Please define liberal

[Ddavid from NC]

The word "liberal" is thrown around in denominational circles and political ones. What is a practical definition in both arenas of thought and philosphy? I have noticed some people particularly in the political arena affectionately embrace the label liberal or moderate. Why?

[forrestkc]

I am partially citing Wikipedia because they have a good definition of it.

American Liberalism is a political ideology that seeks to maximize individual liberty, defined as the provision of both negative rights, that is freedom from coercion, and positive rights, such as education, health care and other services and goods believed to be required for human development and self-actualization. Consequently it promotes a wide distribution of power, where no ethnic group, religion or socio-economic class dominates the polity, free exchange of ideas, and government ensured provision of basic rights, such as education and health care in order to create an effective form of freedom.

American Liberalism is a combination of Social Liberalism, Social Progressivism, and Mixed Economy Philosophy

Social Liberalism: 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. It forms the core of the somewhat wider movement of left-liberalism, with which it is often (if not usually) conflated. Used as a term it has also meant support for civil and human rights and freedoms, particularly in opposition to traditional values and beliefs, but as defined here social liberalism is concerned with the economic as well as the social dimension of politics.

Social Progressivism: The view that social mores, human nature, and morality are capable of progress through history in a manner similar to that of scientific knowledge. Social progressives believe that there is no inherent value in tradition. They argue that all social arrangements - including marriage, the family and gender roles - are not fixed; rather, they should be changed or updated whenever such a change is for the greater good of society or it benefits the people who wish to engage in those social arrangements. The opposite of social progressivism is called social conservatism.

Mixed Economy: A Market Economy that incorporates public oversight, environmental regulation, labor standards and unions, and a social safety net (Unemployment Insurance, Medicare, Social Security)

American Liberalism shares some beliefs with Libertarians, some with Democratic Socialism, and some with Democratic Capitalism. Of course liberals vary widely in their beliefs, some tend to be more traditional on social issues (especially liberal Christians), yet be very progressive with fiscal issues. However, in general, thats probably a sufficient description.

I would also point out that there are not a lot of just true, hard core liberals out there, almost all liberals have some beliefs that are more moderate. I suppose a true / hard core liberal would be someone like Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, or Congressman Dennis Kucinich. Candidates like Hillary and Obama lean far more moderate than that definition above.

[Ddavid from NC]

Thanks for your research and response... Good definitions... Objective I might add

[KeilanS]

Maybe my definition isn't quite right, but I'll give it a shot. I consider liberals people who:

-Tend to support more government control (and in this regard, I am a liberal)

-Usually support a person's right to do anything they please if it doesn't obviously hurt others (this one is very vague, basically I'm looking for a generic way to say they tend to support homosexuality, abortion, sometimes they're okay with premarital sex, etc)

That's basically it, I usually just call them as a see them. Not really objective, but it works for me. It is also the reason I try to avoid labelling people as liberal or conservative, the terms are just a way for me to summarize what I personally think of people and so someone I consider a liberal isn't always considered liberal by others. (I have been called a Marxist before for example, while I consider myself slightly conservative)