Miloš Šumonja

Abstract

The news is old––neoliberalism is dead for good, but this time, even Financial Times knows it. Obituaries claim that it had died from the coronavirus, as the state, not the markets, have had to save both the people and the economy. The argument of the article is that these academic and media interpretations of ‘emergency Keynesianism’ misidentify neoliberalism with its anti-statist rhetoric. For neoliberalism is, and has always been, about ‘the free market and the strong state’. In fact, rather than waning in the face of the coronavirus crisis, neoliberal states around the world are using the ongoing “war against the virus” to strengthen their right-hand grip on the conditions of the working classes.

Keywords

authoritarianism, coronavirus crisis, Covid-19, far-right, neoliberalism, state

From: Capital & Class 2021 45 (2)

Editor: Wang Yi