We often think of property rights in regard to the wealthy and big corporations. In a certain sense, this is understandable. They have a lot of property. But property rights are important to everyone, including the “little guy” who has little property.
The right to property means the freedom to create, use, keep, trade, and dispose of values. Property rights protect the freedom of everyone, including the “little guy,” to become wealthy or build a large corporation.
America’s history is filled with stories of individuals who arrived in this country will little more than the clothes that they were wearing. But through hard work and perseverance, they achieved great success. Property rights enabled them to do so.
Property rights protected the meager wages they first earned. Property rights protected their farms and factories. Property rights protected their profits and the products they produced. Property rights protected their freedom to flourish.
Throughout most of history, and in most of the world today, property rights have not been recognized and protected. As a result, individuals lack the means to create or earn the values that they desire. And so, throughout history, and in much of the world today, individuals have languished in abject poverty.
Property rights enable individuals—the “little guy”—to rise economically. If an individual is free to create values, trade them with willing buyers, and reap the rewards, he is limited only by his own skills and ambition.
Sadly, violations of property rights can erect significant barriers to the “little guy” for improving his economic status. In this series, we will examine two of these obstacles. Read Part 2 of this series.