Liberalism (Fred Speaking)
						MAIN PATH: John
			John				Dee

Historically what Malik is saying is true. But is it fair to hold liberalism responsible for all of it? I don't think so. We've got to keep two things in mind:

• We should separate people from ideas. Thomas Jefferson owned slaves. In that he was morally wrong. He also failed to live up to his ideals. Not to have planned things so that he could free his slaves when he died is astounding. But that was his personal failure, not a failure of liberalism or liberal society.
  

• Some of the problems you have identified are not problems of liberalism or liberal society. They were possible precisely because we didn't have a fully liberal society. Take slavery for example. No form of 19^th century liberalism advocated slavery. Slavery isn't part of liberal society at all, and it is unfair to blame liberalism for it. The most famous 19^th century liberal, J.S. Mill, was deeply opposed to slavery and strongly supported the North in the American civil war.

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