Unfree Speech: The Threat to Global Democracy and Why we must Act Now

An urgent manifesto for global democracy from Joshua Wong, the 23-year-old phenomenon leading Hong Kong’s protests – and Nobel Peace Prize nominee

With global democracy under threat, we must act together to defend out rights: now.

When he was 14, Joshua Wong made history. While the adults stayed silent, Joshua staged the first-ever student protest in Hong Kong to oppose National Education — and won.

Since then, Joshua has led the Umbrella Movement, founded a political party, and rallied the international community around the anti-extradition bill protests, which have seen 2 million people — more than a quarter of the population — take to Hong Kong’s streets. His actions have sparked worldwide attention, earned him a Nobel Peace Prize nomination, and landed him in jail twice.

Composed in three parts, Unfree Speech chronicles Joshua’s path to activism, collects the letters he wrote as a political prisoner under the Chinese state, and closes with a powerful and urgent call for all of us globally to defend our democratic values.

When we stay silent, no one is safe. When we free our speech, our voice becomes one.

“If we want freedom, we need to learn from Hong Kong. With values, tactics, and courage, Joshua Wong shows us the way.” —Timothy Snyder, best-selling author of On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century

“Joshua Wong is a brave and inspiring young leader. Together we are one loud voice that cannot be silenced.” —Greta Thunberg