A detailed note of Liberty

Liberty is broadly classified into two ideologies. Positive liberty means that a person can make decisions freely in broader aspects of society. The agency marks the individual dimensions in the decision-making processes. This concept co-exists with liberty as every entity must free himself from reticence if he wants to be independent. Racism, ageism, sexism, and all other sorts of discrimination discourage a man’s positive liberty. Sociologists define liberty as the birthright of citizens to take part in the election and declare their opinions, needs, and wants so that necessary actions can be taken by the community at a later stage. Negative liberty is a different concept. It is more of an individual ability to claim independence from other influential individuals. Negative liberty restricts exterior moderation and encourages the growth of one’s full capability. Its nature is contrasting to that of positive liberty. There is a thin line of distinction between freedom and liberty in Philosophy. The latter concept nullifies arbitrary restrictions by prioritizing a person’s fundamental rights. Freedom comes with a wider range of decisions. In simple terms, we may conclude liberty is accountable enjoyment of freedom without depriving other citizens of their rights. 

Roots of Liberty 

Liberty emerged as a political concept from the ancient backdrop of slavery and freedom. The Greek slaves must free themselves from their owners to achieve freedom. The free men in the Greek society had voting rights while the women were deprived of democracy. 

Right to liberty even existed in the Persian empire. The subjects representing various ethnic backgrounds and religions got to exercise the same set of virtues. By 550 B. C. slavery was completely banned and women enjoyed equal rights as men in the society. 

The medieval Roman Empire exhibited liberty to a small extent. The right to liberty was only allotted to the Roman origins. The war prisoners and slaves had no liberty. The noble class exploited slaves in every possible way which ultimately caused their downfall. 

Equality and liberty co-existed in India since the ancient Mughal era. The moral status of each ethnic class was equally valued. Emperor Ashoka abolished the inhuman execution of war prisoners to enforce equality throughout his realm. There was no slavery in the golden era of the Guptas and the Mauryas. 

Key Principles of Liberty 

1. Liberalism: In politics where an individual can defend himself, sue others, lodge complaints, etc., he is said to have been delegated the freedom of choice. Liberalism deals with numerous social issues by empowering individuals with freedom of choice. Certain elements are taken under consideration before enacting liberty. The background of the concerned person is checked, his rights are perceived and finally, the limiting boundaries are set. Liberalism promotes the free will of the society as a whole in return for which they expect their liberty. 
2. Libertarianism: The core motive of all libertarians is to augment political freedom or autonomy. Libertarian institutions present varying views regarding the law structure which is intended to regulate social events. The origin of Libertarianism can be traced back to the inception of left-wing politics. It is a non-aggression ideology that takes strict legal actions against crimes that evoke aggression, for example, involuntary taxation. 
3. Socialism: This principle defines liberty as a practical concept. The liberty should be able to protect one’s willingness to spend time on his interests. The socialist idea of liberty is closely associated with the communist perspective of originality and functionality. 
4. Anarchism: Anarchists stand against the state authority of capitalism. To them, liberty is a concrete concept that ensures equal opportunities for everyone. According to the principles of anarchism, liberty is solemnized in a social setting as it can never be an individual right. Though the modern concept also has a negative wing where individual concerns are given priority over divine social affairs. 
5. Republican state of liberty: According to the statue of liberty, a person himself must represent a republic. His actions must be influenced by his own decisions. He must not interfere with or restrict the freedom of others to fulfill his objectives. The republican state of liberty is inspired by the theories of Italian diplomat Machiavelli who lived during the Renaissance period. 

Conclusion 

Liberty is the birthright of each citizen. The state of liberty never interferes with the community affairs irrespective of the ethnic group it represents. Terms of liberty are restricted in the Constitution to protect the interests of all religious, social, and linguistic classes.