Hyperbole. People will trade freely if they need to. Cash is not what prevents tyrants from coming to power, democratic societal structures do. Elections do. Having an educated population does. Cash didn’t save anyone from tyrannical rule.
Lack of cash usage or ability to transact with it has absolutely curtailed people's freedom, though. Privacy is a human right! There is virtually zero electronic financial privacy in the global west today. Everything is surveillance-by-default.
