Source 1

The first source is a visual of an anti-war demonstration in the United States. Between the 1950’s and 1970’s, the Vietnam War was being fought as a proxy war in the much bigger conflict, the Cold War. The Vietnam War was the first truly “televised” war, meaning information and updates on the war were available quickly to the masses in America. Thus, a unique environment was created unprecedented by any wars before; Americans were able to form an opinion on the use of American troops and America’s need for involvement in world affairs. In this visual, Americans are seen peacefully practising their freedom to expression by protesting war. They are seen arguing against bombing and drafting their men into the ongoing Vietnam War. Their …show more content…
The former was characterised as a brutal dictator and stood for everything the west perceived as “illiberal” and “undemocratic.” In the source, the cartoonist shows a man that represents America hitting a protestor advocating for peace. Saddam Hussein is seen saying, “That’s always been my philosophy, too!” in reference to America’s shirt which says “Dissent is unpatriotic.” The topic touches a challenging issue liberal governments may face – is speaking out against one’s country unpatriotic? After all, the very fact that liberal governments allow people to disagree with them forms the essence of a free nation. The source emphasizes this point by comparing a American liberalism to a dictatorship and arguing that by oppressing citizens when the speak out, liberal governments lose the very quality that separates them from dictatorships. Thus, the source believes that citizens should be free to criticize their government without fear of being undermined or punished. This is the only way that liberal nations can truly be considered liberal. John Stuart Mill, a British philosopher, would agree with this source. Mill believed that freedom speech was an essential part of liberal societies and that society could only grow through the debate of various ideas and issues.. These very features are being challenged in this source, resulting in the question of how liberal are western liberal democracies? According to the source, there are flaws with the implementation of modern liberalism and until freedom of speech is upheld, America. So, political dissent could be seen as citizens actively participating in their society and hence, as a patriotic action and not an unpatriotic