Context
As a heritage institution, Liberas links the history of the ideal of freedom to eight interwoven relationships: freedom and expression, freedom and thought, freedom and association, freedom and education, freedom and democracy, freedom and human rights, freedom and entrepreneurship, and freedom and defence.
The first four relational fields refer to crucial individual freedoms that are anchored in the Belgian constitution and should be hindered as little as possible by the state: freedom of religion and expression, freedom of education, freedom of the press and freedom of association. With regard to the interpretation of the constitutional freedom of education, Belgian liberals have argued throughout history for an (emancipatory) public education that functions under the exclusive power of the public authorities.
‘Freedom and democracy’, ‘Freedom and human rights’ and ‘Freedom and entrepreneurship’ refer to liberal principles included in international charters. Through its collections and research projects, Liberas documents and studies the essential role of liberal democracy, as expressed in the Oxford Manifesto (1947), within the Belgian context, to achieve all previous freedom provisions and universal human rights, as expressed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948).
‘Freedom and defence’ refers to the role of a military apparatus to defend freedoms and human rights if necessary.
This clustering around freedoms arises from the profile of the current Liberas collection, but also aims to provide space for collection development around new themes within the ideal of freedom in all its facets.
Themes and areas of expertise
Liberas’ research aims to gain and share insights into the historical evolution and social embedding of various facets of the ideal of freedom in Flanders/Belgium against the background of a broader European perspective. The Liberas research team conducts historical research into the cultural heritage formed by the liberal movement and individuals, associations and initiatives that are committed to the defence and promotion of free thought and action, from the nineteenth century to the present.
This research starts from our own collection and/or from themes that are defined in each policy period. In addition, archivists and community outreach coordinators are also committed to presenting the collection for research purposes at the intersection between collection management, research and public relations.
Within the relational fields that run transversally through the working of Liberas, Liberas researchers pay particular attention to the following themes in the policy period 2024-2028
The research team also actively supports, facilitates and encourages third-party research that is based on the collections stored in Liberas or that connects with the lines of research that Liberas initiates.