Left-Libertarianism

Left-libertarianism is a family of views that share the libertarian commitment to individual freedom while also caring strongly about equality. In academic political philosophy, the term usually means a theory holding that people fully own themselves, but that land, minerals and other natural resources were not created by anyone and so belong to all people in some equal way. Those who use more than their fair share of natural resources may owe something to others, which can justify a fund or basic income. In wider use, the term is also applied to anti-state thinkers who oppose concentrated power of all kinds, including corporate power. It should not be confused with libertarian socialism, although the two overlap.

Ideas behind left-libertarianism can be traced to John Locke's condition that people may take resources from nature only if they leave enough and as good for others. Thomas Paine, in Agrarian Justice (1797), argued that because the earth was common property, landowners owed a payment to everyone, to fund grants to young adults and pensions. Henry George, in Progress and Poverty (1879), proposed a single tax on land values. Nineteenth century American individualist anarchists, such as Benjamin Tucker, criticized both the state and the privileges that protected large capitalists. From the 1970s onward, philosophers developed left-libertarianism as a formal theory that responded to Robert Nozick's defense of property rights by questioning how natural resources can first become private property.

Philosophical left-libertarians focus on equal shares of natural resources and often support a basic income financed by taxes on land or resources. Geolibertarians, inspired by Henry George, support a land value tax but otherwise free markets. Left market anarchists argue that truly freed markets, without state favors, would reduce inequality and corporate power. Some writers also use the term for libertarian socialists, who reject both the state and capitalist ownership.

Critics among right-libertarians argue that treating natural resources as common property gives the state a reason to tax and redistribute, which undermines the libertarian case for limited government. They also argue that it is hard to measure a fair share of resources. Critics on the socialist left argue that left-libertarianism still accepts too much private property and market inequality, and that self-ownership is an unhelpful starting point. Some egalitarian philosophers argue that full self-ownership would block help for people with disabilities or illness.

No government follows left-libertarian theory as a whole, but related ideas appear in real policies. The Alaska Permanent Fund, which pays annual dividends to residents from oil revenues, is often cited as an example of sharing resource wealth. Land value taxes exist in some places, and basic income experiments have been run in several countries. Left-libertarian ideas also appear in campaigns for civil liberties, drug policy reform and opposition to corporate subsidies.