Do we mindlessly celebrate freedom and forget its true nature?

Maybe because we are quick to blame the victim by giving condescending attitudes and paternalistic advice about what women should do, wear, where to go, who to meet, etc. This is something we would be reluctant to impose on men. Why this inequality when as a society we talk about “equality” in professional matters? Ensuring the safety of private and public spaces for women is a responsibility of the state and society.

The objectification of women as a mere “means” to support the family, disregarding their “end” with their own personal needs and desires, ambitions and aspirations, continues to be another reason for their “secondary” status in society. The portrayal of women in the media and journalism also needs to be done more sensitively. It is appalling the language used in portraying crimes against women.

Even if the reporting is factual, it must respect the feelings of the victim and his family. The media is careful to conceal personal details about the victim, but the reporting must also be discreet. It should not give the impression that “anything goes”. This feeling of total freedom also fuels wrong attitudes in people that cause great harm to humanity. Freedom can only be truly enjoyed and celebrated when it is combined with a deep sense of responsibility – both towards the state and towards our society.

We just have to put ourselves in someone else's shoes to understand where the pain lies. It's time we embarked on this self-imposed “thought experiment”, otherwise we would mindlessly celebrate freedom and forget its true nature.

(Dr. (Mrs.) Shashi Motilal (retired), Professor of Philosophy, Department of Philosophy, University of Delhi, India, received her PhD from the State University of New York (SUNY) at Buffalo, USA in 1986. She has been a visiting lecturer at the University of Akron, Ohio, USA, and Carleton University, ON, Canada, TERI University, New Delhi, and IIT/Delhi and ISPP, New Delhi. This is an opinion piece and the views expressed above are those of the author. The Quintet neither endorses nor is responsible for it.)