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The Liberalism series,
part of the Politics series
Schools
American liberalism
Classical liberalism
Conservative liberalism
National liberalism
Economic liberalism
Libertarianism
Neoliberalism
Ordoliberalism
Paleoliberalism
Social liberalism
Cultural liberalism
Ideas
Freedom
Individual rights
Individualism
Laissez-faire
Liberal democracy
Liberal neutrality
Negative & positive liberty
Free market / Capitalism
Mixed economy
Open society
Popular sovereignty
Rights
Thinkers
John Locke
John Stuart Mill
Friedrich von Hayek
Milton Friedman
John Rawls
Regional variants
By Country
Liberalism worldwide
Liberalism in Europe
Liberalism in the United States
Organizations
Liberal parties of the world
Liberal International · IFLRY
ELDR/ALDE · LYMEC
CALD · ALN · Relial
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Social liberalism, also called new liberalism[1][2] (as it was originally termed), radical liberalism,[3] modern liberalism,[4] or in North America and the United Kingdom simply liberalism, is a branch of liberalism which contends that society must protect liberty and opportunity for all citizens and that the state may have a role on this. Liberalism is a broad array of related ideas and theories of Government that consider individual Liberty to be the most important political goal Politics Politics is the process by which groups of people make decisions Modern liberalism in the United States, also referred to as American liberalism, is a political ideology that seeks to use the power of the state to effect change upon society Classical liberalism (also known as traditional liberalism, Laissez-faire liberalism, Market liberalism or in much of the world Conservative liberalism is a variant of Liberalism, combining liberal values and policies with conservative stances or more simply representing the right-wing National liberalism is a variant of liberalism combining Nationalism with some liberal policies especially regarding Economic liberalism Economic liberalism is the Economic component of Classical liberalism. Libertarianism is a term used by a broad spectrum of political philosophies which prioritize individual Liberty and seek to minimize or even abolish the Originally coined by its critics and opponents " neoliberalism " is a label referring to the recent reemergence of Economic liberalism or Classical liberalism Ordoliberalism (also called German neoliberalism) is a school of Liberalism emphasizing the need for the state to ensure that the Free market produces results Paleoliberalism is a term that has at least a few distinct meanings all relating to Liberalism. Cultural liberalism is a liberal view of society that stresses the freedom of individuals from cultural norms This is a partial list of individual contributions to liberal political theory on a worldwide scale Political freedom is the absence of interference with the sovereignty of an individual by the use of coercion or aggression Individual rights refer to the Rights of Individuals in contrast with Group rights. Laissez-faire ( pronunciation: French,; English,) is a French phrase literally meaning Let do (“allow to do” The term "liberal" in "liberal democracy" does not imply that the government of such a democracy must follow the political ideology of Liberal neutrality is the idea that the liberal state should not promote any particular 'conception of the good' The concept of negative liberty refers to freedom from interference by other people ||-||} Positive liberty refers to the opportunity and ability to act to fulfill one's own potential as opposed to Negative liberty, which refers to freedom from Liberty, the freedom to act or believe without being stopped by unnecessary force A free market is a Market in which property rights are voluntarily exchanged at a price arranged completely by the mutual consent of sellers and buyers Capitalism is the Economic system in which the Means of production are owned by private Persons and operated for Profit and where A mixed economy is an Economic system that incorporates aspects of more than one economic system The open society is a concept originally developed by philosopher Henri Bergson. Popular sovereignty or the sovereignty of the people is the belief that the legitimacy of the State is created by the will or consent of its people, who A right is a legal or moral Entitlement or Permission. Rights are of vital importance in theories of Justice and deontological ethics This is a partial list of individual contributions to liberal political theory on a worldwide scale John Locke (29 August 1632 – 28 October 1704 was an English Philosopher. John Stuart Mill (20 May 1806 &ndash 8 May 1873 British Philosopher, political economist, civil servant and Member of Parliament, was an influential Friedrich August von Hayek CH ( May 8, 1899 March 23, 1992) was an Austrian British Economist Milton Friedman (July 31 1912 November 16 2006 was an American Nobel Laureate Economist and Public intellectual. John Rawls ( February 21, 1921  &ndash November 24, 2002) was an American Philosopher, a Professor of This article gives information on liberalism in diverse countries around the world A general overview and comprehensive discussion of this topic may be found in the article Liberalism. Liberalism in the United States is a broad political and philosophical mindset favoring individual Liberty, and opposing restrictions on liberty whether they come from Liberal International is a Political international for liberal parties. The International Federation of Liberal Youth ( IFLRY) is an international liberal youth organization The European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party (founded in 1993 is a liberal party, mainly active in the European Union, composed of 55 national parties from across The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe ( French: Alliance des Démocrates et des Libéraux pour l'Europe) is an alliance between two European political parties European Liberal Youth (LYMEC - Liberal and Radical Youth Movement of the European Community is an international organisation of Liberal youth movements - mostly the youth The Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats is a regional organization of liberal and democratic political parties in Asia The Africa Liberal Network (ALN is an organization composed of 16 political parties from 14 African nations and is an associated organisation of Liberal The Liberal Network for Latin America ( Red Liberal de América Latina RELIAL) is an international network founded in 2003 with the official launch taking place in Costa Rica Liberalism is a broad array of related ideas and theories of Government that consider individual Liberty to be the most important political goal Liberty, the freedom to act or believe without being stopped by unnecessary force For social liberals the lack of education, health or employment are seen as major a threat to freedom as state compulsion and coercion. Like other liberals, social liberals support free markets, private entrepreneurship and a small state. Social liberals also support civil rights, human rights and civil liberties, particularly in opposition to traditional values and beliefs. Human rights refers to the "basic Rights and freedoms to which all humans are entitled thumb| |Broken Liberty Istanbul Archaeology Museum Civil liberties are freedoms that protect the Individual from the Government.

Social liberals, therefore, support a mixed economy of mainly private enterprise with some state provided, guaranteed or regulated public services. For example, some social liberals defend obligatory universal health insurance, with the state paying a basic health insurance to the most poor of the society. Like all liberals, social liberals believe in individual freedom as a central concept. In the process, they expect legitimate governments to provide a basic level of welfare or workfare, health and education, supported by taxation, intending to secure economic opportunities for all, enable the best use of the talents of the population, prevent revolution, or simply for the perceived public good and accept some restrictions in economic affairs, such as anti-trust laws to combat economic monopolies and regulatory bodies or minimum wage laws. Moreover, the accumulation of wealth by a small group is seen as the consolidation of power within a small faction of society and, therefore, seen as a threat to liberty. [5][6]

Social liberalism forms the core of the somewhat wider movement of left-liberalism, with which it is often (if not usually) conflated and has been a label used by progressive liberal parties in order to differentiate themselves from classical liberal parties, especially when there are two or more liberal parties in a country. Progressivism is a term that refers to a broad school of international social and political philosophies. This article gives information on liberalism in diverse countries around the world Classical liberalism (also known as traditional liberalism, Laissez-faire liberalism, Market liberalism or in much of the world

Contents

The birth of social liberalism

In Britain, in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century, a group of thinkers known as the New Liberals made a case against laissez-faire classical liberalism and in favor of state intervention in social, economic and cultural life. Classical liberalism (also known as traditional liberalism, Laissez-faire liberalism, Market liberalism or in much of the world The New Liberals, who included T.H. Green and L.T. Hobhouse, saw individual liberty, especially as positive liberty, as something to be achievable only under favorable social and economic circumstances. For the actor Thomas Hill see Thomas Hill. Thomas Hill Green ( April 7, 1836 – March 26, 1882) Leonard Trelawny Hobhouse ( September 8, 1864 - June 21, 1929) was a British liberal politician one of the theorists of ||-||} Positive liberty refers to the opportunity and ability to act to fulfill one's own potential as opposed to Negative liberty, which refers to freedom from

The poverty, squalor and ignorance in which many people lived made it impossible in their view for freedom and individuality to flourish, and the New Liberals believed that these conditions could only be ameliorated through collective action coordinated by a strong welfare-oriented interventionist state. [7]

Social liberalism versus classical liberalism

Classical liberalism believes that the provision of negative freedom constitutes liberty and is therefore a strictly laissez-faire philosophy. Classical liberalism (also known as traditional liberalism, Laissez-faire liberalism, Market liberalism or in much of the world Some philosophers and political scientists make a distinction between negative and positive Rights, not to be confused with the similar but different distinction between Laissez-faire ( pronunciation: French,; English,) is a French phrase literally meaning Let do (“allow to do” Social liberalism however sees a role for the State in providing positive liberty for individuals. ||-||} Positive liberty refers to the opportunity and ability to act to fulfill one's own potential as opposed to Negative liberty, which refers to freedom from [6] They believe that lack of positive rights, such as economic opportunity, education, health-care, and so on can be considered to be threats to liberty. [2]

Classical liberals such as Nozick, Mises, Hayek and others reject social liberalism as a true liberalism. Classical liberalism (also known as traditional liberalism, Laissez-faire liberalism, Market liberalism or in much of the world Robert Nozick ( November 16, 1938  &ndash January 23, 2002) was an American Philosopher and Pellegrino University Hayek is a surname and may refer to Dina Hayek (born 1982 popular Lebanese singer Friedrich Hayek (1899–1992 Austrian-British For these authors government has no duty to intervene in society to aid the disadvantaged as this means taking wealth from others (as taxes). They also consider that interfering in the market is destroying freedom and doing this to make people free is self-contradictory. [8]

Social liberalism versus conservative liberalism

One possible projection of the European political spectrum.
One possible projection of the European political spectrum. [9]

Both share the concern with the freedom of the individual, but while social liberalism is appropriate for describing some liberal parties that are left-of-centre on economic issues and support a broad interpretation of democratic rights, Conservative liberalism emphasizes economic freedom and tends to be right of centre. Conservative liberalism is a variant of Liberalism, combining liberal values and policies with conservative stances or more simply representing the right-wing Economic freedom is freedom to produce trade and consume any goods and services acquired without the use of force fraud or theft For example, Conservative liberal parties, such as the Dutch People's Party for Freedom and Democracy and the German Free Democratic Party adopt an economically conservative agenda, advocating a minimal role for the state in the economy. The People's Party for Freedom and Democracy ( VVD) (Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie is a Dutch liberal Political party. The Free Democratic Party ( Freie Demokratische Partei, FDP is a liberal Political party in Germany. [3] Some authors, like Merquior, also claim that conservative liberalism is based on the concept of negative liberty - ("where there is no law there is no transgression"), moral pluralism, progress, individualism, and accountable government, while social liberalism focuses both on the illegitimacy of a tyrannical government that uses prerogative power and on the social conditions that make such tyrannical government possible. [10]

Social liberalism versus neo-liberalism

Social liberalism (also known as New Liberalism) is very different from the ambiguous term neoliberalism, a name given to various proponents of the free markets and also to some conservative opponents of free markets, such as mercantilistic conservatives, in the late 20th century's global economy. Originally coined by its critics and opponents " neoliberalism " is a label referring to the recent reemergence of Economic liberalism or Classical liberalism A free market is a Market in which property rights are voluntarily exchanged at a price arranged completely by the mutual consent of sellers and buyers Conservatism is a term used to describe political philosophies that favour Tradition, where tradition refers to various religious cultural or nationally defined Neoliberalism has been used to describe the liberal economic policies of Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher. Economic liberalism is the Economic component of Classical liberalism. Margaret Hilda Thatcher Baroness Thatcher LG, OM, PC, FRS (born 13 October 1925 As a body of thought, neoliberalism advocates positions contrary to many of those taken by social liberals, especially with regard to the former's commitments to free trade and dismantling of government "social" programs.

Social liberalism versus social democracy

The basic ideological difference between social liberalism and social democracy lies in the role of the State in relation to the individual. Social democracy is a Political ideology of the left and centre-left

Social liberals value liberty, rights and freedoms, and private property as fundamental to individual happiness, and regard democracy as an instrument to maintain a society where each individual enjoys the greatest amount of liberty possible (subject to the Harm Principle). The harm principle is articulated most clearly in John Stuart Mill 's On Liberty, though it is also articulated in John Locke 's Second Hence, democracy and parliamentarianism are mere political systems which legitimize themselves only through the amount of liberty they promote, and are not valued per se. While the State does have an important role in ensuring positive liberty, social liberals tend to trust that individuals are usually capable in deciding their own affairs, and generally do not need deliberate steering towards happiness.

Social democracy, on the other hand, has its roots in socialism, and (especially in democratic socialist forms) typically favours a more community-based view. Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating state or collective ownership and administration of the Means of production and distribution While social democrats also value individual liberty, they do not believe that real liberty can be achieved for the majority without transforming the nature of the State itself. Having rejected the revolutionary approach of Marxism, and choosing to further their goals through the democratic process instead, social democrats nevertheless retain a strong skepticism for capitalism, which they believe needs to be regulated (or at least "managed") for the greater good. Marxism is the political philosophy and practice derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. Capitalism is the Economic system in which the Means of production are owned by private Persons and operated for Profit and where This focus on the greater good may, potentially, make social democrats more ready to step in and steer society in a direction that is deemed to be more equitable.

In practice, however, the differences between the two may be harder to perceive. This is especially the case nowadays as many social democratic parties have shifted towards the centre and adopted one version of Third Way politics or another. The Third Way is a term that has been used to describe a variety of political philosophies of governance that embracing a mix of market and interventionist philosophies [11]

United States

Opinions of liberals in a 2005 Pew Research Center study.
Opinions of liberals in a 2005 Pew Research Center study. [12]
Main articles: Modern American liberalism and Political ideologies in the United States#Liberalism

Modern liberalism in the United States is highly similar to the European definition of social liberalism. Modern liberalism in the United States, also referred to as American liberalism, is a political ideology that seeks to use the power of the state to effect change upon society Modern liberalism in the United States, also referred to as American liberalism, is a political ideology that seeks to use the power of the state to effect change upon society The agendas of European social liberals and modern American liberals tend to be almost identical, with both taking a distinctly left-of-center stance on social issues, whilst taking a more centrist stance on economic issues. [13] Since the ideological center of the United States lies further to the right than that of Western Europe, policies considered centrist, or even right-wing, in Europe may be considered left-of-center in the U. S. Universal single-payer health care, for example, is considered a largely centrist policy in Europe but distinctly center-left in the U. S. Social democrats and socialists may also be labeled as "liberal" in the U. S. but constitute only a small minority of the American left. Liberals in the U. S. constitute roughly 19% to 26% of the population and form circa 46% of the Democratic base. The Democratic Party is one of two major Political parties in the United States, the other being the Republican Party. [14]

Like European social liberals, most modern American liberals advocate cultural pluralism, diplomacy over military action, stem-cell research, the legalization of same-sex marriage, secular government, stricter gun control and environmental protection laws as well as the preservation of abortion rights. Cultural pluralism is a term used when small groups within a larger society maintain their unique cultural identities Stem cells are cells found in most if not all multi-cellular Organisms. Same-sex marriage (also referred to as gay marriage) is a term for a legally or Socially recognized Marriage between two people of the same Gun politics is a set of legal issues surrounding the ownership use and regulation of firearms as well as safety issues related to firearms both through their direct use and through Abortion in the United States is a highly-charged issue involving significant political and ethical debate

However, there are also some relevant differences. For example, American liberals tend to be rather divided on free trade agreements and organizations such as NAFTA. This is list of Free trade agreements and Free trade areas between one or more countries and/or Trade blocs For a list of blocs see Trade bloc. [14], while the international social liberals are very strong supporters of free trade [15]. Free trade is a system in which the trade of goods and services between or within countries flows unhindered by government-imposed restrictions Also, while most liberals oppose increased military standing and the display of the Ten Commandments in public buildings, the Democratic party still has references to religion and God on its party documents [16][17], something that goes against the clearly anti-clerical stance of social liberal parties worldwide. We can also find differences regarding immigration and cultural diversity, which while deemed positive by social liberals worldwide, is handled in a different way by the American liberals with the so called positive discrimination, which would be considered anti-liberal by other social-liberal parties, as they would consider it to be an effective form of discrimination.

Social liberalism in the U. S. is most commonly embraced by college-educated professionals who have shifted the focus of the Democratic Party. [18][18] American liberals are the most highly educated and among the most affluent ideological demographics. They differ greatly from the traditional working class wing of party. [19]

The key distinction between social liberalism in a European and American sense is mostly semantic. European social liberalism in the U. S. is simply referred to as liberalism. Social Democracy and Socialism, however, may also be referred to as liberalism since Americans commonly label all ideologies of the center-left and beyond as "liberal. " The term "social liberalism" is used as a synonym for social progressivism, an ideology that is often combined with social liberalism to form modern American liberalism. Social progressivism is the view that social Mores, Human nature, and Morality are capable of progress through history in a manner similar to that of scientific

Social liberal parties

Some parties which are arguably social liberal may include:

Social liberal thinkers

Some notable social liberal thinkers are:

Views of social liberals today

In general, contemporary social liberals support:

Further reading on social liberalism

References

  1. ^ Not to be confused with neoliberalism, a very different concept which has a similar name[1]
  2. ^ a b Shaver, Sheila (July 1997). Originally coined by its critics and opponents " neoliberalism " is a label referring to the recent reemergence of Economic liberalism or Classical liberalism "Liberalism, Gender and Social Policy" (PDF). EconPapers.  
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Marks, Gary and Wilson, Carole (July 2000). "The Past in the Present: A Cleavage Theory of Party Response to European Integration" (PDF). British Journal of Political Science 30: 433-459.  
  4. ^ a b c d e f Richardson, James L. (2001). Contending Liberalisms in World Politics: Ideology and Power. Colorado: Lynne Rienner Publishers. 155587939X.  
  5. ^ Hobhouse, L. T. (1994). Liberalism and Other Writings. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 0521437261.  
  6. ^ a b McGowan, J. (2007). American Liberalism: An Interpretation for Our Time. Chapel Hill, NC: North Carolina University Press.
  7. ^ The Routledge encyclopaedia of philosophy, p. 599
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i Adams, Ian (2001). Political Ideology Today (Politics Today). Manchester: Manchester University Press. 0719060206.  
  9. ^ Slom, Hans (2000). European Politics Into the Twenty-First Century: Integration and Division. Westport: Praeger. 0275968146.  
  10. ^ Merquior, J. G. (1991). Liberalism Old and New. Boston: Twayne Publishers. 0805786279.  
  11. ^ See, for example, "The overlap between social democracy and social liberalism". [2]
  12. ^ Pew Research Center, Spreadsheet, 2005 poll. Retrieved on 2007-07-13. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1174 - William I of Scotland, a key rebel in the Revolt of 1173-1174, is captured at Alnwick by forces loyal to
  13. ^ Judis, B. J. (11 July, 2003). The trouble with Howard Dean. Salon.com.. Retrieved on 2007-07-19. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 711 - Muslim forces under Tariq ibn Ziyad defeat the Visigoths led by their king Roderic.
  14. ^ a b Pew Research Center. (10 May, 2005). Beyond Red vs. Blue.. Retrieved on 2007-07-12. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1191 - Saladin 's garrison surrenders ending the two-year Siege of Acre.
  15. ^ a b Liberal International. The Liberal Agenda for the 21st Century.
  16. ^ Strong at Home, Respected in the World, Democratic Party, 2004, <http://www.democrats.org/pdfs/2004platform.pdf> 
  17. ^ The Charter & The Bylaws of the Democratic Party of the United States of America, Democratic Party, 2005, <http://a9.g.akamai.net/7/9/8082/v001/democratic1.download.akamai.com/8082/pdfs/20060119_charter.pdf> 
  18. ^ a b Judis, J. B. & Teixeira, R. (June 19, 2007). Events 1179 - The Norwegian Battle of Kalvskinnet outside Nidaros. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Back to the Future. The American Prospect. . Retrieved on 2007-08-19. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 43 BC - Octavian, later known as Augustus compels the Roman Senate to elect him Consul.
  19. ^ Pew Research Center. (10 May, 2005). Beyond Red vs. Blue.. Retrieved on 2007-07-12. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1191 - Saladin 's garrison surrenders ending the two-year Siege of Acre.
  20. ^ a b c d J. Kirchner, Emil (1988). Liberal parties in Western Europe. Avon: Cambridge University Press. 0-521-32394-0.  
  21. ^ a b c d e Cardoso Rosas, João (2008). Socialismo ou liberalismo social?. DiarioEconomico. com. Retrieved on 2008-05-21. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 878 - Syracuse Italy is captured by the Muslim sultan of Sicily.
  22. ^ Seidman, S. (2004). Contested Knowledge: Social Theory Today. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing.
  23. ^ a b c James Hobson. Retrieved on 2008-05-19. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1535 - French explorer Jacques Cartier sets sail on his second voyage to North America with three ships 110 men and
  24. ^ a b c d (1996) Liberalism in Modern Times: Essays in Honour of Jose G. Merquior. Budapest: Central European University Press. 185866053X.  
  25. ^ Fotopoulos, Takis (10 2004). Takis Fotopoulos (Τάκης Φωτόπουλος born, is a Greek-Londoner political philosopher economist editor of Democracy & Nature and The International Journal "Why an Inclusive Democracy? The multidimensional crisis, globalisation and inclusive democracy". The International Journal of INCLUSIVE DEMOCRACY 1 (1).  

See also

Liberalism in the United States is a broad political and philosophical mindset favoring individual Liberty, and opposing restrictions on liberty whether they come from Classical liberalism (also known as traditional liberalism, Laissez-faire liberalism, Market liberalism or in much of the world
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