Social liberalism

Social liberalism (new liberalism, reform liberalism), a development of liberalism in the late 19th and early 20th century, is 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. Additionally, it also means social progressivism, usually when contrasted with social conservatism.

Social liberalism is a political philosophy that emphasizes mutual collaboration through liberal institutions. Social liberalism, as a branch of liberalism, contends that society must protect liberty and opportunity for all citizens. In the process, it accepts some restrictions in economic affairs, such as anti-trust laws to combat economic oligopolies, regulatory bodies or minimum wage laws, intending to secure economic opportunities for all. It also expects legitimate governments to provide a basic level of welfare or workfare, health and education, supported by taxation, intended to enable the best use of the talents of the population, prevent revolution, or simply for the perceived public good.

Rejecting both the most extreme forms of capitalism and the revolutionary elements from the socialist school, social liberalism emphasizes what it calls "positive liberty", seeking to enhance the "positive freedoms" of the poor and disadvantaged in society.

Like all liberals, social liberals believe in individual freedom as a central objective. However, they are unique in comparison to other liberals in that they believe that lack of economic opportunity, education, health-care, and so on can be considered to be threats to their conception of liberty. Social liberals are outspoken defenders of human rights and civil liberties, and combine this with support for a mixed economy, with a state providing public services that social liberals intend to ensure that people's social rights as well as their civil liberties are upheld.

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 and in favour of state intervention in social, economic and cultural life. The New Liberals, who included T.H.Green and L.T.Hobhouse, saw individual liberty as something to be achieved under favourable social circumstances. The poverty, squalor and ignorance in which most people lived made it impossible in their view for freedom and individually 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. (The Routledge encyclopaedia of philosophy, p.599)

Social liberalism versus neoliberalism

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. Neoliberalism has been used to describe the policies of Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher. 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 unqualified free trade, undermining of social programs, and deregulation.

Social liberalism versus social democracy

The basic difference between social liberalism and social democracy is in picture of human nature and values.

Social liberal parties

Some parties which are arguably social liberal may include:

Austria : Social Liberals (Austria)
Brazil: Social Liberal Party
Canada: Liberal Party of Canada
Chile: Social Democrat Radical Party
Colombia: Colombian Liberal Party
Croatia: Croatian Social Liberal Party
Denmark: Danish Social Liberal Party (Det Radikale Venstre)
Estonia: Estonian Centre Party
Finland: Swedish People's Party
France: Parti Radical de Gauche
Japan: Democratic Party of Japan
Lithuania: New Union (Socialliberals)
Moldova: Social Liberal Party
Mozambique: Social Liberal and Democratic Party
Netherlands: Democrats 66
Norway: Venstre
Portugal: Movimento Liberal Social
Russia: Russian Democratic Party "Yabloko"
Serbia: Civic Alliance of Serbia
Slovenia: Liberal Democracy of Slovenia
Sweden: Liberal People's Party
Tunisia: Social Liberal Party
United Kingdom: Liberal Democrats

Social liberal thinkers

Some notable social liberal thinkers are:

Thomas Hill Green (1836–1882)
Lujo Brentano (1844–1931)
Pieter Cort van der Linden (1846-1935)
John Atkinson Hobson (1858–1940)
John Dewey (1859–1952)
Friedrich Naumann (1860–1919)
Leonard Trelawny Hobhouse (1864–1929)
John Maynard Keynes (1883–1946)
Bertil Ohlin (1899–1979)
John Hicks (1904–1989)
Miguel Reale (1910–2005)
John Rawls (1921-2002)
Karl-Hermann Flach (1929–1973)
Richard Rorty (1931– )
Conrad Russell (1937-2004)
Ronald Dworkin (1931– )
José G. Merquior (1941–1991)
Dirk Verhofstadt (1955– )
Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) and John Stuart Mill (1806–1873) offered a seed of social liberalism.
Arguably, the late Michel Foucault (1926-1984) can be categorised as one of the social liberals, considering his social philosophy and liberalism.

Views of Social Liberals today

In general, contemporary Social Liberals support:

Regulatory bodies over private enterprise in the interests of consumers and fair competition;
A Regulated Free market economy;
Free trade;
A minimum system of social security;
Ensure all citizens have access to education and health care;
Low taxes;
Environmental protection laws (although not to the extent advocated by Greens);
Secularism;
Multiculturalism;
A progressive social policy, including support for gay marriage, abortion, liberal drug policy, euthanasia and prostitution legalization;
A foreign policy supporting the promotion of democracy, the protection of human rights and, where possible, effective multilateralism;
Republicanism;
Pacifism;
(In Europe) a federal European Union.