Cultural liberalism

Cultural liberalism (known as social liberalism in the United States) is a social philosophy which expresses the social dimension of liberalism and favors the freedom of individuals to choose whether to conform to cultural norms. In the words of Henry David Thoreau is often expressed as the right to "march to the beat of a different drummer". Cultural progressivism is used in a substantially similar context, although it does not mean exactly the same as cultural liberalism.

In following the harm principle, cultural liberals believe that society should not impose any specific code of behavior and they see themselves as defending the moral rights of nonconformists to express their own identity however they see fit as long as they do not harm anyone else.

Unlike cultural progressives, cultural liberals do not favour political correctness due to its attacks on certain civil rights and liberties such as freedom of speech and religion. In contrast to civil libertarianism, proponents for cultural liberalism will tend to show greater scepticism in regards to social reforms that can lead to increased risk of harm compared to that of the views of some civil libertarians for example, differences of opinion in relation to gun law reforms.

The United States refers cultural liberalism as social liberalism however, it is not the same as the broader political ideology known as social liberalism. In the United States, social liberalism describes progressive moral and social values or stances on socio-cultural issues such as abortion and same-sex marriage as opposed to social conservatism. A social conservative or a social liberal in this sense may hold either more conservative or liberal views on fiscal policy.

See also

• Civil libertarianism
• Cultural radicalism
• Permissive society
• Pink capitalism

Notes

1. ^ Thoreau, Henry David (1854). Walden. "Conclusion".
2. ^ Nancy L. Cohen, ed. (2012). Delirium: The Politics of Sex in America. Catapult. ISBN 9781619020962. When the going got tough, the economic progressives got going back to the Reagan days when the cultural progressives were to blame. Clinton's presidential campaign had "signaled cultural moderation and articulated the pocketbook frustrations of ordinary people," Robert Kuttner, editor of The American Prospect ventured. "But in office he seemed a cultural liberal who failed to produce on economics."
3. ^ "Article 19 of the 'Universal Declaration of Human Rights'". a resolution adopted in 1948 by the UN General Assembly as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. published by the United Nations General Assembly. 1948. Archived from the original on March 27, 2020. Retrieved July 23, 2010. Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.
4. ^ Chideya, Farai (2004). "The Red and the Blue: A Divided America". Trust: Reaching the 100 Million Missing Voters and Other Selected Essays. Soft Skull Press. pp. 33–46. ISBN 9781932360264.

References

• Willard, Charles Arthur (1996). Liberalism and the Problem of Knowledge: A New Rhetoric for Modern Democracy. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-0226898452.

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