Religion, Family, and Civil Society Are the Best Weapons against Tyranny—Whether in China or in the USSR

In recent years, the people of Hong Kong—long accustomed to living in freedom—have increasingly experienced the full weight of Chinese totalitarianism. The Hong Kong fashion and media mogul, and vocal critic of Beijing, Jimmy Lai thus seeks advice from the former Soviet dissident and Jewish leader Natan Sharansky about how to stand up to Communist dictatorship. Among other things, Sharansky speaks about how devotion to religion and family can be sources of comfort to the persecuted, and how a robust civil society is the best defense against despotism. Perhaps most importantly, he argues that while compromise is crucial in business, politics, and many other facets of life, there can never be compromise between freedom and slavery. (Video, 64 minutes.)