We are no longer free. But we can win our freedom back - GUARDIAN OpEd re: USA

[IrishBubbaLiberal]

We are no longer free. But we can win our freedom back
Deepak Bhargava

To meet this moment in US history, we need to revisit the rich – and successful – tradition of nonviolent disruption

Sat 14 Jun 2025 07.00 EDT

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/ng-interactive/2025/jun/14/history-successful-protests-oppose-authoritarianism

We are no longer free. But we can win our freedom back
Most of us are no longer free.

People are aware of this condition to varying degrees. Some, nostalgic for the world that was, reject “unfreedom” as an exaggerated description of our situation. Others, seeing reality clearly, nevertheless hide from the unnerving implications.

Some people, a minority, experience the changes that have come to America in 2025 as liberation. They are free to say and do what they want with impunity and without shame. On the other side of the spectrum, many who are not free now also were not before, and they suffered no illusion that they were. Now, they might raise an eyebrow to the rest of us, asking if we now see what this country has long been for some people, much of the time.

But for most in this country, unfreedom is a novel experience. What makes this condition confounding is that our unfreedom doesn’t yet look like it does in Russia or China – it is still partial. Most in this country can still enjoy a dinner out with friends, loudly deploring the current state of affairs. For most, authoritarianism has not snuffed out the pleasures, private or communal, of a spring morning in the park. In fact, most of us can still read about horrors while lying on the grass, soaking up the sun.

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