Hmm, coincidence, you fondly remember with rose-tinted glasses a period which happened ~20 years ago. People always do.
To give you an US-centric example: arguing against discrimination of Muslim Americans during the early 2000s got you the same kind of anti-establishment pushback you can get for, say, criticising gay marriage today.
Yeah, people absolutely were shunned for unpopular opinions in the 2000s. 9/11 and the War on Terror caused a real coalescing of American society that was incredibly difficult to push back against. For example, the Patriot Act originally passed the Senate 98 to 1. Many people had their careers irreparably harmed by opposing the invasion of Iraq with the Dixie Chicks being the first to jump to mind. And regarding your point about the treatment of Muslims, does anyone remember the "Ground Zero Mosque"? This type of behavior is nothing new and pretending otherwise is certainly remembering the past with rose-tinted glasses.
To give you an US-centric example: arguing against discrimination of Muslim Americans during the early 2000s got you the same kind of anti-establishment pushback you can get for, say, criticising gay marriage today.