam War. George Meany referred to labor unionists as “the vast silent majority.” People believe that this is where Nixon’s speech writers got the idea for the phrase. Nixon’s vice president said, "It is time for America's silent majority to stand up for its rights, and let us remember the American majority includes every minority." The people who were for the war were not always the ones protesting in the streets. They are silent majority because they are not seen pubically voicing their opinions. Most people who were for the war werer right winged republicans.
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Connections
The minorities, such as women, took a stand for moral reform. For example, Dorothea Dix, supported the creation and the preservation of insane asylums. She made a huge difference in moral reforms. Women were the silent majority. Not many men noticed their opinions even though they were at the forefront of many important movements. They began to stand up for things they believed in. They created the Temperance Society and supported Prohibition. They encouraged moral reforms of all types, despite being the silent majority. The term "Silent Majority" is not as popular today, but the concept is still in tact.