Understanding Liberalism and the Dimensions of Citizenship
Liberalism
Liberalism is a political-philosophical theory based on the recognition of individual rights, which emerged in England during the seventeenth century. In the political field, it defines a state that guarantees these rights, and in the economic sphere, it advocates for economic freedom and minimal government intervention.
The Dignity of the Individual
The dignity of every human being is the foundation on which the rights of citizenship are underpinned.
Types of Citizenship
Political Citizenship
Political citizenship refers to the political relationship between the individual and the state. Citizenship is a status granted by a group of civil and political rights.
Social Citizenship
Social citizenship: The citizen is not only the person who enjoys civil and political rights but also social rights, such as a minimum of economic security and welfare.
Economic Citizenship
Economic Citizenship: A citizen of a democratic society may have certain economic rights recognized as a worker.
Homefront
Homefront: Through its assets in civil society, citizens develop moral values and become civic members, active and responsible in society.
Intercultural Citizenship
Intercultural citizenship: Citizens can retain their own culture without being assimilated by the dominant culture while respecting and learning from other cultures.
Global or Cosmopolitan Citizenship
Global or cosmopolitan citizenship: The idea of global citizenship, in short, expresses the need to extend to all mankind the rights and duties recognized by democratic states.
Civility and Active Citizenship
Civility is the active dimension of citizenship, participation, and responsible behavior. It is the attitude and the way of acting of good citizenship. According to various opinions, civility may be the result of law enforcement and social conventions practiced in the service of the organization of coexistence. Citizenship may also be the free expression of social and political duties of citizens.
Active citizenship includes the exercise of obligations and commitments to others, either because citizens are convinced to do so or because of compliance with the law and the conventions of coexistence.
Civic Morality
Civic morality is the set of values and ethics that a morally pluralistic society shares and allows members not only to coexist but also to build their lives together. It is an ethic of people as citizens.
The moral values that constitute the civic are primarily:
- Freedom
- Liberty as participation in public affairs.
- Freedom and independence of an individual with respect to State interference in the private life of the individual.
- Freedom as autonomy to give oneself the laws themselves.
- Equality
- Legal equality and equality of all citizens before the law.
- Equal opportunities.
- Social equality, such as equality before the receipt of various social benefits. The end sought is the equal dignity of all persons.
- Solidarity
Solidarity is a value that is about feeling connected to other people or groups, sharing their interests and needs.
- In the private sector, it is solidarity with one’s neighbor.
- In the public sphere, solidarity is understood as the defense of the common interest over private interests.
- In a universal sense, solidarity is extended to all human beings.
- Tolerance
Tolerance is the civic willingness to live harmoniously with people of beliefs, lifestyles, and customs different from one’s own.