Trickle-downers want you to believe that in America, freedom is a narrow ideaâfreedom from taxes, from regulation, from government itself. But what good is that kind of freedom if you canât afford rent, see a doctor, or feed your family?
So, this week weâre revisiting one of our favorite conversationsâour interview with economist Mark Paul about his book, The Ends of Freedom: Reclaiming America's Lost Promise of Economic Rights. In it, he challenges the myth of economic freedom and offers a bold alternative: a 21st-century Economic Bill of Rights. Drawing on the unfinished work of FDR and Martin Luther King Jr., Paul argues that true freedom means more than just being left aloneâit means having access to the basic goods that make life possible: housing, healthcare, education, and a decent job. From the lasting damage of neoliberalism to a vision for a fairer, more humane economy, this conversation reframes what freedom really meansâand what it will take to build an economy that works for everyone.
Mark Paul is an assistant professor at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University and a member of the Rutgers Climate Institute. His work has been featured in publications such as The New York Times, The American Prospect, The Washington Post, and The Financial Times. In 2023, he published his first book, The Ends of Freedom: Reclaiming Americaâs Lost Promise of Economic Rights.
This episode originally aired on May 16, 2023.
Social Media:
@markpaulecon.bsky.social
Further reading:
The Ends of Freedom
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Threads: pitchforkeconomics
Bluesky: @pitchforkeconomics.bsky.social
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon, @NickHanauer, @civicaction
YouTube: @pitchforkeconomics
LinkedIn: Pitchfork Economics
Substack: The Pitch
