ABSTRACT
This chapter talks about Pierre Poujade's Shopkeepers' and Artisans' Defense Union (UDCA), which was a populist, single-issue movement founded on a narrow sociological and ideological base. It also discusses its themes. Poujadism appeared as a reaction against the modernization of the French economy. In the early 1950s Poujade proved himself an adept organizer, speaking at mass meetings and getting his supporters elected to professional organizations to propound antitax policies. During 1954 and 1955, Poujadism picked up steam as its leader encouraged people to withhold their taxes, withdraw funds from state banks, and take to the streets in antitax demonstrations. Having quit the Poujadists, National Front leader Le Pen and and his friend Jean-Maurice Demarquet resumed their seats in the National Assembly in 1957, sitting as independents. Le Pen also renewed his ties with the extreme right, focusing his energies on veterans' organizations nostalgic for French Indochina and anxious to keep Algeria French.
