cpt_zeitgeist

Zeitgeist

ESSAYS • VIEWPOINT

THE MISSION

Published: May 20, 2025

“KNOW US BY OUR COURAGE – NOT BY OUR FEAR”

Bréon Rydell

In an era overshadowed by apathy and the resurgence worldwide of oppressive ideologies, my work aims to be both a mirror and a beacon. On the one hand, it reflects serious fractures within society, whilst at the same time, illuminating paths that lead towards empathy, justice and unity.

Through my artistic creations, I strive to awaken the dormant consciousness of justice, to challenge complacency and to inspire courageous action aimed at establishing a better world, where people can live in harmony and with mutual respect of one another.
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ZEITGEIST

Published: April 7, 2020

In a time of universal deceit—telling the truth is a revolutionary act.

 George Orwell 1984

Democracy Is Under Serious Threat

For some considerable time, I have  consistently voiced my concerns that the Democratic Order is under threat. The dramatic unfolding of recent events has given clear indications that humanity appears to have arrived at this juncture. We see the rise of extreme totalitarian ideologies, financed by powerful corrupt oligarchies, ruthless corporations, with access to advanced technologies that have the capacity to threaten, intimidate and openly imprison populations in this 21st century.

Excerpts from an original essay, written and discussed at the Centre for American Studies, University of Heidelberg, Germany (HCA).

Bréon Rydell
February 2020.

 

Bréon – I have watched the films you have produced on the war in Ukraine, and am deeply moved and impressed. I admire the way you try to intervene in this terrible situation and get others to do their own part.  You show what “art” can do and I love how you place your confidence in it. You are very persuasive as a public speaker, and the Sky interview shows this. It must have been difficult for you to witness the damage and suffering in Ukraine, but the personal experience is what gives specificity and validity to your art. I am very moved. 

As I told you when we first met, you are the light, the spark, the spirit of inspiration. We needed you when you were with us at Heidelberg University, and we need you in Germany today. The world needs you, your words and vision, now more than ever.

Prof. Dietmar Schloss. Head of the Department of Literature, Centre for American Studies, University of Heidelberg, Germany, May 2023.
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Project Freedom — Preserving Democracy — Advancing Education

Published: January 23, 2023
Photo Credit Ryan McGoverne

Bréon is passionate about the transformative power of creativity to inspire, bring people together, and to activate positive change.  

After a life-changing visit to war-torn Ukraine in September 2022, Bréon was invited to become a creative partner on Project Freedom, with Gennadiy Kurochka, Founder of CFC Big Ideas, based in Kyiv.

Ukrainian avant-garde painting ‘The Overthrow of the Autocracy’ by Petro Martyniuk (Late 1920’s' early 30's.)

Project Freedom has been formed with the objective of building awareness to the ongoing crisis that western democracies face in the 21st Century. Anti-democratic forces have gathered and are gaining in strength. The war in Ukraine is the result of a powerful strategic alliance between totalitarian regimes, who are actively hostile to the principles of democracy.

We must awaken from our slumber and prepare for the battles that are looming — lest we are in danger of repeating the mistakes made in the 1930’s. Failure to defend democracy, only emboldens those tyrannical forces that are determined to undermine the entire world order.

Bréon Rydell, in Kyiv, with Ukrainian MOD Liaison Officer, Sept 2022.

In early September 2022, I made my way, via Poland, to Ukraine, where I would witness the devastation of this war for myself. Here was a country fighting for its survival and freedom.

The plight of the Ukrainian people spoke directly to me and my own experience growing up in the Scottish Borders — a highly contested region between Scotland and England that had endured conflict for centuries, and tragically, also what my Irish ancestors had suffered in their brutal struggle for independence.

Without doubt, my visit to Ukraine was to become a life-changing event.

By the end of that tumultuous month, the simmering pot had exploded not just in Ukraine but across the globe. The brave women of Iran had taken to the streets and the ‘Woman, Life, Freedom’ movement had emerged. Their plight has drawn attention more broadly to oppressed women from Tehran to Kabul, as well as what is happening under the other repressive regimes around the world.

Read the full version at:

breonrydell.substack.com/publish/home

 

 

Bréon – you are a great man and a genius poet! You feel and see things others don’t, and I consider myself very lucky that destiny arranged life in such a way that we are working with you now on one of the most important projects of our lifetime – Project Freedom!

Yuriy Sak, Adviser to The Ukrainian Ministry of Defence, Aug 2023
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STAND UP FOR UKRAINE — RESISTING RUSSIAN IMPERIALISM — an open letter by BRÉON RYDELL

Published: March 10, 2022

On Thursday 24th Feb, 2022, Russia launched a large scale invasion of Ukraine — this was an act of war.

In the 20th Century alone, how many millions were murdered by the forces of fascism? How many were slaughtered by tyrants of terror who sought absolute and limitless power?

Who would have believed that today, in Europe, the citizens of Ukraine—a democratic, independent state—would be under attack, torched by the sinister hand of a delusional dictator, who seeks to bring nothing but misery, destruction and death.

Who profits from this vanity?

This is a fools paradise—

Read the full version at:

breonrydell.substack.com/publish/home

 

© 2022-2025 Bréon Rydell

Bréon – it was a great honor for us to meet you in wartime Ukraine and have a chance to tell you about our struggle, as well as introduce you to as many people as possible in our country so that you could form an independent opinion about the events that are taking place here.

We know that the UK government does not recommend UK citizens to visit Ukraine, limiting itself to military-political and humanitarian missions, and supporting accredited British journalists here. Therefore, we regard every civilian Briton who arrived in Ukraine as a hero. You are a hero, Bréon!

I’m incredibly glad that you became interested in Project Freedom, and I’m already looking forward to our collaboration! I am sure that this project will contribute to the just struggle of our people for the ideals of freedom and will become a world sensation.

Gennadiy Kurochka
Founder and Managing Partner, CFC International Business Consulting Agency, Kyiv.Sept 2022

Bréon — “You will know the brightness of your light by the strength of the denying forces against you and they are considerable.” Bille Brown, Australian Actor and Playwright, Brisbane 2013.

 
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THE FREE WORLD — VERUS TOTALITARIANISM

Published: July 12, 2021

Without freedom of thought, there can be no such thing as wisdom.

 Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), polymath, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States.

There is an urgent need to protect our freedom of thought, freedom of opinion, which is the bedrock of our democratic society, and the basis for all other human rights.

 

 

 Bréon Rydell, Paris, France, July 2021

We are all in this together — the challenges that lie ahead are formidable. Democracy is under serious threat. We are already in the grips of omnipotent technology— which, if left unchecked, will ultimately control everyone’s life.

Our long-term goal must aim to re-awaken the spark, the spirit, the creative light of inspiration, by simplifying our lives, by strengthening local communities, by significantly reducing our dependence on dwindling global energy reserves, and at the same time, conserving the endangered biosphere. 

Bréon Rydell
Berlin, August 2021

 
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