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Social liberalism

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	Topics Social liberalism Topic Home Social liberalism, also called new liberalism (as it was originally termed), radical liberalism, modern liberalism, or in North America and the United Kingdom simply liberalism, is a branch of liberalismLiberalism Liberalism is an ideology, philosophical view, and political tradition which holds that liberty is the primary political val... which contends that society must protect libertyLiberty Liberty is generally considered a concept of political philosophy and identifies the condition in which an individual has im... and opportunity for all citizens and that the state may have a role on this. For social liberals the lack of education, health, or employment is seen as a major threat to the freedom of state compulsion and coercion. Like other liberals, social liberals support (with qualifications) free markets, private entrepreneurship and a small state. Social liberalism may also refer, as it usually does in the media, to support for among other things educational reform, civil rightsCivil rights Overview Civil rights are the protections and privileges of personal liberty given to all citizens by law.... , human rightsHuman rights Human rights refers to the concept of human beings as having universal rights, or status, regardless of legal jurisdiction o... and civil libertiesCivil liberties Civil liberties is the name given to freedoms that protect the individual from government.... , particularly in opposition to traditional values and beliefs. In this second sense, the liberal equivalent of social conservatismSocial conservatism Social conservatism refers to support for traditional morality and social mores and the desire to preserve these in present ... , one may therefore be socially liberal but economically conservative as in neo-liberalism, but in the first sense social liberalism clearly deals with the economic as well as social dimension of politics. Social liberals 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 they 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. 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 progressiveProgressivism Progressivism is term that refers to a variety of political philosophies that promote what they see as progress, or positive... liberal parties in order to differentiate themselves from classical liberal parties, especially when there are two or more liberal parties in a country. 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 liberalismClassical liberalism Classical liberalism is a term used to describe the following:... and in favor of state intervention in social, economic and cultural life. The New Liberals, who included T.H. GreenThomas Hill Green ----Thomas Hill Green was an English philosopher, political radical and temperance reformer, and a member of the British id... and L.T. HobhouseLeonard Trelawny Hobhouse Leonard Trelawny Hobhouse was a British liberal politician, one of the theorists of modern liberalism.... , saw individual liberty, especially as positive libertyPositive liberty Overview \|\|-\|\|}Positive liberty is an idea that was first expressed and analyzed as a separate conception of liberty by John Stua... , as something to be achievable only under favorable social and economic circumstances. 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. Social liberalism versus classical liberalism Classical liberalismClassical liberalism Classical liberalism is a term used to describe the following:... believes that the provision of negative freedomNegative and positive rights Within the philosophy of human rights, some philosophers and political scientists see a distinction between positive and negati... constitutes liberty and is therefore a strictly laissez-faireLaissez-faire \|\|-\|\|}Laissez-faire or laisser-faire is short for "laissez faire, laissez aller, laissez passer," a French phr... philosophy. Social liberalism however sees a role for the State in providing positive libertyPositive liberty \|\|-\|\|}Positive liberty is an idea that was first expressed and analyzed as a separate conception of liberty by John Stua... for individuals. 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. Classical liberals such as Milton FriedmanMilton Friedman Milton Friedman is an American economist, known for his work on macroeconomics, microeconomics, economic history, statistic... , Nozick, Mises, HayekHayek Hayek may refer to:* Friedrich Hayek... and others reject social liberalism as a true liberalism. 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. Social liberalism versus conservative liberalism 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 liberalismConservative liberalism Conservative liberalism is a variant of liberalism, combining liberal values and policies with conservative stances, or, mor... emphasizes economic freedomEconomic freedom Economic freedom is freedom to produce, trade and consume any goods and services acquired without the use of force, fraud or... and tends to be right of centre. For example, Conservative liberal parties, such as the Dutch People's Party for Freedom and DemocracyPeople's Party for Freedom and Democracy The People's Party for Freedom and Democracy is a Dutch liberal political party.... and the German Free Democratic PartyFree Democratic Party (Germany) The Free Democratic Party is a liberal political party in Germany.... adopt an economically conservative agenda, advocating a minimal role for the state in the economy. 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. Social liberalism versus neo-liberalism Social liberalism (also known as New Liberalism) is very different from the ambiguous term neoliberalismNeoliberalism Neoliberalism is a pejorative label for an economic and political movement based on economic liberalism which has become inc... , a name given to various proponents of the free marketFree market A free market is a market where price is determined by unregulated supply and demand; the opposite is a controlled market'... s and also to some conservativeConservatism Conservatism is a political philosophy that necessitates a defense of established values or the status quo.... opponents of free markets, such as mercantilistic conservatives, in the late 20th century's global economy. Neoliberalism has been used to describe the liberal economic Economic liberalism Economic liberalism is the economic component of classical liberalism.... policies of Ronald ReaganRonald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States and the 33rd Governor of California .... and Margaret ThatcherMargaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, LG, OM, PC, FRS was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990.... . 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 democracySocial democracy \|\|-\|\|}Social democracy is a political ideology that emerged in the late 19th and early 20th century.... lies in the role of the State in relation to the individual. 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 PrincipleHarm principle The harm principle is laid out in John Stuart Mill's arguably most famous work, On Liberty.... ). 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 socialismSocialism Socialism refers to a broad array of doctrines or political movements that envisage a socio-economic system in which propert... , and (especially in democratic socialist forms) typically favours a more community-based view. 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 MarxismMarxism Marxism refers to the philosophy and social theory based on Karl Marx's work on one hand, and to the political practice base... , and choosing to further their goals through the democratic process instead, social democrats nevertheless retain a strong skepticism for capitalismCapitalism Capitalism is an economic system in which the means of production are owned mostly privately, and capital is invested in t... , which they believe needs to be regulated (or at least "managed") for the greater good. 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 WayThird way (centrism) The Third Way is a centrist philosophy of governance that, at least from a traditional social democratic perspective, usuall... politics or another. Social liberal parties Some parties which are arguably social liberal may include: Argentina: Radical Civic UnionRadical Civic Union The Radical Civic Union is a political party in Argentina.... Australia: Australian DemocratsAustralian Democrats Overview The Australian Democrats , is an Australian social liberal party formed in 1977 from the earlier Australia Party by Don Chip... , Australian GreensAustralian Greens The Australian Greens, commonly known as The Greens, is the dominant Green political party in Australia.... Austria: Social Liberals Belgium: SpiritSpirit (Belgium) Spirit is a Belgian Flemish political party formed after the falling apart of the old moderate nationalistic Volksunie party... Brazil: Social Liberal PartySocial Liberal Party (Brazil) The Social Liberal Party is a liberal party in Brazil.... Canada: Liberal Party of CanadaLiberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada, colloquially known as the Grits, is a Canadian federal political party positioned around ... and its provincial affiliates Chile: Social Democrat Radical PartySocial Democrat Radical Party The Social Democrat Radical Party is a social democratic party in Chile.... Colombia: Colombian Liberal PartyColombian Liberal Party The Colombian Liberal Party is a social liberal party in Colombia.... Croatia: Croatian People's Party Denmark: Danish Social Liberal PartyDet Radikale Venstre Det Radikale Venstre, is a social liberal party in Denmark. ... Estonia: Estonian Centre PartyEstonian Centre Party The Centre Party of Estonia is a populist party in Estonia, claiming to be social liberal.... Finland: Swedish People's PartySwedish People's Party (Finland) The Swedish Peoples' Party is a Swedish speaking minority and mainly liberal party in Finland.... , Green League France: Left Radical PartyLeft Radical Party The Left Radical Party is a minor French centre-left, social-liberal party with moderate views, formed in 1972 by a split fr... , MoDemModem Overview A modem is a device that modulates an analog carrier signal to encode digital information, and also demodulates such a carr... Italy: Action PartyAction Party Action Party may refer to:Action Party, Canada... , Radicals of the LeftRadicals of the Left Radicals of the Left* is a minor green and social-liberal political party in Italy.... , New Italian Socialist Party Japan: Democratic Party of JapanDemocratic Party of Japan align="center" colspan="2">Democratic Party of Japan... Lithuania: New Union (Social Liberals) Luxembourg: Democratic PartyDemocratic Party (Luxembourg) The Democratic Party, abbreviated to DP, is a liberal political party in Luxembourg.... Moldova: Social Liberal PartySocial Liberal Party (Moldova) The Social Liberal Party is a liberal political party in Moldova, led by Oleg Serebrian.... Mozambique: Social Liberal and Democratic PartyFacts About Social Liberal and Democratic Party The Social Liberal and Democratic Party is a liberal party in Mozambique. ... Netherlands: Democrats 66Democrats 66 Democrats 66 is a dutch progressive-liberal and radical-democratic political party. ... , GroenLinks Norway: VenstreVenstre (Norway) Venstre is a liberal party in Norway, subscribing to social-liberalism.... Poland: Democratic PartyPartia Demokratyczna - demokraci.pl The Democratic Party is a social liberal party in Poland, publicly announced on February 28 and formally established on May... Portugal: Movimento Liberal Social Russia: Russian Democratic Party "Yabloko"Yabloko Yabloko, is a Russian social-liberal party, led by Grigory Yavlinsky.... Serbia: Liberal Democratic Party Slovenia: Liberal Democracy of SloveniaLiberal Democracy of Slovenia Liberal Democracy of Slovenia or LDS is a liberal political party in Slovenia.... South Korea: United Democratic PartyUnited Democratic Party (Republic of Korea) The United Democratic Party in the Republic of Korea was formed on 17 February 2008 by the merger of the United New Democra... , Renewal of Korea PartyRenewal of Korea Party The Renewal of Korea Party is a political party of South Korea.... Spain: Union, Progress and DemocracyUnion, Progress and Democracy Union, Progress and Democracy is a Spanish political party founded in September 2007.... , Citizens-Party of the Citizenry Sudan: Sudan Liberal PartySudan Liberal Party Overview Sudan Liberal Party is a social Liberal Party in Sudan, founded in 2003 by young Sudanese activists.... Sweden: Centre PartyFacts About Centre Party (Sweden) The Centre Party is a political party in Sweden.... , Liberal People's PartyLiberal People's Party (Sweden) The Liberal People's Party is a political party in Sweden.... Tunisia: Social Liberal PartySocial Liberal Party (Tunisia) The Social-Liberal Party is an opposition liberal party in Tunisia.... United Kingdom: Liberal DemocratsLiberal Democrats The Liberal Democrats, often shortened to Lib Dems, are a liberal political party in the United Kingdom.... United States: Democratic PartyFacts About Democratic Party (United States) The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, the other being the Republican... (especially the Liberal factionsFactions in the Democratic Party (United States) The Democratic Party of the United States is composed of various different factions, with some overlap and enough agreement betwee... ) Social liberal thinkers Some notable social liberal thinkers are: Jeremy BenthamJeremy Bentham Jeremy Bentham was an English jurist, philosopher, and legal and social reformer.... (1748–1832) and John Stuart MillJohn Stuart Mill John Stuart Mill , an English philosopher and political economist, was an influential liberal thinker of the 19th century.... (1806–1873) offered a seed of social liberalism. Emile DurkheimÉmile Durkheim mile Durkheim was a french sociologist, considered by many to be the father of modern sociology, contributing to its accept... (1858–1917) Thomas Hill GreenThomas Hill Green ----Thomas Hill Green was an English philosopher, political radical and temperance reformer, and a member of the British id... (1836–1882) Lujo BrentanoLujo Brentano Overview Lujo Brentano was an eminent German economist and social reformer.... (1844–1931) Bernard BosanquetBernard Bosanquet (philosopher) Bernard Bosanquet was an English philosopher and political theorist, and an influential figure on matters of political and s... (1848–1923) Pieter Cort van der LindenPieter Cort van der Linden Pieter Wilhelm Adriaan Cort van der Linden was a Dutch political figure.... (1846–1935) John Atkinson Hobson (1858–1940) John DeweyJohn Dewey Summary John Dewey was an American philosopher, psychologist, and educational reformer, whose thoughts and ideas have been greatly ... (1859–1952) Friedrich NaumannFriedrich Naumann Friedrich Naumann was a German politician and Protestant parish priest.... (1860–1919) Leonard Trelawny HobhouseLeonard Trelawny Hobhouse Leonard Trelawny Hobhouse was a British liberal politician, one of the theorists of modern liberalism.... (1864–1929) Gerhart von Schulze-Gavernitz (1864–1943) William BeveridgeWilliam Beveridge William Henry Beveridge, 1st Baron Beveridge was a British economist and social reformer.... (1879–1963) Hans KelsenHans Kelsen Hans Kelsen was an Austrian-American jurist. ... (1881–1973) John Maynard Keynes (1883–1946) Carlo RosselliCarlo Rosselli Carlo Rosselli.Political leader, journalist, historian.... (1899-1937) Bertil OhlinBertil Ohlin Bertil Ohlin, was a Swedish economist and winner of the 1977 Bank of Sweden Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred N... (1899–1979) John HicksJohn Hicks Sir John Richard Hicks was one of the most important and influential economists of the twentieth century.... (1904–1989) Isaiah BerlinIsaiah Berlin Sir Isaiah Berlin, OM, was a political philosopher and historian of ideas, regarded as one of the leading liberal thinkers o... (1909–1997) Norberto BobbioNorberto Bobbio Norberto Bobbio was an Italian philosopher of law and political sciences and an historian of political thought.... (1909–2004) Miguel RealeMiguel Reale Overview Miguel Reale was a Brazilian philosopher, academic and politician.... (1910–2005) Pierre Elliot Trudeau (1919–2000) John RawlsJohn Rawls John Rawls was an American philosopher, a professor of political philosophy at Harvard University and author of A Theory o... (1921–2002) Don ChippDon Chipp Donald Leslie Chipp was an Australian politician.... (1925–2006) Karl-Hermann FlachKarl-Hermann Flach Summary Karl-Hermann Flach was a well known German journalist of the Frankfurter Rundschau.... (1929–1973) Richard RortyRichard Rorty Overview Richard McKay Rorty is an American philosopher.... (1931–2007) Conrad Russell (1937–2004) Ronald DworkinRonald Dworkin Ronald Dworkin is an American legal philosopher, and currently professor at University College London and the New York Unive... (* 1931) Amartya SenFacts About Amartya Sen Dr Amartya Kumar Sen CH , is an economist and a winner of the Bank of Sweden Prize in Economic Sciences in 1998, for his ... (* 1933) José G. Merquior (1941–1991) Bruce AckermanBruce Ackerman Bruce Arnold Ackerman is a famous constitutional law scholar in the United States.... (* 1943) Dirk VerhofstadtDirk Verhofstadt Overview Dirk Verhofstadt is a Belgian liberal theorist and brother of the Belgian prime minister Guy Verhofstadt.... (* 1955) Views of social liberals today In general, contemporary social liberals support: An economy consisting mainly of private enterprise, but with government owned or subsidized programs of educationEducation Education is the process by which an individual is encouraged and enabled to develop fully his or her innate potential; it m... , healthcare, child care etc for all citizens. Regulatory bodies over private enterprise in the interests of workers, consumers and fair competition. Free tradeFree trade In international trade, free trade is an idealized market model, often stated as a political objective, wherein trade of goo... . (not supporting a laissez-faire free market) A basic system of social securitySocial security Social security primarily refers to the system implemented by Franklin D.... . A moderate level of taxation. Environmental protection laws (although not always to the extent advocated by GreensGreen movement The Green movement encompasses the Green parties of various countries, and relies on the ideals of the larger ecology moveme... ). Fairly open stances toward immigrationImmigration Although human migration has existed for hundreds of thousands of years, immigration in the modern sense refers to movement... and multiculturalismMulticulturalism Multiculturalism is an ideology advocating that society should consist of, or at least allow and include, distinct cultural ... stemming from social liberal tendency to be civic nationalistsCivic nationalism Civic nationalism, or civil nationalism, is the form of nationalism in which the state derives political legitimacy fr... (as opposed to ethnic nationalistsFacts About Ethnic nationalism Ethnic nationalism denotes a political ideology where the "nation" is defined in terms of ethnicity.... ). A secularSecularism Secularity is the state of being free from religious or spiritual qualities.... and progressive social policySocial policy Social policy relates to guidelines for the changing, maintenance or creation of living conditions that are conducive to hum... , including support for comprehensive sex educationSex education Sex education is a broad term used to describe education about human sexual anatomy, sexual reproduction, sexual intercourse... , gay and lesbian rights, universal health careUniversal health care Universal health care is a health care system in which all residents of a geographic or political entity have their health c... , reproductive rightsReproductive rights Reproductive rights is a political term referring to human rights in areas of sexual reproduction, including the rights to r... , abortionAbortion An abortion is the removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus from the uterus, resulting in, or caused by, its death.... , stem cell research, abolition of capital punishmentCapital punishment Capital punishment, or the death penalty, is the execution of a convicted criminal by the State as punishment for crim... and (sometimes) euthanasiaEuthanasia Euthanasia is the practice of terminating the life of a person or an animal because they are perceived as living an intol... , while supporting gun control. A belief in the existence of victimless crimeVictimless crime (political philosophy) A victimless crime is behavior of an individual which is forbidden by law, but which does not violate nor significantly thre... s (e.g. drug use and prostitutionProstitution Prostitution is the sale of sexual services for money or other kind of return.... ) and many social liberals call for the decriminalizationDecriminalization Summary Decriminalization is the reduction or abolition of criminal penalties in relation to certain acts.... or outright legalization of these practices. Decentralized decision-making. InternationalismInternationalism (politics) Internationalism is a political movement which advocates a greater economic and political cooperation between nations for th... . (Oppose extreme and aggressive nationalismNationalism Nationalism is an ideology that holds that a nation is the fundamental unit for human social life, and takes precedence ove... ) (In Europe) A federal European UnionEuropean Union The European Union is an intergovernmental and supranational union of 25 democratic member states.... . A foreign policyForeign policy A foreign policy is a set of political goals that seeks to outline how a particular country will interact with other countri... supporting the promotion of democracyDemocracy Democracy is a form of government for a nation state, or for an organization in which the citizens have a vote or voice in ... , the protection of human rightsHuman rights Human rights refers to the concept of human beings as having universal rights, or status, regardless of legal jurisdiction o... and where possible, effective multilateralismFacts About Multilateralism Multilateralism is an international relations term that refers to multiple countries working in concert.... . As well as human rights, social liberals also support social rightsSocial rights Social rights are generally considered the subset of human rights that ensure to all people some specified standard of livin... , civil rightsCivil rights Civil rights are the protections and privileges of personal liberty given to all citizens by law.... and civil libertiesCivil liberties Civil liberties is the name given to freedoms that protect the individual from government.... . Further reading on social liberalism See also Social liberalism (United States) Classical liberalismClassical liberalism Classical liberalism is a term used to describe the following:...