Original Image Source: Mohamed Hassan- PXhere- Modified by 
Living on a country under the democratic rule, both freedom of expression and right to privacy are basic human rights, every people have to the moment that they were born. Freedom of Expression allows a person allows us to speak our opinions in all occasions, regardless of the medium while Right to Privacy keeps our personal information from being accessed by other people. Both were powerful tools that each individual should have and for most of the time, both work together to protect people but should we keep only one of this, I will always choose my freedom of expression every time of the day.
Freedom of Expression Takes on Many Forms
In general, Freedom of Expression is the right to express oneself without fear of reprisal or censorship and does not only limit itself with Words, Writings and Videos , it also extends in different mediums such as Art, Music, and Literature, things that not only change our perspective about the world but also provide us source of entertainment. It also does not limit itself on expressing our ideas but also extends to the everyday emotions that we feel such as sadness, anger, fear, joy and the love we feel in the people around us. Even gestures like showing your middle finger or hugging a person are also part of free speech. Just imagine if suddenly musicians cannot make any songs anymore or that you cannot say "I love you!" to your wife and family freely, would you be able to live a happy life? probably not.
Just look at this beautiful art piece on an exhibit that I visit recently, It portrays a picture of a rice field where farmer was showing his affection on a woman through music which we called Harana and a traditional way of courting women in our country which is an important part of our history and culture.
On this next art piece shows an image of many houses that are highly compressed with one another which addresses squatting and the issue with the lack of housing that many area in my country are still experiencing which could be a message not only for the masses but also for the leaders of the country.
Both of them are equally wonderful and at the same time, tells a different message to the people that will see them but without the freedom of expression, no artist will be able to make arts that shows the wonders of love nor pieces that address different societal issues that needs to be resolved. Neither us regular people could show our affection to other people or complain on unjust things which will overall leads to a very depressing life that is as if were robots that cannot feel or complain.
Keeping The Freedom of Expression means Keeping Hive Alive.
One thing that will also be gone if our freedom of expression was taken was Hive. As a decentralized social platform, it allows us to make our content and express ourselves without the fear of censorship. It provides a safe space for people so that they can write about their opinions and personal experiences without the fear of retaliation while providing strong communities that supports and rewards one another with the effort and knowledge that they contribute to the people. It keeps our eyes open with different issues around the world that can't be heard or seen on mass media and other social sites due to censorship. If keeping my right to privacy means removing Hive from its existence, then I might as well give up my privacy and be informed with the things that are happening beyond my sight.
That was it for this post. Thank you and see you at the next one!
Are you interested in reading some of my future writings? Don't forget to follow me! In the meantime, here are some of my most recent Hive Learners post if you'd like to read them:
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