Neoclassical liberalism (alternatively spelledneo-classical liberalism[a] or known asnew classical liberalism[b]) is a tradition of theliberal thought that, with the premises ofJohn Locke'sclassical liberalism applied toindustrialized societies, stands in opposition to thewelfare state andsocial liberalism.[1]: 124–125 [2]: 596
In theUnited States, the Arizona School of liberalism, also referred to as "bleeding-heart libertarianism", adopted the term neoclassical liberal to advance certain ideas ofChicago School economistMilton Friedman within theAmerican libertarian movement, including theschool voucher system and thenegative income tax.[3][4]: 571–572
In the late 19th century,the rise of social liberalism, championed byThomas Hill Green, sparked a division within the liberal movement. On one side were the social liberals (also known as welfare liberals[c]), who advocated for a more interventionist state andsocial justice based approach. On the other side, a faction of liberals remained committed tolaissez-faire economics.Even in the face of industrialization[d], neoclassical liberals contended that their understanding of liberalism, as outlined by the British philosopher John Locke in hisSecond Treatise of Government of 1690, remained the most effective approach for addressing social and economic concerns.[2]: 596–597
British sociologistHerbert Spencer introduced the concept of "survival of the fittest". In his publication titledThe Proper Sphere of Government, Spencer contended that individuals possess only twonatural rights: theright to life and theright to property. Similar to the views of AmericanWilliam Graham Sumner, Spencer held the belief that governmental involvement in economic matters (referred to asofficialism) would result insocial parasitism to the detriment of the working population. Consequently, he was against trade regulations,public schooling,state-sponsored religions,social welfare, andstate-ownedtransportation systems.[2]: 597
American social scientist William G. Sumner contended that theproper role of government was the protection of "the property of men and the honor of women", government was to be a rationalistic response of individuals to defend property rights and the purpose was to be merely "contractualistic".[2]: 600
Neoclassical liberalism re-emerged mainly in thepost-World War II era, whenmodern liberalism was the main form of liberalism andKeynesianism andsocial democracy were the dominant ideologies in theWestern world.[5]: 43 AfterFranklin Delano Roosevelt'sNew Deal (1933–1944), which contributed to the expansion of the welfare state in the United States, economists such asFriedrich von Hayek (1899–1992) andMilton Friedman (1912–2006) began to reintroduce neoclassical liberal policies as alternatives to Roosevelt's social liberalism.[6]: 556
TheU.S. libertarian movement of the late 20th century is seen as a successor to neoclassical liberalism.[2]: 603 According to Ellen Grigsby, arguments of contemporary neoclassical liberal thought are present in the philosophy ofRobert Nozick and in the party platform of the AmericanLibertarian Party.[2]: 603
Contemporary neoclassical liberals have tried to expunge thesocial Darwinistic implications of neoclassical liberal theory, the legacy of Spencer and Sumner, although they continue to advocate on behalf of the benefits of minimal state intervention and liberty for self-interested individuals.[2]: 603
Neoclassical liberalism, as understood by the "Arizona School liberalism"[7][8][9] or "bleeding-heart libertarians",[10] is alibertarianpolitical philosophy[9] that focuses on the compatibility of support forcivil liberties andfree markets on the one hand and a concern forsocial justice and the well-being of the worst-off on the other. Adherents of neoclassical liberalism broadly hold that an agenda focused uponindividual liberty will be of most benefit to the economically weak andsocially disadvantaged.[11][12]
The first known use of the term "Arizona School" was byAndrew Sabl, introducing David Schmidtz at a UCLA Department Colloquium in 2012.[citation needed] Upon being pressed to define "Arizona School" Sabl said the school is broadly libertarian but that its most distinguishing characteristic is that it produces political philosophy that aims to be observation-based and empirically accountable. The first recorded use of the termbleeding-heart libertarian seems to have been in a 1996 essay byRoderick T. Long.[13] It was subsequently used in ablog post by Stefan Sharkansky[14] and later picked up and elaborated on byArnold Kling in an article forTCS Daily.[15] Since then, the term has been used sporadically by a number of libertarian writers includingAnthony Gregory[16] andBryan Caplan.[17]
In March 2011, a group of academic philosophers, political theorists and economists created the Bleeding Heart Libertarians blog.[10] Regular contributors to the blog includedFernando Tesón,Gary Chartier,Jason Brennan, Matt Zwolinski, Roderick T. Long, andSteven Horwitz.
EconomistDavid D. Friedman has been critical of the movement, stating that bleeding-heart libertarians "...insist that social justice ought to be part of libertarianism but are unwilling to tell us what it means."[18]
On 1 June 2020, co-founder Matt Zwolinski announced in a post titled "The End" that the Bleeding Heart Libertarians website would cease publishing new material. Zwolinski wrote that the blog’s "initial mission of publicizing the connection between free markets and social justice has been largely accomplished," adding that the archive would remain online so researchers and readers could continue to consult past entries, but that no further posts would appear.[19]Reason magazine reported that "one of the most influential libertarian blogs on the internet has come to an end," while noting that most of the site’s contributors planned to keep writing for other outlets.[20]
Zwolinski later argued that, contrary to the blog’s early hopes, discourse around the nexus of free markets and social justice had actually regressed, asalt-right rhetoric increasingly crowded out libertarian perspectives. Describing this trend as a "deterioration," he relaunched the project in 2023 on theSubstack platform as a solo newsletter under the same banner, The Bleeding Heart Libertarian.[21]
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