In the modern world, human rights do not exist in a vacuum.
They are deeply intertwined with political, economic, and social factors, which either strengthen them or erode them.
Today, we are witnessing a dangerous trend in which disinformation, corruption, the undermining of education, and the denial of scientific facts are becoming tools for gradually stripping people of their rights and democratic freedoms.
Education
When governments or influential groups deliberately devalue or politicize education, they create a society in which critical thinking is suppressed. Uninformed people are easier to manipulate, more susceptible to lies, and more likely to accept injustices without resistance. The lack of education —or poor-quality education — creates conditions for believing in fake news and manipulated information, which in turn construct an alternative reality where authoritarianism is presented as "order," and protests against injustice are labeled as "chaos."
Corruption Models
At the same time, governments and private interests create the conditions for sustaining corrupt systems. Corruption destroys trust in institutions and, inevitably, in the justice system. When politicians’ decisions are driven not by the public interest but by private economic or corporate interests, citizens lose their right to participate in governance. This leads to a reduction of freedoms — from the restriction of protests to the censorship of inconvenient truths.
Climate Change
One of these inconvenient truths is climate change, a real and existential threat to humanity. Yet powerful economic and political forces actively deny it. This is no coincidence — acknowledging the climate crisis would require radical changes that would reduce corporate profits and increase pressure for social justice. However, denying science has even broader consequences — it undermines the very principle of truth, making it possible to manipulate people on all kinds of issues.
The Erosion of Our Rights
This doesn’t happen through a single law or a single act of repression — it happens slowly, almost imperceptibly. By the time we realize we've lost our rights, it may already be too late. Freedom isn’t lost suddenly, but gradually — yet that also means it can be protected in the same way. On a global scale, human rights are not guaranteed. They are not something that, once won, remain unshakable. Both history and the present show us that rights must not only be asserted but constantly defended against erosion — whether through legislative changes, political decisions, or social processes.
A vivid example of this is the amendments to the Preschool and School Education Act from last summer, or, as this change is commonly referred to, the ban on LGBT “propaganda” in schools.
With this amendment, Bulgaria aligned itself with countries that are slowly stripping away the rights of certain groups — in this case, LGBT people. Bulgaria now stands alongside Hungary, Georgia, and Russia.
When a state adopts legislation that restricts access to information and suppresses the right to identity of specific groups, it distances itself from the principles of equality and democracy.
Such restrictions don't only affect the LGBT community—they set a precedent for state control over personal life, beliefs, and the right to be informed for all citizens. History shows that when the rights of one group are limited, it is often just the first step toward broader repression.
These kinds of changes often open the door to even more restrictive measures, targeting not just LGBT people, but every individual. Today it’s a “ban on propaganda,” tomorrow it might be your children’s access to education, your parents’ access to medical care, people with disabilities, your right to associate freely, media censorship — or all of them at once!
Bulgaria stands at a crossroads — it will either join the democratic societies that protect the rights of all, or take the path of authoritarian regimes.
Authoritarianism begins with the planting of a single seed, and that seed is already being sown throughout our society and the world.