Liberal

Liberal is a term used in politics to describe a person who generally is left-wing in his attitudes towards the government, establishment, and many other laws. The term was first used in reference to a political opinion c. 1801 A.D., in the aftermath of the French Revolution, when it meant "tending in favor of freedom and democracy."

In the United States, the term liberal characterizes people who hold political views that support fewer governmental restrictions on behavior, while supporting greater governmental influence in the free market to protect what are perceived as "natural rights" (such as anti-discrimination laws, etc.). This is different from classical liberalism (which has more to do with what would be called libertarianism in the United States). Modern liberalism, based upon the inherent conjuctures of its fluid reasoning, can mean different things at different times. The following views are generally, though not always, supported by American liberals today:

• in favor of gun control
• in favor of abortion rights
• promoting secularism and the prohibition of organized prayer in school
• equal responsibilities for men and women, such as equal participation by men and women in the military
• government programs to rehabilitate criminals
• same-sex marriage
• increased taxpayer funding of public schools
• protection of natural resources and wilderness areas
• taxpayer-funded rather than private medical care
• increased power for labor unions
• disarmament treaties
• classical liberalism stood for a limited government role [2]
• private property and individual contracts form the basis of Classical liberal economic theory
• reduction of the military
• support of affirmative action
• government-sponsored education
• preference for a interpretation of the constitution as a "living Constitution" instead of an unchanging Constitution
• income redistribution, with higher progressive taxation on those in the top 10% of earnings.
• reduction of gender roles and differentiation
• in favor of political correctness in every day speech
• currently, opposition to interventionist foreign policies that involves nation building. Isolationist positions are however traditionally neither liberal nor conservative. There are examples for isolationist positions on both sides of the political divide.
• refusal to view current American foreign policy as one that advances human rights and democracy

Note, that liberal in the European context refers to moderate and center-right parties, often with a pro-business stance. The same holds for many liberal parties throughout the world.. The US definition of liberal is much more similar to the politics of European socialist or social democratic parties..

One definition of liberal is anything that is not conservative. For example, the American Heritage Dictionary includes this definition of "liberal":

Not limited to or by established, traditional, orthodox, or authoritarian attitudes, views, or dogmas ...