Lysander Spooner Quotes

A collection of quotes by Lysander Spooner.

Lysander Spooner (1808-1887) was an American individualist anarchist, abolitionist, entrepreneur, and legal theorist. Born in Massachusetts, Spooner is best known for his staunch advocacy of individual rights and his critique of government power.

Spooner started his career as a lawyer but became disillusioned with the legal system's ability to uphold justice and protect individual liberties. He began writing and publishing numerous pamphlets and books on legal theory, advocating for natural law and the idea that individuals have the right to protect their own rights and property.

As an abolitionist, Spooner vehemently opposed slavery and actively supported the Underground Railroad. He argued that the U.S. Constitution, when properly interpreted, could be used as a legal instrument to abolish slavery, a position that brought him both admirers and critics.

Spooner was a champion of free-market principles and fiercely opposed monopoly and government intervention in economic affairs. He believed in voluntary associations and viewed competition as essential for ensuring fair and efficient economic systems.

Throughout his life, Spooner also engaged in various entrepreneurial ventures, including starting his own mail delivery service to challenge the government-monopolized postal system.

Lysander Spooner's ideas and writings continue to influence libertarian and anarchist thought to this day. He remains an important figure in American individualist anarchist theory, known for his steadfast commitment to individual liberty and unyielding critique of state power.

That no government, so called, can reasonably be trusted, or

That no government, so called, can reasonably be trusted, or reasonably be supposed to have honest purposes in view, any longer than it depends wholly upon voluntary support.

Lysander Spooner


If the jury have no right to judge of the justice of a law o

If the jury have no right to judge of the justice of a law of the government, they plainly can do nothing to protect the people against the oppressions of the government for there are no oppressions which the government may not authorize by law.

Lysander Spooner

Government

The only security men can have for their political liberty,

The only security men can have for their political liberty, consists in keeping their money in their own pockets.

Lysander Spooner

Money

A man is no less a slave because he is allowed to choose a n

A man is no less a slave because he is allowed to choose a new master once in a term of years.

Lysander Spooner

Slavery

But whether the Constitution really be one thing, or another

But whether the Constitution really be one thing, or another, this much is certain - that it has either authorized such a government as we have had, or has been powerless to prevent it. In either case, it is unfit to exist.

Lysander Spooner

Government