A 1971 Meeting Between Two Men Lead to The Ruining of American Democracy

Revealing Truths of America’s Hard to Stomach Reality

In 1971, Eugene B. Sydnor, Jr., the chair of the education committee of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, asked his friend Lewis F. Powell, Jr., a prominent attorney and future Supreme Court justice, to write a memorandum outlining a plan for how business leaders could counter the growing power of the consumer movement and other progressive forces. Powell’s memo, which became known as the “Powell Memorandum,” was a blueprint for corporate influence over American democracy and government.

Powell began by arguing that American businesses were facing a “crisis” due to a growing public backlash against corporate power. He identified a number of factors contributing to this crisis, including the consumer movement, environmentalism, and the rise of public interest law firms. Powell warned that these forces were threatening to undermine the free enterprise system and that business leaders needed to take action to defend their interests.