Timothy Snyder - On freedom, tyranny and democracy

Paradiso and Uitgeverij Balans invite historian and author Timothy Snyder for an evening on freedom, tyranny and democracy, in conversation with Roxane van Iperen. As one of the leading interpreters of our dark times, Timothy Snyder wants to come to an understanding of what kinds of societies help people and democracies thrive.

Today, our political order faces new threats, not unlike the totalitarianism of the twentieth century. In his book On Tyranny Snyder offered a call to arms and a guide to resistance, with invaluable ideas for how we can preserve our freedoms in the uncertain years to come. In his most recent book On Freedom he explored how our understanding of freedom is leading us into crisis. Freedom is often interpreted in its negative form, the ‘freedom from’: freedom from occupation, oppression, or even government. But this doesn’t do justice to what is required to produce free human beings and a free society. Freedom is never merely the absence of constraints. Snyder suggests that true freedom is ‘freedom-to’: the freedom to thrive, to take risks for futures we choose by working together. Freedom is relational, something we must practice, share, and defend together. Freedom is the value that makes all other values possible. What can we do to defend true freedom and design a future where we can flourish?

Timothy Snyder is one of the most incisive historians and authors of our time. He is known for his profound analyses of twentieth-century political history and the dangers of authoritarianism in the modern era. Renowned is his work on Central Europe, Ukraine, the Soviet Union, and the Holocaust. Snyder is the author of twenty books, including his groundbreaking books On Tyranny (2017), The Road to Unfreedom (2019) and On Freedom (2024). His works have inspired poster campaigns, films, activists and artists. Currently, he holds the inaugural Temerty Chair in Modern European History at the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at the University of Toronto.

Writer and lawyer Roxane van Iperen (1976) became widely known to the general public with her novels ’t Hooge Nest and Dat beloof ik. Earlier this year, her essay Eigen planeet eerst was published. She has also written for Het Financieele Dagblad, Het Parool, De Morgen, Follow the Money, De Correspondent, and Vrij Nederland. She has written extensively about the excesses of Big Tech and their impact on citizens and democracy. Van Iperen has become an indispensable voice in the public debate. She views the world through a financial and economic lens, dissects power structures like no other, and has a keen eye for hypocrisy, inequality, and issues of integrity.

This programme is a cooperation between Paradiso and Uitgeverij Balans, and kicks off the festive year in which the publishing house celebrates its 40th anniversary.