Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
A timely manifesto on freedom from Hong Kong's leading pro-democracy activist Nathan Law, a Nobel Prize nominee In this dispatch from exile, Hong Kong political activist Nathan Law explores the meaning of freedom--and shows how easily freedoms can be eroded or dismantled. Freedom is fragile--it is not a given, and each generation must fight to protect it, whether in emerging democracies or in the Western world, where freedom is too often taken for granted.
Law sets out to prove the value of what we take to be inherently bestowed upon us as human beings, and to expose the Chinese government as it barricades its citizens from enjoying freedom. He lays out how the government controls what people know and are allowed to think, suppresses the truth, and undermines democratic processes by censoring its own members. If freedom is a basic human right, then why were lawyers, journalists, and activists being jailed, and why has Nathan Law been labeled a wanted fugitive?
Rooted in his own experience as a former elected official and student leader of the Umbrella Movement, Law explores not just how important freedom is in principle for human beings to thrive, but how it is put into practice. What does it mean to be able to speak freely, and what happens when the concept collapses? How can the law both protect and abolish our freedoms? And why should we place such importance on free and fair elections? What does it mean to be truly free? Nathan Law has worked tirelessly to apply pressure in order to reshape freedom in Hong Kong, because it is with freedom that we'll live as we're meant to be.
Synopsis
Freedom is fragile; it is not a given, and each generation must fight to protect it. Activist Nathan Law experienced firsthand the speed with which our freedom can be taken away.
When sovereignty over Hong Kong was handed to China in 1997, Hong Kong was guaranteed freedom of the press, expression, and assembly. However, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has been chipping away at these rights and, since 2014, restricting free and fair elections. Law writes, "When governments control access to information and are able to define the narrative and dictate what we know, we lose more than our freedoms. We lose the ability to see the world for what it is. We lose our humanity."
In 2016, Law became the youngest-ever elected legislator in Hong Kong on a pro-democracy platform and was subsequently imprisoned for his role as a leader of the Umbrella Movement. He now lives in exile.
An urgent rallying cry, Freedom warns of the dangers of authoritarianism and inspires us to protect democracy and freedom--or face losing them forever.
Synopsis
A timely manifesto on freedom from Hong Kong's leading pro-democracy activist Nathan Law, a Nobel Prize nominee Activist Nathan Law experienced firsthand the speed with which our freedom can be taken away.
When sovereignty over Hong Kong was handed to China in 1997, Hong Kong was guaranteed freedom of the press, expression, and assembly. However, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has been chipping away at these rights and, since 2014, restricting free and fair elections. Law writes, "When governments control access to information and are able to define the narrative and dictate what we know, we lose more than our freedoms. We lose the ability to see the world for what it is. We lose our humanity."
In 2016, Law became the youngest-ever elected legislator in Hong Kong on a pro-democracy platform and was subsequently imprisoned for his role as a leader of the Umbrella Movement. He now lives in exile.
An urgent rallying cry, Freedom warns of the dangers of authoritarianism and inspires us to protect democracy and freedom--or face losing them forever.
Synopsis
Activist Nathan Law experienced firsthand the speed with which our freedom can be taken away.
When sovereignty over Hong Kong was handed to China in 1997, Hong Kong was guaranteed freedom of the press, expression, and assembly. However, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has been chipping away at these rights and, since 2014, restricting free and fair elections. Law writes, "When governments control access to information and are able to define the narrative and dictate what we know, we lose more than our freedoms. We lose the ability to see the world for what it is. We lose our humanity."
In 2016, Law became the youngest-ever elected legislator in Hong Kong on a pro-democracy platform and was subsequently imprisoned for his role as a leader of the Umbrella Movement. He now lives in exile.
An urgent rallying cry, Freedom warns of the dangers of authoritarianism and inspires us to protect democracy and freedom--or face losing them forever.