8 May 2020 – Freedom
It was a momentous week with important speeches. On the 4th of May, we always remember the victims of the 2nd World War, which ended 75 years ago this year. On the 5th, we celebrate Liberation day. The King gave a moving speech about those who were not heard and seen during the Occupation and his own grandmother’s role in all this. He spoke about how he was still haunted, not free of these things. We may have relative freedom of movement during these corona times, but there are some things we will never be free of, like our past.
There are certain political parties that tote the word ‘freedom’ or ‘democracy’ in their names and they have been gaining a lot of traction during lockdown. People, afraid of the silence and frustrated by the restrictions, have latched on to online forums that promote ‘autonomy’ and ‘self-determination’. Russian trolls and American Alt-right groups have joined forces to advocate these liberties. Not freedom ‘to’, but freedom ‘from’: freedom from foreigners, 5G, vaccinations, taxes. I have seen some of my own friends fall into these cult-like factions, who have no qualms about disseminating half-truths or outright lies to gain a larger following.
Freedom of expression is an issue here. Youtube has started removing videos that contain fake facts about Covid19, while Facebook now issues a warning when something might be false. This is grist to the mill of conspiracists, of course: “You see, they’re trying to silence us!” Some of the falsehoods that these groups spread could in fact be life-threatening, but is censorship the answer? In some ways yes, because the more people are exposed to an idea, the more they will think there is some truth to it. The backlash, however, could be worse. One thing is from sure: we’ll never be free from fake news.
“But surely we have freedom of thought?” you might ask. Honestly, I don’t think so. We are the product of our family and cultural backgrounds, the natural environment we grow up in, the limitations of our own intelligence and imagination. A lot of the ideas we have aren’t even our own at all, even if we believe they are. Mass hysteria, propaganda, brainwashing, (self) hypnosis and, of course, confirmation bias: these are real, and we don’t know when we’ve fallen under their spell. Some research even suggests we barely have free will. When asked to choose between two slides projected onto a screen, tests show the brain activity is higher before we even see the slides – we have already chosen before we know what the choices are. We also barely seem to have the freedom to change our minds once they’re made up.
The second speech this week came from our PM Mark Rutte, announcing the loosening of some of the restrictions. The government has come up with an ‘exit strategy’, which takes up step by step into the ‘new normal’. I, for one, am going to miss the peace and quiet, the spontaneity of a simple life, the fresher air. I will no longer be free from commotion, crowds, commute – a freedom that has made me feel so much better these last few weeks. It’s great to be able to go to the dentist and the hairdresser’s again, though.
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| Source: Medium.com |
So, the ‘Days of Lockdown’ are winding down. What will come next? I barely dare speculate, but Brabant province gave us a bit of a taster this week: the populist party and consorts have been able to eliminate what they call ‘left-wing hobbies’ from governance altogether: ‘culture’ now falls under ‘free time and leisure’ and will be largely de-funded, while nature and farming are now considered one and the same thing, so investments in developing or maintaining nature will also be decreased. Of course, many people have lost their jobs during this crisis, so the government had promised to help out financially. Yesterday I read a small article that said they will set up an agency that is supposed to find people jobs ‘before they get into the benefits system’. Will these involuntarily unemployed have the freedom to decline a job that really doesn’t suit them? I seriously doubt that.
The virus may be subsiding, but now I’m really scared.
