Freedom is described as the power or condition of acting without compulsion. — Merriam-Webster
A song Freedom by Pharrell Williams delivers a powerful message, where the concept of freedom has ever so greatly been emphasized in our current generation.
The song shouts freedom throughout— saying how “Man’s red flower, It’s in every living thing”. The music video skims through sundry scenes where — a laborer fights for his freedom by getting a firm grip onto the officer’s gun to point astray, a horse intensely bucks to ward off a cowboy and a cheetah preys and chases after a group of antelopes, just to name a few.
In both this song and its music video, every being seems to have some sort of freedom. But who takes the responsibility of having them? What if that freedom leads to deaths — like the antelopes? The freedom of a cheetah to hunt and eat antelopes resulted in a loss of a freedom for the antelope to live.
This question echoes in our current days where COVID has struck the entire world with millions of infections and deaths. For example, if we have the freedom to go maskless, did you ever think how going maskless may increase the likelihood of all of us getting infected and facing deaths? Your freedom of going maskless and increasing the number of infections/deaths can lead to governments imposing restrictions, getting rid of my freedom to be more active outdoors.
If we really wanted to go outdoor dining and truly enjoy, all of us need to play a part in keeping the infection/death numbers as low as possible (or in other words, please wear your masks in public areas). Taking the discomfort of being a bit cautious in public areas certainly helps all parties in the long run.
I believe that it can be very arrogant of us to think that striving for our own so-called personal freedom is always justified based on our ‘needs’, especially when you do not take the responsibility over your decisions and actions.
So please ask yourself — What freedom do you strive for, and does it have any implications on other beings?
And yes, if you have ever realized, you also have the freedom of helping others.
