To the Editor:

The word ‘Anthropos’ is derived from the union of the word meaning ‘above’ and the verb of the ancient Greek language, ‘throsko’, which means I see above, high, where the ideals come from with which man himself, through his Creator, was endowed.

These values and these ideals are a gift of incalculable value. And of course, among all these, freedom of thought and expression has the first place. No one can take away from man this right, except his Creator. With this, his incalculable freedom of thought and expression, each person decides which path he will choose in his life, from the moment he understands himself, until his death. It is his inalienable right. He decides and chooses, with the awareness that he alone is truly responsible for the results. There are no excuses for his own choices. This is humanity. He must live and express himself freely, without being oppressed, to decide rightly or wrongly. From our mistakes we learn a lot and many times we finally discover what is right, what is fair and above all, what is human, which was made for us, the people.

Each person – let’s not forget that the word comes, I repeat, from the words above=up and I look up – chooses his path, easy or difficult, and follows it with his own responsibility. We were forged, having freedom of thought and spirit as the highest good. Freedom of expression is our inalienable right in civilized societies. Unfortunately, the people themselves, have called this right into question. Many times someone is punished, especially in totalitarian regimes, for expressing morals and customs that are different from those regimes.

Ancient Athens, many, many years ago, taught the polity of Democracy. In every Democracy, we don’t have equal rights for only you and me. We all have rights, regardless of gender or race. Thank you.

Yours sincerely,

Katerina Kollarou

Astoria, NY