benign neglect

noun

1. an attitude or policy of noninterference or neglect of a situation, which may have a more beneficial effect than assuming responsibility; well-intentioned neglect.

Word History and Origins

Origin of benign neglect¹

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

But under cover of this benign neglect, the region has dramatically changed, mostly for the better.

From The Daily Beast

It's the "benign" in what Peter Beinart reported as Obama's expected "benign neglect" policies toward the Holy Land.

From The Daily Beast

At Brown University, in Providence, Rhode Island, I found another eighty Hitler books in a similar state of benign neglect.

From The Daily Beast