The red rose, a symbol of social democracy
Social democracy is a political ideology that supports economic and social intervention in the government to promote social justice, while also upholding an economic system of capitalism. Unlike democratic socialism, social democracy supports the reformation of capitalism and not its abolition, and it seeks to create an egalitarian and solidaristic country through creating conditions for capitalism. The Third Way can be associated with social democracy, as it is a compromise between socialism and liberalism.
Social democracy originated with the teachings of the French philosopher Ferdinand Lassalle during the 19th century, and it broke away from hardline socialism to become a moderate leftist ideology. Social democracy became the prevalent ideology in Europe after World War II's end in 1945, and many countries achieved the establishment of a welfare state that provided free education, free healthcare, and collective bargaining rights for workers. In the United States, some people within the US Democratic Party sought to move towards social democracy, with the socialist candidate Bernie Sanders advocating national healthcare and free public college education during the 2016 presidential election. Social democracy has been controversial in many countries, as it has been unfavorably compared to communism and socialism by supporters of a capitalist, free market economy, while its proponents argue that it is a moderate version of socialism that represents the people, protecting their rights to practice capitalism while also ensuring that the wealthy did not take advantage of the less-fortunate.