Name: What I learned about freedom after escaping North Korea
Uploaded: 2019-08-30T14:55:51Z
Duration: 10 min 38 s
Description: "North Korea is unimaginable," says human rights activist Yeonmi Park, who escaped the country at the age of 13. Sharing the harrowing story of her childhood, she reflects on the fragility of freedom -- and shows how change can be achieved even in the world's darkest places.

Yeonmi Park: What I learned about freedom after escaping North Korea

What I learned about freedom after escaping North Korea

"North Korea is unimaginable," says human rights activist Yeonmi Park, who escaped the country at the age of 13. Sharing the harrowing story of her childhood, she reflects on the fragility of freedom -- and shows how change can be achieved even in the world's darkest places.

Growing up in North Korea, children are taught that love means loyalty to the regime and compassion is a foreign word. Even witnessing death in the streets brought no emotional response because the very concept of empathy was never taught. After escaping, it became clear that critical thinking and moral understanding do not come naturally, but are shaped by a society’s values. Freedom, once taken for granted, proves fragile without vigilance and education.