Propaganda: Language is a Key Mechanism of Control

One of the most revealing developments lately in the English language, is the conversion of the word "Liberal" to a nasty word that nobody wants to be labelled by.

Back in the 50's this is what Liberal meant:

Showing or characterized by broad-mindedness;
Having political or social views favoring reform and progress;
Tolerant of change; not bound by authoritarianism, orthodoxy, or tradition;
A person who favors a political philosophy of progress and reform and the protection of civil liberties;

So what changed? Today, at least in the USA (and Alberta), Liberals will not come out of the closet unless they are being water-boarded into a confession. Somebody is more likely to admit to being gay than being a liberal.

The new definition of Liberal is

lazy, a baby-killer, a homosexual, someone living off the backs of hard working conservatives.
pompous; intellectual; elitist.
Full of cowardice (fear of guns and war), lack of moral compass.

Is it any wonder that Liberals are ducking the whole issue, calling themselves "Progressives" instead?

There is indeed a history to the conversion of this word's meaning. Although liberals long ago were responsible for abolishing slavery, the meaning of the word liberal began to get a new twist after the Civil Rights movement in the sixties. Here, Liberals tried to end segregation in the southern USA. (A system of separating the blacks and whites.)

The Southern Whites, favoured keeping their old racial system, but were forced by the US army reserves, under orders from Washington, to give up segregation. Several people were killed, things got very violent. Some southerners, particularly Governor George Wallace, started a campaign of rhetoric against what he called "Liberals", who caused this problem. It was understood by southern whites that northern white liberals were pushing for desegregation, and were more to blame than the blacks.

This was the beginning of a campaign by southern whites to regain political control in Washington. The campaign grew over the next few decades, finally culminating southern conservatives taking over the Republican party, with the support of the southern Christian Baptists.

By the early nineties, the only thing that stood between the southern white coalition and total power was Bill Clinton. Newt Gingrich, a southern conservative Republican representative, began a campaign of slander against Bill Clinton and all liberals, accusing them of treason, in his famous 1996 GOPAC memo, which is a study in the meaning of words:

link to the memo here

Finally, with the ascension of George W. Bush as President of the USA, the southern conservative coalition had completed their climb to power. It was payback time for the bad things the Liberals did back in the sixties. Fox TV revelled in labelling its detractors "Liberal". Books came out by the likes of Ann Coulter - one of hers was "Godless: The Church of Liberalism". Even if George Bush himself did not feel it, millions of his most rabid supporters in the southern USA certainly did.

I'm not trying to defend Liberals here, just noting the use of language in furthering a campaign of propaganda. You may think you have freedom of speech, but what if the very words you need to use have been taken away from you? What you are allowed to say is in the hands of those who can control the meaning of the words.