‘Why I am proud to be a liberal’

CALLING ONESELF a liberal today has all manner of negative connotations. Generally considered the more wooly-headed of the ideological paths, lacking the bravado of socialism or even the righteousness that the conservatives think they have, liberals are fairly much laughed at as simpering fools who would sooner help the perpetrators of crime than the victim. Liberals are seen as wet, politically correct and short sighted, missing the big picture of society as a whole, concentrating instead on quixotic issues.

I am a liberal – and proud of it as well.

Of course, in light of today’s debased political language I have a certain amount of sympathy for anyone who enters into a debate thinking me a wooly-headed, simpering or wet poitical naïf.

The Concise Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy has this to say: “Liberal political philosophy explores the foundations of the principles most commonly associated with liberal politics: freedom, toleration, individual rights, constitutional democracy and the rule of law.”

With certain qualifications, laid down by thinkers like John Stuart Mill in particular, liberals like myself see these ideas as the very foundation stone on which we build the rest of our thinking and our opinions.

Personally, I first encountered liberalism, and for that matter serious political thought, about fifteen years ago, while I was a student. Between the Communist Manifesto and Burke’s Reflections on the French Revolution stood a piece of literature that I still hold dear, John Stewart Mill’s On Liberty. In it I feel Mill eloquently details opinions I already held, flesing these ideas out and, of course, presenting me with arguments that I had not considered.

Most succinct and most powerful was the line: “For his own good is not sufficient warrant”. From then until now I have held my head up and called myself a liberal. It must be said that, in certain circles, professing to be a liberal is considered something risible. I can remember an evening out with politicos from community groups, and when I declared my liberalism one lady exclaimed: “What a terrible thing to say!”

I must confess to having been stumped for more than a second. Why was being a liberal something so clearly risible? The most common criticism made of liberalism is avoidance of choosing a side in an argument, sitting on the fence terrified of upsetting anyone – tolerance, you see. Caught in the middle, we are seen to be squatting foetally with our hands over our ears. Frankly, I do not consider this to be an accurate charatcerisation of the liberal ideal. It is not a matter of not choosing a side. We have chosen a side, and what is seen as fence sitting is merely an attempt to compromise, something liberals are not afraid to do. Although compromise is accepted, it is not the first port of call.

So, what does being a liberal mean today? I think that the best example of liberalism in practice is contained within the freedom of speech/censorship debate. On the internet you can look up anything you like. Anything. And you will get articles, images and web space devoted to everything from the most innocent of subjects to mankind’s most depraved imaginings. As a liberal I see this as a good thing. It is as it should be. Provided no harm is being done then we should be able to voice our opinions without fear of being persecuted. As Voltaire once so succinctly said ‘I may not agree with what you say, but I would fight to the death for your right to say it’.

But is this really the case, do we really have total freedom of speech? If we did, would professor A.C. Grayling have felt the need to start a ‘campaign to defend unfettered freedom of enquiry in universities’, including a ‘right to be offensive’? (Philosophy Now, Jan/Feb 2007 pp5)

As a liberal, I believe it is well within your rights to be as offensive as you want. I will decide what it is that I find offensive and take the action I deem appropriate, which nowadays means little more than changing the channel. If I find you offensive, I can switch you off or ignore you.

I do not like the idea of government trying to do my thinking for me by deeming material ‘unsuitable’ for my consumption, and I find it patronising and downright insulting when government attempts this. Liberalism is about plurality, about being able to co-exist in a society of many colours, creeds, sexual preference and religion (or none) and tolerating different ideas and cultures whilst maintaining your own sense of identity and by so doing, having that sense of identity thrown in to sharp relief.