Page 19 - HGS Suburb News 150 - Summer 2022

Teenage Freedom

A non-violent path toFreedom
What does freedom mean to teenagers? Freedom as a construct is
incredibly abstract; it means many different things to many different
people. We, as teenagers, are gaining new freedoms every day, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born in 1869 in India. In 1888 he
independence in our decisions, actions, consequences, opinions and in went to England to study Law and was admitted to the Bar at the High
our identity. Adolescence is a period of your life where you are ʻfiguring Court of Chancery. He then spent a formative 21 years in South Africa
yourself outʼ, a confusing, intense process, where your freedom shapes where he met virulent racial prejudice which inspired him to rally
you as a person. We asked year 10 students at The Archer Academy Indians to fight for their human rights, and cultivated his methods of
what they thought of when they thought of freedom and the majority non-violent civil resistance or, as he called it, Satyagraha.
expressed ideas surrounding the importance of freedom of speech and Gandhi returned to India in 1915 where he joined the Indian National
expression. When asked , ʻWhat does freedom mean to you?ʼ many Congress (INC). In 1922 Gandhi was charged with publishing seditious
answered ʻthe freedom to express myselfʼ or ʻthe freedom of writings in the journal Young India. He pleaded guilty and spent almost
expressionʼ, and one student said ʻfreedom is the ability to be one two years in prison where he used the time to read, pray and spin cloth.
hundred per cent myself without the fear of being judged or feeling like He then directed his attention to what he called “constructive work”,
I should apologise for who I amʼ such as easing tensions between Hindu and Muslim communities,
Some people think freedom to teenagers is being allowed to go out opposing the practice of “untouchability”, and spinning cloth as part of
with friends when they want or being seen as more grown his noncooperation with British colonial rule.
up and adult, and whilst freedom may be those things, to Gandhi was provoked into action (along with other members of the
a certain extent, it is so much more than that. Freedom to us INC) by the creation of a British Commission to help chart the course of
is the ability and power to make our own decisions, decide Indiaʼs future – which included no Indians.
what we like and dislike, decide our futures, what we want to
become, who we want to be, spend time with the people we love In 1929, The INC passed a resolution asking for full independence and
and express ourselves in the way we want to. Freedom is so much promising civil disobedience if it was not granted.
more than its literal sense, it is a concept that allows us to take On 26 January 1930, the INC celebrated ʻIndependence Dayʼ and
charge of our life, to find out who we really are. Gandhi decided to launch his campaign with an act of civil
disobedience involving the British salt tax. The salt tax was a political
Teenagers today have a complicated but strong view on who they are.
Of course, most teenagers are still unsure of a lot, but that is just the issue that had a personal impact on all Indians, especially the poor. Salt
nature of growing up. However, being a teenager at the moment is so was a basic necessity for survival and its taxation was viewed as an
different and confusing; not only having to experience your teenage example of British cruelty. On 2 March 1930, Gandhi wrote a letter to
years through a pandemic lens, but because social media is more Viceroy Lord Irwin informing him of his intent to commit civil
disobedience in ten days if eleven previously-communicated demands
influential than ever before. Social media has become a haven for
teenagers to freely express themselves, whether it be art, music, (relating to among other things the salt tax, and a tariff on foreign cloth)
were not met. The letter, addressed to the Viceroy as ʻfriendʼ, was
philosophy, friends, fashion, politics, beliefs, personal experiences or
just having fun. Social media obviously has its problems, but an upside delivered by British Quaker, Reginald Reynolds to make the point that it
is that it has given us the freedom to express ourselves in ways we was not simply a matter of Indians against the British. The civil
could never have done before. disobedience campaign was designed to appeal to multiple audiences
including the broader Indian society, British officials, young radicals in
SUSANA RIO & AVA SYMONDS the freedom movement wanting violent confrontations, and some
Indian economic elites who opposed independence altogether.
On 12 March 1930, Gandhi set out with 78 members of his ashram on a
241 mile march from Sabarmati, Gujarat, to the coastal village of Dandi.
Greeted by large crowds along the way, some of whom joined the
march, Gandhi communicated his message of Indian independence.
Freedom of Speech The campaign failed to bring independence or even major concessions,
but it inspired the Indian people and, as Jawaharlal Nehru put it,
Freedom of speech is the right to express ideas, information and widened the outlook of ʻthe village massesʼ who for
opinions without the risk of government interference or penalties. It the first time ʻbegan to think a little in terms of
lies under the general umbrella term of ʻfreedom of expressionʼ. India as a wholeʼ.
Surely, freedom of speech is something we all want? The ability to The repression Gandhiʼs satyagrahis suffered at
express our thoughts is incredibly important, as it helps to protect the hands of the regime – beatings, imprisonment,
people from injustice and oppression and it ensures that everyoneʼs even torture – backfired, creating a serious
opinions are heard. On a much larger scale, freedom of speech is credibility problem for the Empire at home and abroad.
essential within a democracy, as it helps in the development of better When India finally achieved independence on 15 August
policies and laws through debates and challenges; those who vote 1947, scholars and many Indian people looked back on
are able to form their own opinions on political matters, giving them the Salt Satyagraha as a turning point in the Indian
the opportunity to oppose those of others This ensures all opinions independence struggle.
are taken into account before a major political decision. SMRUTHI KARTHIKKUMAR
Despite its importance, there are many threats to freedom of
speech. Firstly, in several countries the government controls the media
and this can take many forms. For example, Chinaʼs media environment
is one of the most restrictive in the world and censorship is used to
regulate material in the news, online, and on social media. Chinese
media regulators are allowed to remove news stories by claiming that COMPLETE
they expose state secrets and endanger the country. Such censoring
makes Chinese citizens unable to oppose the views of the government BESPOKE
which greatly limits the freedom of speech. Ultimately making people
unable to express themselves. FURNITURE
However, some challenges to freedom of speech can be beneficial. SOLUTION
There are laws making ʻhate speechʼ illegal , that is, language
interpreted as racist, expressing religious hatred or hatred
on the grounds of sexual orientation. The fact
that this is considered a criminal offence
ensures that freedom of speech is not taken advantage of to express
opinions that negatively impact others. This is an example of where
freedom of speech sometimes needs to be restricted in order to
maintain civility and respect towards others. Amnesty International
states “Governments have an obligation to prohibit hate speech and
incitement. And restrictions can also be justified if they protect specific
public interest or the rights and reputations of others.”
Overall, freedom of speech is a central tenet of society as the opinions
of all individuals are core to continually developing and improving
the way we run the world together. Freedom of speech is
fundamental to our society and this means there is a continual
debate on the level of restrictions placed on it.
RIYA KHATRI & ADEENA KHAN

SUBURB NEWS IS PRODUCED AND DELIVERED TO YOU BY RESIDENTS ASSOCIATION VOLUNTEERS 15