[Freedom of speech] isn't something somebody else gives you. That's something you give to yourself.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Freedom of speech must be claimed by individuals rather than granted by others.
- In plain terms
- You must give yourself free speech.
- What can you take from it?
- Speak up even when not officially allowed.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Who gives you your rights?
- When do you speak up?
Another view
Some rights require institutions to protect them.
More from Kurt Vonnegut
I asked Rob Roy where he had gone to college. 'Yale,' he said. I told him what Helen Dole said about Yale, that it ought to be called 'Plantation Owners' Tech.…
Permalink to quote #153 Bergeron's epitaph for the planet, I remember, which he said should be carved in big letters in a wall of the Grand Canyon for the flying-saucer people to find…
Permalink to quote #155 How embarrassing to be human.
Permalink to quote #152
Related quotes
There is one tradition in America I am proud to inherit. It is our first freedom and the truest expression of our Americanism: the ability to dissent without f…
Natalie MerchantNatalie Merchant quote #1 The basic freedom of the world is woman's freedom. A free race cannot be born of slave mothers. A woman enchained cannot choose but give a measure of that bond…
Margaret SangerMargaret Sanger quote #4 I agree with everything you say, but I would attack to the death your right to say it.
Tom StoppardTom Stoppard quote #5