Dilemmas Of A New Privacy Age
Although today’s powerful technologies allow us to experience greater levels of enjoyment, we are now pitted against a modern evil: digital surveillance. With a new age of privacy dawning upon us, the culprits are unseen and creeping into our private world. In recent years, the biggest threat has been none other than our government. As the government continues to neglect the citizens privacy, our own national values of personal freedom and individualism are contradicted.
People commonly misunderstand the importance of privacy. They wonder, ‘What do I have to hide?’ Well, it’s not a matter of hiding something, but rather a matter of feeling secure in our own personal life. Privacy is recognized as a fundamental civil liberty in the UN Declaration of Human Rights, but it’s also the most difficult to define.
Parliamentarian William Pitt once wrote, “The poorest man may in his cottage bid defiance to all the force of the Crown. It may be frail; its roof may shake; the storms may enter; — but the King of England cannot.”
Essentially, privacy enables us to create barriers to protect ourselves from unjustified interference. We have a right to have control over our lives, and privacy offers just that.
It’s also accepted that a certain amount of surveillance is necessary in order to protect innocent people. After 9/11, security was a top priority and the civil liberties of Americans were on a chopping block. The Patriot Act, which intensified surveillance laws, made it easier for the government to spy on ordinary Americans; now, the FBI is allowed to obtain financial, credit, and telecommunication records without a court order. Our dilemma is straightforward: how will we balance the power of the government and the individual freedom of citizens?
The answer can come in many forms, but what we do know is that the survival of American democracy depends as much on liberty as it does on our security. These two values are in an ongoing battle, but without a healthy compromise, the citizens of America cannot live free of fear. The Internet & Life Project states that approximately 52% of citizens are “concerned” about government surveillance of their data. Privacy should be America’s moral promise — it shouldn’t be undermined by the government.
It’s inevitable that a “safer” society at the cost of our personal liberties is one that doesn’t uphold its value of freedom. What we need now is a clear vision on how to end abuse of government surveillance power. However, it only seems to amplify with our current presidential administration. In the Forbes article titled, “Trump Is Killing Obama’s Plans for World Privacy Rights,” the author states that among the current executive orders, a specific decree ensured non-Americans wouldn’t get equal privacy rights as U.S. citizens. Yet, is our nation truly secure while we leave our principles of freedom unguarded? The answer is simple: no. A government that doesn’t respect privacy is one where autonomy is fatally flawed. As our nation grows, we need to support our principles, not disregard them.
