Liberal Nationalism

LIBERAL
NATIONALISM
What is Liberal
Nationalism?
Liberal nationalism is a concept
that aims to develop a feeling of
national identity by providing equal
rights at all regardless to their
caste, creed, gender and religion.
The "liberal" element means
that minorities receive the
same rights as every other
citizen. The "national"
element means that a shared
culture is acknowledged.
Example of Liberal View
Liberals have advocated gender and

racial equality in their drive to
promote civil rights and a global civil
rights movement in the 20th
century.
Main Concept
of
Liberal Nationalism
Liberalism is a political and moral
philosophy based on the rights of the
individual, liberty, consent of the
governed and equality before the law.
The Social Contract
Theory by
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
It aims to establish a relationship
between the people and the state. It
suggested that it is the responsibility
of the government to protect and
promote the rights of the people.
It also suggested that the
relationship should be there
between the citizens and the
state, with the state
protecting people's rights.
Liberal Nationalism is an impressive
attempt to tie together a wide range of
issues often kept apart such as:
1. Personal Autonomy
2. Political Obligation
3. Cultural Membership
4. Economic Freedom
LIMITATIONS OF LIBERAL NATIONALISM
COMPLICATED UNIFICATION
PROBLEM OF REGIONALISM
LACK OF SOCIAL SOLIDARITY
NO LIMITS ON PERSONAL FREEDOM
LACK OF STATE CONTROL
Limitations of liberal nationalism
Liberal nationalism has several benefits and has proven
to be vital in the nation-building process, especially in
India. Yet, at the same time, it has certain drawbacks
which can’t certainly be ignored. These limitations act as
hindrances to its universal use.
Complicated Unification
The unification of all communities in a country is a fairly
complicated task. Equality and freedom for the disadvantaged
sections of society might not be acceptable to the upper class as
it would mean sacrificing the privileges they have. This might
further lead to conflicts between the upper class and the poor,
thereby directly hampering the process of unification and nation-
building.
Problem of Regionalism
There was significant use of vernacular languages to promote
liberal nationalism and shun the use of English in all its forms.
However, its ill effect could be growing ‘regionalism’. The
people having the language might discriminate against those
who have another native language by developing the belief
that their language is much superior to all the other languages.
It would lead to increased unification among the people who
have the same mother tongue, but in the long run, it is the
overall unification among the people belonging to different
castes, regions, etc. that is necessary to promote liberal
nationalism.
Lack of Social Solidarity
Liberal nationalism has a major focus on protecting the
rights of refugees by allowing them to immigrate to their
countries. However, the increase in immigration could
further worsen the process of social solidarity as different
communities might develop. Conflicts between them might
rise as the migrant community might not be easily accepted
by the others in society.
No Limits On Personal Freedom
Liberal nationalism calls for personal freedom for all.
However, it doesn’t lay down the extent to which it should
be practiced. This might create some problems because the
freedom of one might cause distress to the other.
Uncontrolled freedom and autonomy are also not good for
any nation. This could also lead to conflicts. Hence, this
non-fixation of the limit to which a person should exercise
his/her freedom could be extremely harmful for any nation.
Lack of State Control
Liberal nationalism focuses to a large extent on the abolition of
all trade barriers and state control. This is also one of the key
features of ‘liberalism’. However, completely preventing the
state from controlling the market could defeat the welfare
purpose of liberal nationalism itself. The resources would be
allocated according to the market forces, and the poorer
sections wouldn’t be able to improve their conditions.
Secondly, if the market crashes, all the people would have to
suffer its adverse consequences, and they might be deprived
of their basic rights.

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LIBERAL

Liberals have advocated gender and

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