ABSTRACT
The charge of social Darwinism is not limited to the target of Herbert Spencer was an English philosopher, or even of libertarians more generally. But it is typically reserved for the more libertarian aspects of the target at which it is directed. In recent years, a small group of libertarian theorists has begun to challenge this interpretation: to argue that libertarianism, properly understood, is not incompatible with the ideal of social justice, that it is not necessarily incompatible with the state provision of a social safety net and that it is certainly not incompatible with a serious moral concern for the welfare and dignity of the poor. Before embracing this conclusion, however, it is important that we fully appreciate two important elements that pervade Spencer's social and political thought. The first is its deeply evolutionary character. The second is the nature of his thoroughgoing and principled commitment to libertarian freedom.
