I implore you to always stand up for privacy and the right to anonymity; for civil rights, justice, and equity; for the right to disconnect, to opt out, and to retain control of your life, your data, and your freedom.

You may not understand why these things are worth defending. Perhaps you believe you live in a just and lawful society. You may even think there are people who don’t deserve such rights. Please—defend them anyway.

This is already a losing battle. Our privacy and our agency are being eroded, little by little, every single day.

The dystopian surveillance state, the increasing militarisation of police, the rise of technofascism—it isn’t something that exists only in films like Children of Men, Elysium, or Equilibrium. It’s already here. The only reason many of us haven’t felt its full weight is privilege: a temporary buffer delaying for us what those already caught in its machinery have endured.

This is not paranoia, for I had the misfortune of briefly experiencing what I write about, and it terrified me. To feel utterly helpless. To exist at the mercy of faceless authority, where judgement no longer stops at what we do, but extends into what we think, say, and record in what we believed were private spaces.

Stand up for those who no longer have a voice, who have been pushed to the edges of society. And yes—think about yourself too, because if you don’t take a stand today, tomorrow you may find yourself in the spotlight, exposed and powerless.

Don’t be complacent. Don’t look away. Don't give anything away and make them fight for every inch. Support VPN services, resist giving over your personal information just to walk through a door or use a service even if you don't care about your own privacy or anonymity. Ask questions, say no, opt out, refuse to comply.

This post is not about current affairs and reflects my own experiences, particularly over the past two years, prompted by recently watching some videos with journalist and author Cory Doctorow whose work includes Little Brother and its sequel Homeland. These are my personal views and do not represent the views of my employer.

#Privacy #CivilRights #SurveillanceState #Authoritarianism #HumanRights #Justice #Incarceration #SocialExclusion #HumanDignity