The Lewis Powell Memo: A Corporate Blueprint to Dominate Democracy (greenpeace.org)

🧠 Overview & Context

In this article, Greenpeace USA unpacks the historical significance and enduring impact of the Lewis Powell Memo, a 1971 document written by future Supreme Court Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. The memo served as a strategic call to arms for American corporate interests to actively influence media, education, politics, and the judiciary.

Greenpeace describes the memo as a corporate playbook for dominating democratic institutions by reshaping public discourse and policy to favor business interests — laying the foundation for today’s concentrated wealth and corporate influence in U.S. politics.

📌 Key Points

• The Powell Memo urged the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to lead a long-term campaign to reshape American political culture in favor of free enterprise.
• It inspired the growth of right-wing think tanks, media outlets, and legal foundations like the Heritage Foundation and ALEC.
• The memo targeted college campuses, television, and the courts as key arenas where corporate values should be defended and promoted.
• It catalyzed a strategic shift: corporations went from defensive to offensive in the political sphere, investing billions to secure favorable policies.
• Greenpeace connects this effort to modern threats like climate denial, voter suppression, and corporate control over democracy.

“The Powell Memo laid the foundation for the modern corporate takeover of American democracy.”

📎 Citation

Greenpeace USA. (n.d.). The Lewis Powell Memo: A Corporate Blueprint to Dominate Democracy. Retrieved from https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/democracy/the-lewis-powell-memo-a-corporate-blueprint-to-dominate-democracy/
Summary generated by ChatGPT (GPT-4).