Justice at a Distance Book Panel: Extending Freedom Globally

The current global-justice literature starts from the premise that world poverty results mostly from the actions of governments and citizens of rich countries. As a result, it recommends vast coercive transfers of wealth from rich to poor societies alongside stronger governance. But is it possible that global injustice is actually home-grown? If so, how can we alleviate poverty? What duties do we owe the world’s poor? In Justice at a Distance (Cambridge University Press, 2015), Loren Lomasky and Fernando Tesón argue that native restrictions to freedom lie at the root of poverty and stagnation, and that free markets in goods, services, and labor are capable of alleviating poverty.