June 1969 — VOL. 50, No. 6 —
Let Us Enjoy Our
Freedoms
Download PDF version
Why is it so much more satisfying
to fight for freedom than to enjoy it? Why is it so exciting
to battle for emancipation, so tedious to have it? Why does
a man possess dignity in his efforts to win a freedom and
feel slightly ridiculous when he talks about that freedom
afterward?
The gaining of freedom should not be like that. To establish
freedom is only the beginning, like the opening of a door.
The effort is not worth while unless we find something that
deserves treasuring, using and enjoying.
Our civilization is the first one in history that has not
been based on slave labour. This is unquestionably a great
advance, not only morally but in its contribution to our self-respect
and welfare. Dr. Albert Schweitzer told the story in African
Notebook about a well-to-do woman who visited his hospital
accompanied by four slaves. The next day Dr. Schweitzer met
her while she was gathering wood, and asked her why she had
to carry her own firewood, since she had four slaves. She
replied: "Having slaves does not mean that one is well served."
So not only are the slaves free, but we are free of having
slaves: to depend upon out own efforts is to develop ourselves
and to be free.
At this stage in the twenty-first great civilization the
earth has known, the list of our freedoms would run to many
pages. Every rime we say out loud what we like or dislike,
every time we choose a book to read, every time we change
jobs, every time we go to a religious service, every time
we turn out radio or television to a station of out choice,
every time we go to a meeting of a political party, every
rime we rise in a Home and School Association meeting to contribute
our thoughts about education, we are doing something that
can be done only in a free country.
We take all this for granted without realizing how greatly
we should miss any part of it if it were taken from us. We
are not really experiencing full enjoyment of the benefits
we have: benefits which are the outcome of a struggle as long
as human history.
To make the best of out freedoms we must become an intelligent,
educated, informed citizenry, acquainted with the values,
privileges and responsibilities of our Canadian way of life.
The word "freedom" has many shades of meaning. Depending
upon its context it stands for political liberty, personal
liberty, non-slavery, independence, or the power of self-determination.
It implies more than mere liberty, for it demands insurance
and protection by provident institutions such as governments
which secure us from arbitrary subjection. Thomas Hobbes said
in his great treatise The Leviathan: "A freeman is
he that, in those things which by his strength and wit he
is able to do, is not hindered to do what he has a will to
do."
Some people go too far. They do not discriminate between
freedom and license. Freedom requires a certain self-mastery,
in which reason restrains impulses and passions, and subordinates
to a larger freedom the liberty to do just what one pleases.
The Rule of Law
What are the established aims of Canadian society? They
had their birth thousands of years ago in the yearning of
men and women for something better than the perilous gratifications
of animal existence; they were nurtured on the teaching of
great spiritual leaders; they were modified by the practical
experience of co-existence, and they represent today the permanent
advantages of human fellowship under an accepted code of behaviour.
The Rule of Law is a great ideal, with the will of the people
as the source of its authority. Freedom is not liberty for
everyone to do what he pleases without being subject to any
law. It is freedom of man to have a standing rule to live
by, common to everyone in his society. It is freedom within
bounds rather than wholly anarchic freedom. It consents to
curtailment of some natural or savage liberties so that the
human spirit may rejoice in greater, wider freedom.
The Rule of Law means that there is one law for all men,
that all men are equal before it, and that no man can be punished
except for the breach of it. It reconciles social order with
individual freedom and initiative. It means that the government
itself is not above law, and that it respects the independence
of the courts and the safeguards of the citizen's liberties.
Only Parliament can alter law, and Parliament is the people.
Good government
Freedom is built on the foundation of good government. Democracy
in Canada is limited by being made constitutional and representative,
so as to prevent the exercise of tyranny. Of the countries
of the world, Canada has the eighth oldest written constitution,
the second oldest one of a federal nature, and the oldest
which combines federalism with the principles of responsible
government.
It provides the means whereby errors may be corrected legally
and not by force; it gives the right to elect representatives
by secret ballot and to be taxed only by elected representatives.
The Canadian way allows complaints to be freely aired, requires
that they be deeply considered, and provides for speedy redress.
Every minority, no matter how small, has the right to dissent,
and to oppose under the law, the proposals of the majority.
It assumes that when decisions have been arrived at by free
choice after rational debate the citizens shall abide by them.
Essential to freedom is the participation of the governed
in determining their own welfare. They need to use the vote
which is a mark of living in a free society.
The duty to vote is a duty to equip oneself to vote, and
everyone is under the obligation to understand our way of
government. Democracy is not a magic formula by which wise
decisions are extracted from blind ignorance.
Probably no finer plea has ever been written for freedom
than that of John Stuart Mill in 1859, but he had a warning
also: "A people may prefer a free government, but if, from
indolence or carelessness or cowardice, or want of public
spirit, they are unequal to the exertions necessary for preserving
it ... they are unlikely long to enjoy it."
Today's is the most dangerous civilization physically that
man ever concocted for himself. People in all countries are
in the throes of shifting their outlook. Many things are being
revalued under the titles "new" and "modern". The compulsion
of tradition has lost its force, and the compulsion of restlessness
has taken over. There is a nonconformist spirit abroad in
the world. It is suspicious of leaders and successful men.
It responds readily to the appeals of revivalists, with more
heat than light.
To preserve and enjoy freedom in such circumstances demands
that we appreciate the difference between thinking and herd
opinion.
To avert the circumstances which give rise to unrest, governments
need to anticipate, to introduce reforms demanded by profound
social changes. To make governments operative in this way,
citizens need to participate actively in choosing and advising
those whom they elect to govern.
It is, in the last analysis, the people ( all the people
( who decide what freedoms they shall enjoy. Even in the last
extremity, in time of war, the consent of the people to limitations
on their freedom must be given through their representatives
in Parliament.
Some freedoms to enjoy
The most important aspect of freedom is freedom of the mind.
A democracy can endure and make happiness possible for its
people only if its citizens are permitted freedom to question
and to doubt.
But, as someone said wittily, freedom to think cannot help
unless you use your head. To think is to compare things with
one another, to notice wherein they agree and disagree. It
is the reverse of the indolent way of approving your group's
guide-book to values without confronting them with other views.
Freedom of thought, in any valuable sense, includes freedom
of speech. Canada has staked its future on the belief that
in the free market-place of thought, by the matching of ideas,
truth has a better chance of winning than by any other method
known to man.
The right to discuss things extends to all the people of
Canada. If a man does not like the government, he can stand
up and say so. He may state his opinions freely and openly
on all public matters without fear of being punished or interfered
with by the police, government officials or any other person.
A man may speak wrongly or foolishly, yet a denial of his
right to do so is a denial of his freedom, but free speech
is not the same thing as free shouting. You may not, in the
name of free speech, prevent others from being heard.
Neither is it true that freedom to speak without prior permission
means that a person may say what he likes. If he is libellous
or seditious or blasphemous or obscene, he can afterwards
be made liable for it. Authority does not declare his ideas
wrong, but it does declare certain acts unlawful.
The newspapers and other media have the same right to state
their opinions on public questions as any citizen has. Freedom
of the press means freedom from previous censorship, and not
freedom from subsequent prosecution for crimes. The press
is free, but it must also be responsible.
Canadians have the right of free association and assembly.
They can form all sorts of voluntary associations for purposes
in which they are interested without interference by government.
These associations, themselves an evidence of freedom of assembly
and speech, can be potent forces in helping us to enjoy out
freedoms.
When we think of a community we think of it as a place where
the people have citizens' interests in common. In his local
community the ordinary citizen has his best opportunity to
protect his rights and shoulder his responsibilities and make
use of his freedoms. There he can most easily influence public
opinion; there he can with greatest enjoyment take a part
in matters of public interest.
Peaceable assembly is not sanction of mob rule. Zealots
often deny freedom in their actions. A person who goes all
out on an impulse or whim to sponsor something, however good
it may appear to be, without looking ahead to the cost and
the effect, makes himself an essentially ridiculous figure.
His emotion becomes, to him, a criterion of truth, and having
taken a stand he defends it violently, sustained by an exaggerated
conception of his own merits.
The law of the land
We have so much freedom that our liberties must be circumscribed.
Laws are vital to the functioning of society, and they must
be respected as a condition of freedom. The only alternative
to the Rule of Law is the tyranny of the strongest.
The courts of law have been established to ensure that the
freedom and security of all persons residing in Canada are
not endangered. The formula is: "Every man is free to do that
which he wills, provided he infringes hot the equal freedom
of any other man."
A good law exists to express and to implement our physical,
mental and spiritual needs by preserving that balance between
the conflicting demands of our self-assertive and social instincts
which we have agreed upon as being necessary to our common
social life.
Our basic rights before the law are: (1) The right to a
fair trial; (2) The right to be considered innocent until
proved guilty. No person may be arrested in Canada except
for just cause. Upon being arrested he must be informed of
the charge against him and allowed to seek the advice and
assistance of a lawyer. His trial must be held within a reasonable
time in open court.
There are no secret police in Canada. The police officers
are public servants. There is one common system of criminal
law for the whole country. The judiciary is independent, not
in the sense of being free from all control, but independent
because of being free from improper influence.
Freedom in employment is part of the Canadian way. Not one
of the 500,000 babies born in Canada every year comes labelled
"clerk, toolmaker, computer programmer, executive, hand labourer."
Every one has the liberty to choose his profession or job.
New inventions and rapid industrial development give individuals
the opportunity to rise from job to job. A workman is free
to demonstrate his skill, responsibility and personal worth.
Employees and employers are free to bargain about the terms
of employment.
Freedom to choose
Freedom of choice extends to other areas of life. The essence
of choice is knowing what is important and what is unimportant,
because there can be no choice without precarious possibilities.
It involves the chance of error, and error involves some kind
of penalty. The enjoyment of freedom to choose, therefore,
is not an unmixed blessing, because it imposes the obligation
to be responsible.
It is the spirit of Canadian democracy to provide equal
opportunity for all citizens under free institutions and equal
laws. This does not confer equality of ability, but freedom
to develop and apply ability. It seeks to remove inequalities
that are not natural but artificial, so that as far as possible
all men may have equal chances to use what natural endowments
they possess.
Equality is meaningless to those who enviously ask: "Why
should not I enjoy what others enjoy?" without doing what
is necessary to earn that enjoyment. Suppose two men to be
equally well educated and equally free to progress in business:
if one goes to work or studies to improve himself while the
other lies abed, what then becomes of equality?
Every citizen has freedom to come and go as he pleases,
to travel throughout the country without hindrance, without
papers, documents or identification tags. He may change his
place of residence as often as he wishes, without reporting
to any authority. He may leave the country and return to it.
Among the other freedoms is that of privacy. A civilized
man values privacy for himself and in a reciprocal way he
extends the enjoyment of privacy to others. He minds his own
business, refraining from idle and meddlesome curiosity.
Finally, in this array of freedoms which Canadians are open
to enjoy is freedom of religion, the freedom to worship God
in the way of one's choice. Canada Year Book lists
fifteen leading denominations. Although eight out of ten persons
stated that they belonged to one of the three numerically
largest denominations, there were 3,800,000 other persons
professing other faiths.
Religion is the basis of civilized society. Edmund Burke,
English statesman, said: "True religion is the foundation
of society, the basis on which ail true civil government rests,
and from which power derives its authority, laws their efficacy
and both their sanction."
Religion is the supporter of that morality indispensable
to political prosperity, showing its influence in all human
conduct.
The religious freedom assured in Canada means not only freedom
of worship but the right not to be debarred from holding public
offices or from other privileges of citizenship on religious
grounds.
Tolerance in freedom
He who wishes to enjoy freedom must give freedom. He must
be willing that people differ from him. He may stand aloof
from a person who displeases him, but that does not give him
the right to make his life uncomfortable. Mill's dictum still
stands: "If all mankind minus one were of one opinion, and
only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would
be no more justified in silencing that one person than he,
if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind."
Every State contains fussy and pedantic moralists who seek
to use its machinery to insist that their habits shall become
the official standard of conduct in the population. These
are people who count their doctrines more valuable than freedom.
They have the delusion of infallibility, and cannot make way
for other men's minds.
"Tolerance," said Everett Dean Martin in his book Liberty,
"is a better guarantee of freedom than brotherly love; for
a man may love his brother so much that he feels himself thereby
appointed his brother's keeper and regulator."
Understanding is increased by dialogue, by talking things
over. Life and knowledge are today so complex that only by
free discussion can we pick our way through errors and prejudices.
Dialogue, of course, does not consist of rival lectures.
It requires moderation of language, courtesy, intelligent
assessment, and listening. The right to talk may be the beginning
of freedom, but the necessity of listening is what makes the
right important.
The dignity in freedom
Democracy is that system of government which more than any
other is predicated upon the dignity of the individual. This
is not a dignity imposed by law, or conferred by learning
or implied by status. It is the dignity of self-respect and
self-development, for self-control is the essence of democratic
living. It is the dignity of people who manage themselves
so that they do not require outside coercion.
Our forefathers, although failing here and there in some
points in the administration of free institutions, were pre-eminent
for the time in which they lived. We cannot with impunity
set aside the institutions and authorities which for a thousand
years have inspired and guarded and dignified our freedoms,
but we can improve them and add to them.
Enjoying freedom today precludes our sinking into self-satisfaction.
To have the sense of goals accomplished and of affluence possessed
engenders boredom, and boredom can bring about the destruction
of democracy.
Institutions cannot give or preserve liberty unless men
realize that freedom is precious and are willing to exert
themselves to keep it alive.
That this is so is a lesson to be instilled in children
from their earliest years. This does not mean that education
in freedom should become obsessed with the idea of a sanctified
and glorified and flag-waving liberty. It should encourage
and prepare children to think for themselves, so that they
realize that if they are to be other than machines in the
long run they must have learned to control their own actions.
To impart wholesome education is one of the responsibilities
of free men. A man cannot be free if he is a hitch-hiker on
democracy. We are not galley slaves, but every man has his
oar to pull. He has the obligation to impart what he knows
of the benefits of freedom to his children, to keep it inviolate
for them, and to encourage them in enjoyment of it.
About absolute freedom
No society and no person is so completely free as to refrain
from some sort of discipline.
The picture of a lawless savage, running wild in the woods,
is wholly fictitious. People have always been subject to forces
which restricted their freedom, from the beat of the primitive
tomtom to the tick of the atom bomb.
No man can claim a special, private sort of freedom among
free men. He is not enjoying freedom if he remains shackled
by old prejudices, if he thinks that freedom is a good thing
under certain circumstances for certain sorts of people, or
if he demonstrates what he conceives to be freedom by cultivating
eccentricity. These faults recall in sorrow the remark of
Mme Roland, passing the Statue of Liberty on her way to the
guillotine: "Ah, Liberty! What crimes are committed in thy
name!"
Canadianism
Canadianism is synonymous with freedom. It sponsors and
lives with humane laws, civilized manners, beneficial customs,
and tender human relations. It provides conditions in which
all citizens without discrimination have the greatest opportunities
for self-expression.
Canada welcomes as newcomers those who feel the obligation
to conform to, and fit into, this nation. They have their
own traditions, cultures, and backgrounds, but they are linked
with all other Canadians in their love of freedom. They are
like the performers in a choral dance who sing together, though
each has his particular part and sometimes one voice is heard
while "the others are silent. Each brings to the chorus something
of his own.
It is a good thing in a lover of freedom to be idealistic,
enthusiastic, resolute and courageous, and these qualities
deserve our respect. But these traits need to be balanced,
for the enjoyment of freedom, by reasonableness, good judgment,
and kindly consideration for the welfare of others.
Everyone is free to pursue excellence as he understands
it, and within democratic freedom like Canada's he may find
scope for the exercise of ail his potentialities. This is
a society in which the enjoyment of freedom by each citizen
has no limit except the like freedom of all.
Published by RBC Financial Group. All editions from the RBC
Letter collection are available on our web site at www.rbc.com/responsibility/letter.
Our e-mail address is: rbcletter@rbc.com.
Publié aussi en francais.
[ Return to RBC Letter
home page ]
|
