Madison, WI—Libertarian Party members for years have acted to not just clean up the public policy of the state, but the environment as well. Libertarians are not just proud of their ideals, but they are proud of their communities and the natural beauty of Wisconsin. Routinely, members of the LPWI, joined by their friends and other well-meaning participants, host events that clean roads and rivers of trash. These events represent an important aspect of Libertarian ideals: They take direct action to ensure the needs of their communities are met and do not rely on the oft-empty promises of politicians.
One notable initiative has just finished its fifth annual outing to clean up stretches of Wisconsin’s Kickapoo River. Libertarian Party of Dane County member Chris Nass used his family’s tradition of cleaning that river to inspire others to join him, as they did this July. Camping overnight, a group of Libertarians and Nass, along with others, floated down the Kickapoo for the day in kayaks and a drift boat, collecting refuse and debris, including landing a mud-caked vehicle tire out of the waters.
With no need for government funding or an exhaustive organizational impact statement, the river cleanup did the work and built fellowship, and serves as an example of how libertarianism works in practice.
In another initiative this year, the LP Dane County cleans up a 3.2 mile section of US Hwy 19, around the unincorporated settlement of Token Creek. One of the party clean up crew from Middleton, WI, Phil Anderson, a Libertarian Party candidate for US Senate in 2024, said, “ This sort of direct action is what libertarianism is all about.”
