Left-libertarianism

Left-libertarianism,^[1]^[2] also known as left-wing libertarianism,^[3] is a political philosophy and type of libertarianism that stresses both individual freedom and social equality. Left-libertarianism represents several related yet distinct approaches to political and social theory. Its classical usage refers to anti-authoritarian varieties of left-wing politics such as anarchism, especially social anarchism,^[4] communalism, and libertarian Marxism, collectively termed libertarian socialism. A portion of the left wing of the green movement, including adherents of Murray Bookchin's social ecology, are also generally considered left-libertarian.

In the United States, left-libertarianism represents the left wing of the libertarian movement,^[4] including the political positions associated with academic philosophers Hillel Steiner, Philippe Van Parijs, and Peter Vallentyne that combine self-ownership with an egalitarian approach to natural resources.^[5] Although libertarianism in the United States has become associated with classical liberalism and minarchism, with right-libertarianism being more known than left-libertarianism,^[6] political usage of the term until then was associated exclusively with anti-capitalism, libertarian socialism, and social anarchism; in most parts of the world, such an association still predominates.^[4]^[7]

Left-libertarians are skeptical of, or fully against, private ownership of natural resources, arguing, in contrast to right-libertarians, that neither claiming nor mixing one's labor with natural resources is enough to generate full private property rights, and they maintain that natural resources should be held in an egalitarian manner, either unowned or owned collectively.^[8] Those left-libertarians who are more lenient towards private property support different property norms and theories, such as usufruct^[9] or under the condition that recompense is offered to the local or even global community, such as the Steiner–Vallentyne school.^[10]^[11] Other currents of thought identified with left-libertarianism include adherents of Henry George's land tax ideas and Pierre-Joseph Proudhon's mutualism, as well as more recent forms of left-wing market anarchism (or market-oriented left-libertarianism).

^ Bookchin, Murray; Biehl, Janet (1997). The Murray Bookchin Reader. New York: Cassell. p. 170.
^ Carlson 2012, p. 1006; Goodway 2006, p. 4; Marshall 2008, p. 641.
^ Spitz, Jean-Fabien (March 2006). "Left-wing libertarianism: equality based on self-ownership". Raisons Politiques. 23 (3). Archived from the original on 23 March 2019. Retrieved 28 November 2019.
^ ^a ^b ^c Long 2012, p. 227.
^ Long 2012, p. 227; Kymlicka 2005, p. 516.
^ Carlson 2012, p. 1009.
^ Bookchin, Murray; Biehl, Janet (1997). The Murray Bookchin Reader. London: Cassell. p. 170. ISBN 0304338737.
^ Carlson, Jennifer D. (2012). "Libertarianism". In Miller, Wilbur R. The social history of crime and punishment in America. London: Sage Publications. p. 1007. ISBN 1412988764. "Left-libertarians disagree with right-libertarians with respect to property rights, arguing instead that individuals have no inherent right to natural resources. Namely, these resources must be treated as collective property that is made available on an egalitarian basis".
^ Carson, Kevin. "An Introduction to Left-Libertarianism". Center for a Stateless Society. Archived from the original on 2019-09-03. Retrieved 2023-01-01.
^ Vallentyne, Peter (March 2009). "Libertarianism". In Zalta, Edward N. (ed.). Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2009 ed.). Stanford, CA: Stanford University. Archived from the original on 6 July 2019. Retrieved 5 March 2010. Libertarianism is committed to full self-ownership. A distinction can be made, however, between right-libertarianism and left-libertarianism, depending on the stance taken on how natural resources can be owned.
^ Narveson, Jan; Trenchard, David (2008). "Left Libertarianism". In Hamowy, Ronald (ed.). The Encyclopedia of Libertarianism. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage; Cato Institute. pp. 288–289. doi:10.4135/9781412965811.n174. ISBN 978-1412965804. LCCN 2008009151. OCLC 750831024. Archived from the original on 2023-01-09. Retrieved 2016-03-18. Left libertarians regard each of us as full self-owners. However, they differ from what we generally understand by the term libertarian in denying the right to private property. We own ourselves, but we do not own nature, at least not as individuals. Left libertarians embrace the view that all natural resources, land, oil, gold, and so on should be held collectively. To the extent that individuals make use of these commonly owned goods, they must do so only with the permission of society, a permission granted only under the proviso that a certain payment for their use be made to society at large.

[Bookchin_1997-1] Bookchin, Murray; Biehl, Janet (1997). The Murray Bookchin Reader. New York: Cassell. p. 170.

[FOOTNOTECarlson20121006Goodway20064Marshall2008641-2] Carlson 2012, p. 1006; Goodway 2006, p. 4; Marshall 2008, p. 641.

[Spitz-3] Spitz, Jean-Fabien (March 2006). "Left-wing libertarianism: equality based on self-ownership". Raisons Politiques. 23 (3). Archived from the original on 23 March 2019. Retrieved 28 November 2019.

[FOOTNOTELong2012227-4] Long 2012, p. 227.

[FOOTNOTELong2012227Kymlicka2005516-5] Long 2012, p. 227; Kymlicka 2005, p. 516.

[FOOTNOTECarlson20121009-6] Carlson 2012, p. 1009.

[bookchinreader-7] Bookchin, Murray; Biehl, Janet (1997). The Murray Bookchin Reader. London: Cassell. p. 170. ISBN 0304338737.

[socialhistory-8] Carlson, Jennifer D. (2012). "Libertarianism". In Miller, Wilbur R. The social history of crime and punishment in America. London: Sage Publications. p. 1007. ISBN 1412988764. "Left-libertarians disagree with right-libertarians with respect to property rights, arguing instead that individuals have no inherent right to natural resources. Namely, these resources must be treated as collective property that is made available on an egalitarian basis".

[Carson-9] Carson, Kevin. "An Introduction to Left-Libertarianism". Center for a Stateless Society. Archived from the original on 2019-09-03. Retrieved 2023-01-01.

[Vallentyne-10] Vallentyne, Peter (March 2009). "Libertarianism". In Zalta, Edward N. (ed.). Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2009 ed.). Stanford, CA: Stanford University. Archived from the original on 6 July 2019. Retrieved 5 March 2010. Libertarianism is committed to full self-ownership. A distinction can be made, however, between right-libertarianism and left-libertarianism, depending on the stance taken on how natural resources can be owned.

[rhteol-11] Narveson, Jan; Trenchard, David (2008). "Left Libertarianism". In Hamowy, Ronald (ed.). The Encyclopedia of Libertarianism. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage; Cato Institute. pp. 288–289. doi:10.4135/9781412965811.n174. ISBN 978-1412965804. LCCN 2008009151. OCLC 750831024. Archived from the original on 2023-01-09. Retrieved 2016-03-18. Left libertarians regard each of us as full self-owners. However, they differ from what we generally understand by the term libertarian in denying the right to private property. We own ourselves, but we do not own nature, at least not as individuals. Left libertarians embrace the view that all natural resources, land, oil, gold, and so on should be held collectively. To the extent that individuals make use of these commonly owned goods, they must do so only with the permission of society, a permission granted only under the proviso that a certain payment for their use be made to society at large.

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