# Anti-statism

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{{Short description|Opposition to state intervention}}
{{distinguish|Anti-authoritarianism}}
{{anarchism sidebar|related}}

'''Anti-statism''' is an approach to [social](/source/Social_philosophy), [economic](/source/Economic_ideology) or [political philosophy](/source/political_philosophy) that opposes the influence of the [state](/source/State_(polity)) over [society](/source/society). It emerged in reaction to the formation of modern [sovereign state](/source/sovereign_state)s, which anti-statists considered to work against the interests of the people. 

During the 19th century, [anarchists](/source/anarchists) formulated a critique of the state that upheld the inherently [cooperative](/source/cooperation) and [decentralised](/source/decentralised) aspects of human society. In the 20th century, anti-state [neoliberals](/source/neoliberals) sought to cut state investment in the [public sector](/source/public_sector) and expand investment in the [private sector](/source/private_sector). Other anti-state social movements sought to overthrow states through [guerrilla warfare](/source/guerrilla_warfare) or [limit](/source/limited_government) states by establishing autonomous [local institutions](/source/local_institutions).

==Background==
The modern conception of the [sovereign state](/source/sovereign_state) emerged in the wake of the [Peace of Westphalia](/source/Peace_of_Westphalia), which defined the rights, obligations and boundaries of states, replacing the old system of [feudalism](/source/feudalism). The consolidation of these new European states was supported by the concurrent rise of [colonialism](/source/colonialism) and [mercantile capitalism](/source/Mercantilism), which built an economic base for sovereign states to establish a [monopoly on violence](/source/monopoly_on_violence) and organise a [bureaucracy](/source/bureaucracy).{{Sfn|Gallaher|2009|p=260}} Anti-statist tendencies were constituted to critique and oppose the modern bureaucratic state, which anti-statism considers to be inherently [tyrannical](/source/tyrannical) and to act against individual [liberty](/source/liberty).{{Sfn|Gallaher|2009|pp=260-261}}

==Development==
A formalised opposition to the modern sovereign state began to emerge during the 19th century, as various political tendencies started arguing that states worked in counter to people's "natural tendency" towards [decentralisation](/source/decentralisation). These anti-statists argued that [centralisation](/source/centralisation) promoted state interests and subordinated popular interests, and considered the main motivation of states to be [territorial expansion](/source/territorial_expansion), which they believed would inevitably result in inter-state [war](/source/war).{{Sfn|Gallaher|2009|p=261}} Among the first to formalize a complete theory of anti-statism were [Karl Marx](/source/Karl_Marx) and [Friedrich Engels](/source/Friedrich_Engels), who in their work ''[The Communist Manifesto](/source/The_Communist_Manifesto)'', written during the [Revolutions of 1848](/source/Revolutions_of_1848), argued that the [capitalist state](/source/capitalist_state) operated against the interests of the [working class](/source/working_class) and called for a [revolution](/source/revolution) to overthrow existing states and establish a [free association of producers](/source/free_association_of_producers) in their place.{{Sfn|Gallaher|2009|p=261}} 

One branch of anti-statism soon developed into the political philosophy of [anarchism](/source/anarchism), which through the works of [Peter Kropotkin](/source/Peter_Kropotkin) and [Elisée Reclus](/source/Elis%C3%A9e_Reclus), constituted a [naturalist](/source/Naturalism_(philosophy)) argument against the state.{{Sfn|Gallaher|2009|pp=261-262}} Kropotkin theorised that [human evolution](/source/human_evolution) had been driven by a process of [mutual aid](/source/mutual_aid) and that humanity's natural tendency towards [cooperation](/source/cooperation) had thus influenced its [sociocultural evolution](/source/sociocultural_evolution).{{Sfn|Gallaher|2009|p=262}} Kropotkin believed that [capitalism](/source/capitalism) and [statism](/source/statism) acted against human society's natural tendency towards cooperation and decentralisation, and viewed the territorial expansionism of modern states, including that of the [Russian Soviet Republic](/source/Russian_Soviet_Republic), as antithetical to [human geography](/source/human_geography).{{Sfn|Gallaher|2009|pp=262-263}} Reclus likewise criticised state [border](/source/border)s as inherently "artificial" as they did not tend to corresponded with [natural region](/source/natural_region)s, and saw violent conflict as an inevitable consequence of a state's territorial expansionism, which he criticised as pitting humanity against nature.{{Sfn|Gallaher|2009|p=263}}

In the 20th century, anti-statism evolved in two directions, one that sought to "hollow out the state" and another that sought to create a movement to overthrow the state.{{Sfn|Gallaher|2009|p=263}} The former tendency coagulated into [neoliberalism](/source/neoliberalism), which aimed to undo [Keynesian](/source/Keynesian) reforms by cutting state investment in [public infrastructure](/source/public_infrastructure) and [welfare](/source/welfare_spending) and instituting [deregulation](/source/deregulation), rather than abolishing the state entirely. Neoliberals tend to advocate for ''[laissez-faire](/source/laissez-faire)'' economics, preferring to invest in the [private sector](/source/private_sector) rather than the [public sector](/source/public_sector), as they think the former will provide a greater benefit to society than the latter.{{Sfn|Gallaher|2009|pp=263-264}} 

In contrast, anti-statist social movements can seek to either [limit](/source/limited_government) or eliminate the influence of the state, either through violent or non-violent means. Some carry out [guerrilla warfare](/source/guerrilla_warfare) against the state, while others attempt to establish a form of [autonomy](/source/autonomy) from the state or decentralise power to [local institutions](/source/local_institutions). In many cases, these social movements emerged in reaction against the policies of neoliberalism, as fewer people felt invested in a state that was increasingly divesting from the public sector.{{Sfn|Gallaher|2009|p=264}}

==See also==
*[Anti-politics](/source/Anti-politics)
*[Anti-system politics](/source/Anti-system_politics)

== References ==
{{reflist|2}}

==Bibliography==
{{refbegin|2}}
*{{cite book|last=Cudworth|first=Erika|year=2007|chapter=Anarchism: the Politics of Anti-Statism|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Pr8tAAAAYAAJ|editor-first1=Erika|editor-last1=Cudworth|editor-first2=Timothy|editor-last2=Hall|editor-first3=John|editor-last3=McGovern|title=The Modern State: Theories and Ideologies|publisher=[Edinburgh University Press](/source/Edinburgh_University_Press)|isbn=978-0-7486-2176-7|doi=10.1515/9780748629565-008|pages=137–158}}
*{{cite book|last=Gallaher|first=Carolyn|author-link=Carolyn Gallaher|chapter=Anti-Statism|editor-last1=Gallaher|editor-first1=Carolyn|editor-last2=Dahlman|editor-first2=Carl T.|editor-last3=Gilmartin|editor-first3=Mary|editor-last4=Mountz|editor-first4=Alison|editor-last5=Shirlow|editor-first5=Peter|year=2009|title=Key Concepts in Political Geography|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/keyconceptsinpol0000unse/page/260/|publisher=[SAGE](/source/Sage_Publishing)|pages=260–271|isbn=978-1-4129-4672-8}}
{{refend}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin|2}}
*{{cite book|last=Carter|first=April|author-link=April Carter|title=The Political Theory of Anarchism|url=https://archive.org/details/politicaltheoryo0000cart|year=1971|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-415-55593-7}} <!--pp. 56, 76 -->
*{{cite book|last=Cockburn|first=Cynthia|year=2012|title=Antimilitarism: Political and Gender Dynamics of Peace Movements|location=London|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=978-0230359758}}
*{{cite book|url=http://www.ppu.org.uk/e_publications/dd-trad8.html#anarch%20and%20violence|title=Resisting the Nation State: The Pacifist and Anarchist Tradition|last=Ostergaard|first=Geoffrey|publisher=Peace Pledge|access-date=2019-11-27|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110514052437/http://www.ppu.org.uk/e_publications/dd-trad8.html#anarch%20and%20violence|archive-date=2011-05-14|url-status=dead}}
{{refend}}

{{anarchism}}
{{libertarianism}}

Category:Anarchist theory
Statism
Category:Libertarianism
Category:Libertarian theory
Category:Statism
Category:Anarchist terminology

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Anti-statism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-statism) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-statism?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.