Atlas shrugged and Jesus wept.
A center dedicated to Russian-born libertarian thinker Ayn Rand appears to be in the planning stages in Austin.
The Ayn Rand Museum and Archives Foundation, an arm of the California-based Ayn Rand Institute, plans to build a new center dedicated to the writer and philosopher near the University of Texas at Austin campus, according to a new state filing.
The complex is part of the foundation’s planned relocation from California to the Lone Star State, according to real-estate news site The Real Deal.
Rand was the author of Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead — a pair of novels that became touchstones in conservative and libertarian political circles. A number of prominent Republicans have cited Rand as a major influence on their worldviews. Vice President JD Vance even named his German Shepherd Atlas.
Rand is widely denounced by progressive critics for her core philosophy that “unfettered self-interest” is much better for society than ethical altruism. Basically, she is “pull yourself up by your own bootstraps” incarnate, and the Randian hero — her version of Nietzsche’s “übermensch” — is a captain of industry who acts out of individualism.
The Ayn Rand Museum and Archives Foundation plans to build a two-story, 27,144-square-foot building dedicated to the philosopher in Texas’ capital city, featuring a library, exhibition room, office and “higher education classroom spaces,” records show.
The center’s proximity to the UT campus is likely not a coincidence, according to an online mission statement from the foundation.
“Engage students, educators, scholars — and you can achieve large scale and enduring influence,” its website states.
If it sounds like an indoctrination think tank, that’s because it is, and it identifies itself as such. The nonprofit makes no secret of its mission to spread Rand’s theory of Objectivism, “rational egoism” and laissez-faire capitalism — or capitalism unencumbered by government regulations.
Construction of the center near the intersection of San Gabriel Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard is slated to commence in July and wrap up in October 2028.
The total cost is projected at $30 million.
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