Summary of 'The Post‑Neoliberal Imperative' by Jennifer M. Harris


📘 Summary and Analysis

Title: The Post‑Neoliberal Imperative
Author: Jennifer M. Harris
Published in: Foreign Affairs, 2024

💡 What Is This Article About?

Jennifer M. Harris explains that the old way the U.S. ran its economy, called neoliberalism, is starting to change. Neoliberalism trusted markets and private companies to handle most things with little government help. While this approach led to economic growth, it also created more inequality and made it harder for some people to succeed (Harris, 2024).

🔁 From Neoliberalism to Something New

Neoliberalism focused on:

  • Free markets

  • Low taxes

  • Global trade

  • Less government spending

But over time, this model hurt workers and let big companies become too powerful. It didn’t solve problems like climate change or job loss from automation and outsourcing (Harris, 2024).

Now, the U.S. is moving toward post‑neoliberalism, which means:

  1. More government involvement

  2. Policies that focus on fairness

  3. Public investment in things like green energy and technology (Harris, 2024)

🔧 The “Balance and Build” Strategy

Harris describes two goals for post‑neoliberalism:

  • Balance: Governments should fix unfair parts of the economy—like when large corporations have too much power or when workers don’t get paid enough (Harris, 2024).

  • Build: Instead of waiting for markets to fix everything, governments should take the lead in creating clean energy, better infrastructure, and good jobs (Harris, 2024).

🌍 Real-Life Examples

  • Tariffs: Both Republicans and Democrats have used tariffs to protect U.S. businesses (Harris, 2024).

  • Industrial Policy: New laws like the CHIPS and Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act invest in semiconductors and renewable energy (Harris, 2024).

  • Global Corporate Tax Deal: Over 130 countries agreed to a minimum corporate tax of 15% to stop companies from avoiding taxes (Harris, 2024).

📈 Is It Working?

So far, this new approach has helped the economy in many ways:

  • The U.S. economy grew faster than other rich countries after the COVID-19 pandemic.

  • Wages rose for many lower-income workers.

  • More people had jobs than before (Harris, 2024).

Still, there are challenges. Government programs can move slowly, and it’s hard to balance inflation, fairness, and growth all at once. Harris says we need to think carefully about what we want our economy to do—not just make money, but also support community, fairness, and democracy (Harris, 2024).

🧠 Why This Matters

This article helps us think about:

  • What kind of economy we want

  • Whether markets or governments should be in charge

  • How to build a future that works for everyone—not just the wealthy or powerful

❓Questions for Class Discussion

  1. Should governments do more or less to help the economy?

  2. What should the government help build?

  3. How can we make the economy fairer for everyone?

📚 References (APA Style)

Harris, J. M. (2024). The post‑neoliberal imperative: Contesting the next economic paradigm. Foreign Affairs, 103(2), 10–24. https://www.foreignaffairs.com/united-states/post-neoliberal-imperative



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