Few countries are governed by anarchists or by strict libertarians. Yet ideas from both traditions run through modern life, often in places where nobody uses either label.

Decentralization

Anarchists have always argued that decisions should be made as close as possible to the people affected, through federations rather than central command. A related principle, subsidiarity, holds that decisions should be made at the most local level able to handle them. It was developed in Catholic social teaching and now appears in the treaties of the European Union. Participatory budgeting, begun in the Brazilian city of Porto Alegre in 1989, lets residents decide directly how part of a city's budget is spent. Neither is anarchist, but both echo the anarchist preference for local self-government. Libertarians make a related case for federalism: when states or cities set different policies, people can compare results and move to places whose rules they prefer.

Voluntary association

Both left and right anti-statists prize associations people freely join and leave. Cooperatives, owned and run by their members, form a worldwide movement. Open-source software, such as the Linux operating system begun in 1991, and Wikipedia, launched in 2001, show large projects built by voluntary cooperation without central command, though both developed their own rules and leaders.

Anarchist groups have long tried to practice prefigurative politics: organizing now in ways that reflect the society they hope to build, for example by making decisions by consensus. In a famous 1970s essay, The Tyranny of Structurelessness, the feminist writer Jo Freeman argued that groups without formal structure often develop hidden, unaccountable leaders, a warning such groups still discuss.

Civil liberties

Anarchists fought many early battles for free speech, because their own meetings and newspapers were banned. Emma Goldman lectured on free expression across America. Roger Baldwin, a founder of the American Civil Liberties Union in 1920, credited Goldman's influence on his thinking. Libertarians, for their part, are prominent defenders of free expression, privacy and due process. The economist Milton Friedman served on the presidential commission whose recommendations helped end the US military draft in 1973.

Mutual aid networks

Kropotkin's phrase has found new life. Groups such as Food Not Bombs, founded in 1980, share free food and are often anarchist-inspired. During disasters and the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, many neighborhoods formed mutual aid networks: neighbors organizing to meet each other's needs directly and voluntarily, delivering groceries, medicine and information. Many participants had never read Kropotkin. Supporters praise such networks for speed and dignity, since people ask neighbors rather than fill out forms; skeptics note that they can fade once the crisis passes and may reach only people already connected to the organizers.

Libertarian ideas in policy

Libertarian arguments feature in debates about occupational licensing, the regulation of new technologies and the limits of state surveillance. The economist Milton Friedman argued that many licensing rules protect existing practitioners from competition more than they protect the public, a point some economists across the spectrum accept for certain trades. Critics of libertarianism warn about the costs of weakened public institutions; libertarians warn about the costs of concentrated power. Both are pointing at real risks.

Keeping the question alive

Perhaps the lasting contribution of these traditions is the question this course began with. Even people who reject anarchism can ask of any law or institution: who gave it authority, does it serve the people it governs, and could voluntary cooperation do the job better? Asking that question regularly is a habit worth keeping in any democracy.

Worked example: starting a neighborhood mutual aid network

Suppose a winter storm knocks out power across a neighborhood for a week. A few residents decide to start a mutual aid network. What does this course suggest about doing it well?

• Voluntary and direct. Neighbors sign up to offer help (a warm room, a car, a generator) or to ask for it. Help goes person to person, without forms or eligibility tests. This is mutual aid in Kropotkin's sense: solidarity, not charity from above.
• Decentralized. Rather than one coordinator for the whole area, each block has a contact person. Decisions about local needs are made locally, which is subsidiarity in practice.
• Some structure. Remembering Jo Freeman's warning, the group writes down who handles what and how decisions are made, and rotates roles, so a few confident people do not quietly become unaccountable leaders.
• Safety and limits. Volunteers check on people in pairs, keep personal information private and know when to call emergency services. Voluntary networks complement public services; they do not need to pretend to replace hospitals or fire departments.
• Working with others. Some members want nothing to do with local government; others want to pass information to the city. A healthy network lets people disagree on philosophy while agreeing on the practical work.

When the power returns, the group decides whether to continue. Many such networks fade; some become lasting institutions such as food pantries or tool libraries. Either way, residents have practiced the habits anarchists and libertarians prize: voluntary association, local initiative and asking who should decide.