Liberalism.org

Liberalism is both under threat and at a turning point. It must be argued for, refined, and renewed. Today, we begin the work.

Even as American politics nationalizes, the interest groups lobbying state governments are becoming more distinctive, not more alike. James Strickland on what that means for federalism. www.liberalism.org/p/is-all-pol...

@lysanderwright.bsky.social explains how a Mississippi town built on self-government inspired the stage shows that helped launch the Harlem Renaissance. www.liberalism.org/p/the-greate...

Freedom depends on the conditions that make it possible. Judith Shklar on why securing them is the goal of liberalism.

"Persuasion is when we both think we know what the truth is, and we talk to each other, and we both realize that we agree on certain things, we disagree on certain things, and we both shift." — @rogerberkowitz.bsky.social Listen to the full episode: www.liberalism.org/podcast/s/li...

American independence did not extend liberty to women, but it changed the rules by which they could obtain it. Jayme Lemke on how new ideas about liberty, wider freedom of action, and local autonomy made the fight for women’s rights possible www.liberalism.org/p/the-americ...

When institutions fail the people they are supposed to serve, rule-breaking starts to feel like common sense. @emilychamleewright.bsky.social on what that tells us about the real work of democratic renewal. www.liberalism.org/p/conservati...

"1984, the whole point is that the dystopia is so totalizing there is no room for resistance....different from Hunger Games where the danger is enormous, the traps are enormous, but there is space for resistance." — @sarahskwire.bsky.social Listen: www.liberalism.org/podcast/s/li...

Economic freedom means people can exchange goods and services for their own benefit. In The Wealth of Nations (1776), Adam Smith explains why prosperity comes from the free choices of ordinary people.

Brazil faced its own authoritarian stress test, and its institutions held strong. Jonathan Madison on the three structural reasons why, and what the United States can learn. www.liberalism.org/p/lessons-on...

"I don't know that you get through dark times by reading something like 1984. 1984 might keep you from returning to dark times." — @sarahskwire.bsky.social www.liberalism.org/podcast/s/li...

@radleybalko.bsky.social argues that a 1996 law blinded the federal courts to wrongful convictions instead of preventing them. www.liberalism.org/p/how-the-an...

Last night at the National Press Club, Michael Brodrick of IHS joined Roger Berkowitz for a live taping of The Liberalism.org Show. They discussed his new book, "A World We Share: Hannah Arendt and the Power of Friendship in a Broken World," and how friendship can rebuild a fractured public life.

Carl Schmitt wanted politics to be about friends and enemies. @jkuznicki.bsky.social on why that clarity is exactly what a liberal society should refuse. www.liberalism.org/p/against-fr...

Malala Yousafzai was 17 when she won the Nobel Peace Prize for her work on behalf of girls’ education. Her words on why speaking freely still matter today.

Some romanticize markets; some romanticize the state in equal measure. Michael Munger on why both habits create an impediment to clear political thinking. www.liberalism.org/p/public-cho...

Civic education was once considered essential to the American republic. Paul Carrese on why recovering that conviction may be the most urgent political task of our moment. www.liberalism.org/p/civic-educ...

"You notice it most [the culture in an ideas movement space] if you spend time in your own space and then you go back. 'Oh, everyone uses these words to mean this thing.' It's not only jargon, its also things you make excuses for." — @janetbufton.ca Listen: www.liberalism.org/podcast/s/li...

As AI makes writing easier than ever, the shared conversation relies on whether anyone is reading. @gushurwitz.bsky.social on why a free society must make sure AI draws people into that conversation rather than standing in for it. www.liberalism.org/p/who-reads-...

"That [disciplined coordination] was enough to hold them [civil rights coalition members] together despite real disagreements...one of the reasons the civil rights movement dissolved once the Voting Rights Act was passed." — @janetbufton.ca Listen: www.liberalism.org/podcast/s/li...

Eric Liu argues that the ability to change your mind is central to living in a free society and that it stems from examining your own assumptions and learning from the people who challenge them. www.liberalism.org/p/how-to-cha...

"A lot of groups were working on this [criminal justice reform], but they weren't working together. If they were in an inner city, they could talk about social justice...but in a very red state...you would not use that message." — @janetbufton.ca Listen: www.liberalism.org/podcast/s/li...

Christopher Coyne argues that real peace is built daily by ordinary people finding ways to resolve conflict without violence rather than being handed down by powerful states. www.liberalism.org/p/two-vision...

Voter ignorance, majority tyranny, and the rise of illiberal movements are not new problems. @ilyasomin.bsky.social on why liberals can no longer afford to treat them as manageable ones. www.liberalism.org/p/liberalism...

"It's really easy to think—especially when we [political coalition members] have been working together for a long time—we work together because we agree. And, I don't think that's actually true." — @janetbufton.ca Listen to the full episode: www.liberalism.org/podcast/s/li...

Public sector unions help elect the officials they negotiate with. @mattzwolinski.bsky.social on why that single structural fact should trouble liberals of every persuasion. www.liberalism.org/p/the-power-...

According to Matt Zwolinski, democracy is essential to classical liberalism because it keeps rulers answerable to the people they govern. www.liberalism.org/p/democracy-...

Anthony Sanders [ @ijsanders.bsky.social ] makes the case that checks on government power matter most in moments that stand between ordinary people and their freedom to live secure, self-directed lives. www.liberalism.org/p/the-rule-o...

"This has real economic implications [women obtaining more advanced degrees than men]. The suspicion might be to say this is women getting master's degrees in nursing or education...That's just not the case..." —Josh Zingher Listen to the full episode: www.liberalism.org/podcast/s/li...

Adam Smith's "man of system" is usually invoked against central planners. @janetbufton.ca on why liberals should be honest about how often it applies to themselves. www.liberalism.org/p/the-libera...

If AI outputs are not protected speech, the government gets to decide what they say. @corbinkbarthold.bsky.social on why that should worry everyone, regardless of how you feel about AI. www.liberalism.org/p/ai-and-the...

Liberalism is the only worldview that has actually delivered both material progress and moral restraint. Jason Kuznicki [ jkuznicki.bsky.social ] on why liberalism should not follow its critics by narrowly defining “civilization:" www.liberalism.org/p/liberalism...

Today is the 164th anniversary of the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation. This powerful line from Frederick Douglass carries historical weight in the American liberal canon.

"I don't really think men have come to terms [with female agency]. You had a generation, or many generations, where one of the requirements for accessing elite spaces was to be male." — @zingherpolisci.bsky.social Listen to the full episode: www.liberalism.org/podcast/s/li...