The true meaning of freedom

A group of middle-aged Chinese women living in New York were arrested for disturbing other people by practicing a dance routine to loud music in a park. Such news may shock people in China, because they are used to dancing or seeing others dance to loud music in public places, according to a Yangcheng Evening News article. Excerpts:

The right to freedom does not mean you can do whatever you want to without taking the freedom of others into consideration. One person’s freedom should not harm the freedom of others.

In China, loud music can often be heard in public places. Although the understanding of freedom is essentially the same in all countries, in China many people misunderstand it when it comes to creating a noise in the open air.

China, too, has laws to prevent people from playing loud music in public places and disturbing others. But not all Chinese regard creating a din as a public nuisance. Unless people understand the real meaning of freedom, no law or regulation can prevent them from disturbing others for the sake of their own entertainment.

Social order, customs and morality are fundamentally the same across the world. The arrest of the Chinese women in New York is an example of how people and law enforcement agencies in the United States see freedom. The beauty of the right to freedom is that it should not infringe upon other people’s right to peace and social order.