Final answer:
The Reagan-Bush era is seen as a reaction against the rights-and-freedom movements due to its conservative shift in American politics, which involved the reduction of government size, tax cuts, and the restoration of traditional values.
Step-by-step explanation:
Reagan-Bush Era as a Reaction to the Rights-and-Freedom-Oriented Movements
The Reagan-Bush era is often considered a reaction against the rights-and-freedom-oriented movements of the '60s and '70s because it marked a conservative shift in American politics. After a period of perceived excessive liberalism, many American voters, including those within the New Right, sought to restore traditional values. The Reagan Revolution was underpinned by policies aimed at reducing government size, cutting taxes and social welfare programs, and introducing measures to strengthen American economic and global standing.
Groups like Jerry Falwell's Moral Majority and other evangelical Christians opposed the legalization of abortion, the feminist movement, and sex education in public schools. Meanwhile, neoconservatives, along with middle- and working-class Americans, resented the growth of federal and state governments. The desire for deregulation and a smaller federal presence materialized in tax revolts and a general skepticism towards government-led social reform.
The Reagan administration's approach was to promote a return to "traditional" family values and reduce the influence of the federal government in everyday life, aiming to dismantle the liberal policies that had become established in prior decades.