What the 'yuf' think - freedom of expression online

Those who know me,understand that I get very passionate about listening to young people's voice. Now I don't mean what they tell you at school or the information that comes in from surveys. I mean sitting down, face to face and asking good honest questions. 

I don't get to work with young people all that much, so when I do get a chance, I seize it. Last week I was asked if I could gather some thoughts from young people about freedom of expression online. 
Here's what a group of Scouting teenagers, boys and girls, aged 14 - 17 in Lincoln said about freedom online:

·         "Freedom is being able to talk about or express your views or beliefs without being judged or criticised....."

·        " Freedom of expression comes with the risk of being judged by other people"

·         "The internet allows you freedom but you need to be careful"

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·         "Freedom means that you can express yourself, but is not just about saying and doing what you want, you have to act/behave within the social norms of the community"

·         "There’s no such thing as 100% freedom, as you have to be held accountable for your actions. That is a good thing. Anonymity serves as a screen, but you can’t be completely hidden"

·         "Freedom of expression is the ability to be myself, as long as it doesn’t upset someone else."

·        " I have freedom to express my thoughts and opinions, as long as I don’t offend or segregate others, and that is good."

·         "Freedom can have a negative effect, and I see many of the people at school being brainwashed, or conforming to what they think is right and acceptable. Sometime the internet exaggerates this, so for those of us who are ‘different’, it’s even harder, despite the fact that it should be easier."

·         "The law should help to tell you what is morally right, and thus freedom should be determined through those boundaries"

·         "Freedom unfortunately means that if you express yourself you can be mocked or bullied"

·        " For some people the internet gives them more freedom to be themselves, and explore their ‘real’ personalities. However the internet can also allow them to create a distorted version of themselves – the person they think they should be in order to conform, but it’s not really them, so they are becoming less free."

·         "Downside of freedom is that people can say stuff that they might not say otherwise, and it might stick with them for a long time"

·         "The media makes the internet seem like a more dangerous place than it is, and it’s hard to get parents to understand that it’s OK."

·         "Everyone has a right to a private and a family life, and so boundaries are very important."

·         "You could say that there is too much freedom. With freedom comes responsibility, and I don’t think that some people are behaving responsibility or respecting people online"

·         "We all self censor – we think about what we are doing and who is following us/friends with us. Therefore we don’t say things on facebook that might worry or upset some of the those people. We carefully think about the image we give and the things we write"

I love asking kids questions, whatever their age, and because I don't have children myself, or work directly with children, I often find that they tell me things they might not tell others, because I listen and ask questions of them. It would seem that young people have the same dilemmas as us, but the ones that I talked to, were clear about responsibility.
In a week when we are thinking about identity and openness, it's sobering to think that people of all ages are having the same thoughts and discussions.

So remember, with great freedom comes great responsibility.... and thanks to all the Young Leaders of Lincolnshire County Scouts for talking with me.