Thomas DiLorenzo

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Thomas DiLorenzo
Austrian School
Thomas DiLorenzo by Gage Skidmore.jpg
Thomas DiLorenzo at CPAC in February 2010.
Born (1954-08-08) August 8, 1954 (age 58)
Nationality United States
Field Economic history, American history
Influences Henry Hazlitt, John T. Flynn[1]

Thomas James DiLorenzo (born August 8, 1954) is an American economics professor at Loyola University Maryland.[2] He identifies himself as an adherent of the Austrian School of economics. He is a senior fellow of the Ludwig von Mises Institute[3] and an associated scholar of the Abbeville Institute.[4] He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Virginia Tech.[2]

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Scholarship [edit]

DiLorenzo has devoted much effort to, and focused on, what has been called "the myth of Lincoln" as a political and historical phenomenon. He said, "Lincoln is on record time after time rejecting the idea of racial equality. But whenever anyone brings this up, the Lincoln partisans go to the extreme to smear the bearer of bad news." [5] In the same vein, DiLorenzo has spoken out in favor of the secession of the Confederate States of America, defending the right of these states to secede in a view similar to that of abolitionist Lysander Spooner.[6] He has also written, "It is a myth that Franklin D. Roosevelt 'got us out of the Depression' and 'saved capitalism from itself,' as generations of Americans have been taught by the state's educational establishment." Instead, DiLorenzo contends, "FDR's New Deal made the Great Depression longer and deeper."[7]

In 2002, DiLorenzo debated Harry V. Jaffa on the merits of Abraham Lincoln's statesmanship prior to and during the civil war.

DiLorenzo is a frequent speaker at von Mises Institute events, and offers several online courses on political subjects on the Mises Academy platform.[3]

He was formerly an affiliated lecturer of the League of the South Institute, the research arm of the pro-secession League of the South, widely considered to be a white supremicist hate group.[8] When challenged on this association, DiLorenzo has denied any lasting affiliation, noting that he only gave a few lectures there shortly after its founding.[9][10]

The Southern Poverty Law Center considers DiLorenzo one of the most important intellectuals "who form the core of the modern neo-Confederate movement." They believe DiLorenzo's depiction of president Abraham Lincoln paints Lincoln as a "paragon of wickedness, a man secretly intent on destroying states' rights and building a massive federal government."[11]

Publications [edit]

DiLorenzo has authored at least ten books, including:[12][not in citation given]

References [edit]

External links [edit]