Multiculturalism in Europe Essay Example

Liberal ideology refers to a system in which a country values the individual freedoms and rights over collective aspects that may limit the same. In liberal systems, individual rights are the foundations of democracy as countries strive to promote them against collective forms of equality that may limit their existence. In these societies, the liberal ideology of equality is the individual ability to pursue their own interests within a system that supports their sense of individualism (Klemek 1946). They have freedoms that they can use to facilitate their interests even when they do not align with collective actions. For example, the United States is a very liberal society that works under a system of individual equalities, freedoms, and rights. The institutions in place do not undermine aspects of liberalism; especially in the economic system that has minimal government intervention. The public in liberal systems is highly skeptical about the role that the government plays in their lives and have a preference for absolute freedom that is the essence of democracy.

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While Chin makes reference to liberalism using countries like the United Kingdom and New Zealand, it becomes apparent that the author emphasizes the inability of Europe to exercise a truly liberal system. Chin believes only the United States has reached the position of fully embracing the liberal ideology in its systems (Chin 97). Most European nations still face a magnitude of control from governments that over certain aspects. The liberal ideology in Europe is not cut from the same clothe in all countries. It differs from one to another depending on the political and economic goals in place. For instance, many countries limit some rights but are still classified as being liberal. An example is Singapore that is liberal but does not put emphasis on individual rights over those of the collective.

Additionally, the author uses the concept of social justice to reflect the adamant nature of Europe towards a truly liberal system. Many people define liberalism from te perspective of a truly unregulated system. Capitalism is a product of a liberal system that has very minimal government controls. However, the principles of social justice necessitate the constraint of such system. In this case, the author affirms that Europe emphasizes social justice that is collective equality more than it does liberal systems (Chin 97). There are moments when the governments in Europe need to employ more control to ensure a better collective equality in a system that puts more importance of social justice. For instance, the governments may do so through strict regulations on taxation and employee rights. Other countries in Europe facilitate control through the government owning a big portion of the country's economic system to ensure more regulation. For example, Norway is a country that has a high level of social justice (Chin 97). For this reason, the government controls Statoil that is a gas and oil company. Doping so provides the country with a high magnitude of economic control and thus limits liberalism. Scandinavian countries in Europe value social justice more and try to limit aspects like capitalism. The United States is different because it is very liberal in the sense that the government has allowed 80% of its economy to be in the hands of the private sector. Therefore, through such examples, Chin showcases that Europe may not an entirely liberal continent.

Chin highlights that Western Europe only illustrates a partial system of the liberal ideology. Many countries take the concepts they deem as ideal for a liberal society while still maintaining their level of regulation or control. In fact, the rich ones try to avoid liberalism as much as possible and only maintain minimal balance. Chin argues that technological changes and an increase in globalization is part of this need to avoid liberalization since rich countries want more regulation in a world that is increasingly open (Chin 144). Perhaps the fear emanates from the dangers to an individual country's interests that this system poses. In this case, allowing complete liberalism in an already free system would further limit the ability of a country to enhance its national interests. The shift started taking place from the 1930s through the economic recession and encountered a lot of resistance. In fact, Chin highlights that liberalism and its ideologies remained stagnant in Western Europe from 1980 to 2005.

Chin further argues that the liberal ideology may not have a place in Europe because many do not see it as beneficial. The author says, "This represents a very real threat to liberalism; the traditional prescription of a small state, low regulations and taxes, and free trade in no longer convincing (Chin 144)." The rationale emanates from the fact that while liberalism may be good for the economy, it is not ideal for aspects such as social justice and equality. For instance, in many countries that employ the liberal ideology, the economy registers an increase of about 40%. However, all of this wealth remains with the 1% as the middle and lower classes suffer in a persistent state of financial depravity. The principles of social justice have been able to elevate poverty levels in countries such as Venezuela because the government distributes income and resources to all its citizens. Everyone gets an equal opportunity to advance in life as opposed to a liberal system in which people have individual rights to do as they please within a free society. The individual rights have more power than the need to collectively advance an equal society. Hence, the people with the upper hand in such societies will always have more opportunities because the government controls them less and they operate under a system of individualism as opposed to collectivism. For this reasons, many Western European countries do not fully employ liberalism.

Some critics in Europe have argued that there is not replacement for liberalism. The rationale is that countries cannot sustain the social systems that are the best alternatives for absolute liberal ideologies. The systems are too expensive to promote for the long-term. In spite of this, some still argue that the principles of liberalism have no place in Europe. The ideology weakens further as European nations replace it with highly authoritative systems that have a regulative government. In spite of this, it seems like the Scandinavian countries have found a way to almost completely eradicate liberal ideologies; especially in the economic aspect of the same. The countries have a strict control over taxes that they use to facilitate a system that functions under the principles of social justice in which all wealth goes back to the people. It is imperative to note that this control of the economic system almost always translates to democracy and individual freedoms. The people are not able to conduct their individual acts in a system that is controlling because they need to be part of the collective. The result is a weakening system of democracy in Western Europe that just as dangerous as too much liberalism (Chin 144). Some European countries view control as aligned to the aspect of democracy. The position is quite contradictory but it makes sense when certain aspects are assessed. For instance, Chin argues that to have a truly democratic system, social welfare must go above the aspect of individual rights and freedoms (Chin 146). In almost all the societies that have experienced revolt, there has been an absence of social welfare. Such revolt is an indication of the lack of an equal system that values the rights of all its citizens in a collective manner (Klemek 1946). The situation makes one think critically about the flawed relationship between democracy and liberalism. It is difficult to think of them as one even though they both advocate for equality and freedom. The dilemma may inform some European countries that opt to practice social justice more as a reflection of a democratic state in which the people as a collective benefit.

The author provides the argument that all of these aspects work differently for various countries in developed democracies across Europe. Many strive for a balance between liberalism and democracy; individual rights and collective equality, and the impacts these have on the abilities of these nations to sustain themselves (Chin 182). Applying liberalism and relating it to democracy is simply a matter of choice and what a country deems as best for its progress in the long run. For example, Chin presents a case of abortion and how widely different it is for many societies. Liberal countries argue on the basis of individual rights and freedoms while others seek to facilitate restrictions for more control on the issues pursuant to aspects like social justice. For example, Sweden and Greece are quite permissive with abortion during the first stages of the pregnancy (Chin 182). Ireland, on the other hand, has many restrictions and only considers abortion in instances of necessity and special circumstances. It is interesting that all of these societies are liberal and look at themselves as advanced democracies.

Conclusion

Even powerful nations like the United Kingdom still struggle with the concept of absolute liberalism especially in the political economy. Chin says, "Yet liberalism in the United Kingdom has undergone a number of shifts over the past decades, from the greater emphasis on social-democratic values after World War II to the neoliberalism under Margaret Thatcher (Chin 226)." In spite of advancements in aspects like noliberalism, the United Kingdom is far from attaining true liberalism when compared to democracies like the United States. The rationale is that the UK still insists on social justice and collective equality in some cases. For this to happen, the government has to have some degree of control on individual rights to enable their interaction with collective equality. The adamant nature of Europe towards the liberal ideology is not negative because it ensures prosperity to some extent. The government enforces the rights of everyone in a collective approach that ensures even those who have no voice in the society are participants to its progress. The case is different from that of the United States. Chin asserts that citizens in the United States look at liberalism from the perspective of the lack of government control in what she terms as "what the government cannot do to them (Chin 251)."The people are free to pursue anything they want without any ounce of government intervention. Liberalism in Europe emanates from freedom with emphasis on the collective wellbeing. In this case, the government can do something to facilitate the rights of the collective.

Works Cited

Chin, Rita. The Crisis of Multiculturalism in Europe: A History. Princeton University Press, 2017.

Klemek, Christopher. "Urbanism as reform: Modernist planning and the crisis of urban liberalism in Europe and North America, 1945--1975." (2004).