What does the word "Socialism" really mean??

Lately, I've been seeing this word, "socialism", being used often as a negative connotations. My question about this such word, why is it a negative if Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Rachel Carson, Ghandi, Mother Teresa, Dalai Lama, Bill Gates, Muhammand Ali or Al Gore are the ones who are the very example of socialism? What does socialism really means? According a few sources, definition and examples of socialism:

"Socialism refers to a broad array of doctrines or political movements that envisage a socio-economic system in which property and the distribution of wealth are subject to control by the community for the purposes of increasing social and economic equality and cooperation. This control may be either direct—exercised through popular collectives such as workers' councils—or indirect—exercised on behalf of the people by the state. As an economic system, socialism is often characterized by socialized (state or community) ownership of the means of production." (1)

"The Party formed strong alliances with a number of labor organizations, because of their similar goals. In an attempt to rebel against the abuses of corporations, workers had found a solution–or so they thought–in a technique known as collective bargaining. By banding together into “unions” and refusing to work, or “striking,” workers would halt production at a plant or in a mine, forcing management to meet their demands. From Daniel De Leon’s early proposal to organize unions with a Socialist purpose, the two movements became closely tied. One major ideal they had in common was the spirit of collectivism: both in the Socialist platform and in the idea of collective bargaining." (2)

"Aside from military, the Socialists would meet harsh political opposition as well when exercising their First Amendment right. On April 7, 1917, the day after the United States entered World War I, an emergency convention of the Socialist party was held in St. Louis. They declared the war “a crime against the people of the United States” (Zinn, 1980, p. 355) and began holding anti-war rallies. Socialist anti-draft demonstrations drew as many as 20,000 (Zinn, 1980, p. 356)." (2)

During the decline of Socialism:

“When the twenties began… the IWW was destroyed, the Socialist party falling apart. The strikes were beaten down by force, and the economy was doing just well enough for just enough people to prevent mass rebellion” (Zinn, 1980, p. 373). Thus the decline of the Socialist movement during the early 20th century was the result of a number of constrictions and attacks from several directions:

The Socialists had lost a major ally in the Wobblies, and their free speech had been restricted, if not denied. Immigrants, a major base of the Socialist movement, were discriminated against and looked down upon. Eugene V. Debs—the once charismatic leader of the Socialists—was in prison, along with hundreds of fellow dissenters. Wilson’s National War Labor Board and a number of legislative acts had ameliorated the plight of the workers. Now, the Socialists were regarded as being unnecessary, the “lunatic fringe,” and a group of untrustworthy radicals. The public, the courts, and Congress exhibited prejudice against them. After crippling schisms within the party and a change in public opinion due to the Palmer Raids and the press, the Socialist party found itself unable to gather popular support.

The Party would reach its peak in 1912. At one time, it boasted 33 city mayors and several seats in state legislatures (Tindall et al, 1984, p. 838). When running for President in 1912, Eugene V. Debs won 6% of the popular vote. But, in the past 92 years, the party has not even mustered 4%" (2)

In addition, I wonder what "Left-Wing" really means...here's what I found:

" In politics, left-wing, the political left or simply the left are terms that refer to the segment of the political spectrum typically associated with any of several strains of, to varying extents, liberism, socialism, green politics, anarchism, communism, social democracy, progressivsm, American liberalism or social liberalism, and defined in contradistinction to its polar opposite, the Right." (3)

Left-wing issues

"The left has traditionally been concerned with the lower classes and with combating oppression. Thus the industrial revolution saw left-wing politics become associated with the conditions and rights of workers in the new industries. This led to movements around social democracy, socialism and trade unionism. More recently, the left has criticized what it perceives as the exploitative nature of current forms of globalization, e.g. the rise of sweatshops and the "race to the bottom", and either has sought to promote more just forms of globalizations, such as fair trade, or has sought to allow nation-states to "delink" or break free of the global economy."

"As civil and human rights gained more attention during the twentieth century, the left allied itself with advocates of racial and gender equality and cultural tolerance. Most of the left has been opposed to imperialism, colonialism and war, and much of the left has allied itself to movements for national self-determination, especially in the colonial world. The left has also been both challenged and renewed in the later twentieth century through the emergence of the new social movements, such as the nuclear disarmament, feminist and green movements." (3)


Source Links:
(1) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socialism
(2) http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/Socialism+in+the+USA
(3) http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/leftism