The Right to Property

For decades, property rights have been under attack across America and Texas. From environmental regulations to zoning ordinances, from business regulations to soda taxes, governments at every level have engaged in a relentless assault on the right to property.

The right to property means the freedom to create, use, dispose, and trade material values. It means the freedom to do with your “stuff” what you choose to do with it.

Many Americans don’t like how others choose to use their property. They don’t like the fact that some property owners choose to erect billboards, cut down trees, allow smoking, or construct a building that “threatens” the fabric of a neighborhood. So, they assemble other like-minded individuals and demand that the government put a halt to such practices.

In each instance, they attempt to justify their actions by citing some allegedly noble cause, such as protecting neighborhoods or enhancing the quality of life. But if their ends are indeed noble, why can’t they be achieved through voluntary, consensual means?

In fact, property rights provide the means by which disagreements can be resolved voluntarily and consensually. The owner of a parcel of property has the moral right to determine its use, and this is true whether it is a private residence or a business open to the public. If a friend has requirements for visiting his house that you find outrageous (such as wearing mismatched socks and shoes), you are free to abstain from visiting him. The same is true of businesses.

If a business owner has policies that you don’t like, you can take your business elsewhere. This includes any policy, such as his prices, who he chooses to serve and hire, the conduct he will allow on his property, or anything else. He doesn’t have a right to force you to patronize his business; you don’t have a right to force him to adopt policies that you like. He has a right to choose how to dispose of his property, and you have the same right to choose how to dispose of your property.

We must accept the fact that some people will use their property in ways we don’t like. Some people wear clothes that we don’t like. Some people listen to music and read books that we don’t like. Most Americans accept these facts without demanding that government do something about it. If we embraced the same attitude towards property, everyone in the city would benefit.

If we want the freedom to use our property as we choose, we must acknowledge and defend the freedom of others to use their property as they choose. To do otherwise is an injustice and hypocritical.