Abstract: This paper is premised on the assumption that the emergence of the welfare state in the earlier part of this century was a progressive state. It represented a non-Marxian alternative to class conflict and demonstrated the capacity of capitalism to reform itself. It showed that the state could be compassionate towards the popular classes in society. The paper, however, notes that contemporarily there are socio-political forces which seem intent to take us backwards; dismantle the welfare state in the name of the market. It notes the activities of the International Monetary Fund; the World Bank and some within the academia. The offensive against the welfare state seems to have intensified over since the break up of the Soviet Union and Marxist states in Africa as if to argue that they collapsed because of socialism. The paper argues that the problem in the USSR was not socialism but totalitarianism. It notes that there are still socialist/welfare states in Denmark and Sweden which may have been more socialist than the USSR. This triumph of the Lockean, limited government which has assaulted the welfare state in Africa could be the beginning of inter-class tensions, particularly given the fact that the economies of many African countries are debt-laden. The welfare state was a sign of progress; its progressive demise is evidence of reaction. However, not much can be done to reverse the trend until the popular classes are better organized to protect their interests.