liberty

On Liberty, an essay (1859) by British philosopher John Stuart Mill. A work that has inspired civil libertarians around the world, it examines the relationship between the rights of the individual and the power of the state. Mill argues for freedom of thought and expression, asserting that the only valid restrictions on the rights of individuals are those that protect the rights of others.

Liberty Leading the People, a painting (1830) by French artist Eugène Delacroix. Inspired by a scene witnessed by Delacroix during the antimonarchist uprisings in Paris in 1830, this mixture of allegory and realism shows a young woman leading a ragged band of rebels over razed barricades. Delacroix's declaration of solidarity with the revolutionary cause is also a powerful symbol of freedom and the struggle against oppression. The painting is sometimes called Liberty on the Barricades.