Liberalism is not Leftism

One thing many political discussions on US politics suffer from that results in many confused arguments and political stances is the conflation of leftism with liberalism and the Democratic party, and the conflation of right-wing politics with conservatism and the Republican party. None of these things are synonymous, and while some of them may share some overlap, none of the other terms share any overlap with leftism. Democrats and Republicans have extremely similar political views and are both moderate right wing American political parties. Liberalism and conservatism are only two political ideologies and do not even come close to describing the whole of possible political views. Both tend either to be moderate or right-leaning, and in fact often overlap, especially in their support of the state and capitalism. Notably, neo-liberalism was a political position staunchly held by conservatives such as Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan due to its laissez-faire policy.

While the "political compass" is simplistic and not to be looked at as a guide for examining all political beliefs, this chart may be helpful in beginning to provide a visual for mainstream American politics.

Why is it so important to understand that liberalism and conservatism do not together make the whole of viable political stances? I believe it is important because with modern liberalism often positioning itself as progressive, with small modifications to society that do not upset the fabric of capitalism and other systems of oppression at large, people lose sight of the potential for real material change. Moderate ideologies such as liberalism are useless for that change. The concept of being a “moderate” is extremely variable depending on the political atmosphere of ones contemporary society and has never lead to change for the better, as prioritizes its own relative concept of “neutrality” even in the face of injustice and oppression. For example, George Washington could be considered a moderate in his time and yet he owned slaves. Consider the quote from holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel “We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented”, or anti-Apartheid activist Desmond Tutu "If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor"

Liberalism pacifies its citizens by disapproving of any attempt at real change, demonizing radical activists in their time only to take credit for the changes they made after the fact, erasing the role of radicals in history. A great example of this is in the modern liberal portrayal of Martin Luther King Jr., who in actuality said “I must make two honest confessions to you, my Christian and Jewish brothers. First, I must confess that over the past few years I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro’s great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen’s Counciler or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate, who is more devoted to “order” than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says: “I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I cannot agree with your methods of direct action”; who paternalistically believes he can set the timetable for another man’s freedom; who lives by a mythical concept of time and who constantly advises the Negro to wait for a “more convenient season.” Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will. Lukewarm acceptance is much more bewildering than outright rejection."

Neither liberalism nor conservatism, Democrats nor Republicans, can help make meaningful change in fighting the current uprising of fascism and the Alt-Right around the world. This is shown both through historical precedent (read about the rise of the Nazi party in 1930s Germany), and through critical thought. 

Remember, the right to free speech ensures the government cannot infringe on ones beliefs, but that in no way means that ones beliefs cannot be wrong or dismissed by other people. It is our responsibility as humans to speak out against bigotry and that which harms vulnerable members of our society and to give people such as fascists no place where they feel comfortable publicly espousing and attempting to normalize their ideology.