Philanthropy and the neoliberal government of inequalities

In: Tempo social: revista de sociologia da USP, Band 36, Heft 3, S. 25-46

Open Access

Abstract

The article discusses the tension between philanthropy and the governance of inequalities in the neoliberal era by first showing the tension between the egalitarian imperative of democracy and philanthropy, drawn from private wealth and the social power of its owner. Then it analyses the very conception of wealth that the consideration of philanthropy allows to develop, emphasizing the relationship between well-being on the one hand and social control on the other hand. This conception puts forward the relationship of capture that emerges between philanthropy and public action. The final part of the analysis is dedicated to discussing a case of mutual learning, inviting to a processual analysis of reform.