(Sioux Falls, SD) – Today, Americans for Prosperity of South Dakota honored Nobel Laureate economist Dr. Milton Friedman as part of the national Friedman Legacy for Freedom campaign. July 31st would have been Friedman’s 95^th birthday.

The luncheon, held in partnership with the Milton and Rose D. Friedman Foundation explored the impact Friedman and his free-market theories have had on our society.

“Dr. Friedman’s death this past November marked the passing of one of the greatest minds in American history,” said AFP-SD State Director Duane Sand. “Recognizing Dr. Friedman’s birthday is the appropriate way to pay homage to the legacy of a man who has been called the greatest and most influential economist of the 20^th Century.”

Friedman was regarded as one of the world’s most powerful and influential promoters of freedom. He argued that the voluntary choices of individuals, not the dictates of the state, should be the default mode of human life; government is justified only insofar as it preserves, protects and defends people’s liberty. His revolutionary work in economic theory earned him the Nobel Prize in 1976.

“Milton Friedman was a true visionary and advocate for human freedom,” said Robert C. Enlow, executive director and COO of the Friedman Foundation. “His writings and ideas transformed the minds of U.S. Presidents, world leaders, entrepreneurs and freshman economics majors alike. We’re delighted to have the South Dakota Chapter of Americans for Prosperity join us in celebrating his legacy for freedom.”

Even at 94, Friedman never chose to slow down. He spent the last decade of his life fighting to bring educational freedom to all of America’s children. In 1996, he and his wife Rose founded the Friedman Foundation to promote his vision for universal school choice – an idea he first proposed in 1955.

The event was held Tuesday, July 31 at C.J. Calloways in Sioux Falls and featured Lee Shoenbeck.

Americans for Prosperity (AFP) is a nationwide organization of citizen leaders committed to advancing every individual’s right to economic freedom and opportunity. AFP believes reducing the size and scope of government is the best safeguard to ensuring individual productivity and prosperity for all Americans. AFP educates and engages citizens in support of restraining state and federal government growth, and returning government to its constitutional limits. For more information, visit www.americansforprosperity.org

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