Freedom is important because it means that the choices you make matter. If I choose to do something good or bad then the repercussions of my actions are squarely on me. If the things I do are only because I'm being made to do them then I deserve none of the credit (or blame) for my actions.
I see people arguing that the world would be better if no one was free to choose to do bad things, if we enforce good behavior to the extremes that these folk want, if even your thoughts aren't a thing that you choose then how can the world really be even half as good as it is now? What makes humanity beautiful is its ability to choose to do good.
Of course, I'm not saying that no one should ever be punished for their wrongdoings, when they hurt another person of course we, as a society, should disapprove, and provide consequences to those actions. It's not okay to hurt people. I find it difficult, though, to find the proper line for protecting people. There are undoubtedly people who need protecting, and it is our duty to protect those who can't protect themselves, children are an obvious example, but what to protect them from? Should we really be striving for a world where no one is ever upset, no one is ever offended? If people aren't free to say their offensive things how can we argue against them? All that happens is people harbour those thoughts and grow them inside their minds where no argument can dissuade them and so we are actually losing the chance to help someone to make better choices.
When I am discussing behaviour with my son, I usually frame it in choices. Today, we are going to choose to do the right thing, because it is right, but it is still a choice. He grasps this, even at the tender age of five, and when he does wrong he feels bad, and he says 'Next time, I will make better choices.' Teaching him to choose to do what is right, in my mind, is far better than simply not offering him the choice in the first place, if he can't choose to do wrong then how can he be praised for being good? How can I see that he is growing into a good man, if I never give him the chance to be a good boy without being told how?
It is also important to respect that other people, too, make choices. You don't have to like the choices they make, and if you think they are harmful you can try to explain why so that they have the ability to make better choices in the future, but taking away their ability to choose stifles their growth, and if you truly believe they need to change then you need to leave open to them the choice to do so.
More than that, though, I see people rejecting the choices others make even when there is no harm. Not even any pretense of harm in anything more than the abstract that 'It is wrong, and so it is bad.' Which is incredibly circular logic. If someone isn't hurting themselves, or you, or someone close to you, or someone who you know needs you to protect them, or someone who has asked for your help then how can you feel righteous in taking away that choice from them?
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