That is, anarchism arose as a cross between socialism and liberalism, incorporating the anti-capitalist attitude of
socialists and the anti-statist, what would today be called
libertarian, attitude of
classical liberalism.
Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, who is often considered the father of modern anarchism, coined the phrase "
Property is theft" to describe part of his view on the complex nature of ownership in relation to freedom. When he said property is theft, he was referring to the capitalist who he believed stole profit from laborers. For Proudhon, the capitalist's employee was "subordinated, exploited: his permanent condition is one of obedience."
[39]
Seventeen years (1857) after Proudhon first called himself an anarchist (1840), anarchist communist
Joseph Déjacque was the first person to describe himself as a libertarian.
[40] Outside the United States, "libertarian" generally refers to anti-authoritarian
anti-capitalist ideologies.
[41] For these reasons the term "libertarian socialism" is today almost synonymous with anarchism, outside of the US the term "libertarian socialism" would be considered redundant.
Back in the United States,
Henry George spearheaded the
Single Tax Movement, which sought socialism via progressive taxation, with tax only on natural resources. This might be seen as a predecessor to libertarian socialism trends there.
Libertarian socialism has its roots in both classical liberalism and socialism, though it is often in conflict with liberalism (especially
neoliberalism and
right-libertarianism) and authoritarian
State socialism simultaneously. While libertarian socialism has roots in both socialism and liberalism, different forms have different levels of influence from the two traditions. For instance
mutualist anarchism is more influenced by liberalism while
communist and
syndicalist anarchism are more influenced by socialism. It is interesting to note, however, that mutualist anarchism has its origins in 18th and 19th century European socialism (such as
Fourierian socialism)
[42][43] while communist and syndicalist anarchism has its earliest origins in early 18th century liberalism (such as the
French Revolution).
[44]
