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But I think we have to be very vigilant. We have to stop the rot wherever we find it. Some fifty years ago, a few people created horror, but far too many, knowing about it, tolerated it. It started then just as now - with graffiti, vulgar jokes, and knowing winks. Then it was the Jews, now it is the Turks and the Vietnamese. The moment one hears somebody say something offensive to human dignity in any way, whether against foreigners or people of other faiths or colour, one must protest and argue. These individual attitudes must never go unchallenged. The obscenity of discrimination will only be stopped if we accept individual responsibility for never, in a single instance, allowing it to go unchallenged. That, I think, is our task - yes, as our parents' children.

Martin Bormann#5

DiscriminationHuman rightsProtestResponsibilitySpeechTolerance

About this quote

What does it mean?
Discrimination begins with small slights like jokes and graffiti, and it grows when people tolerate it. Individual responsibility and immediate protest are necessary to stop the spread of hatred.
In plain terms
Stop discrimination early by speaking up against even small insults.
What can you take from it?
Never allow offensive attitudes to go unchallenged.

Where it applies

  • hearing offensive jokes
  • seeing prejudice
  • community conflicts

Putting it to work

  • protest slurs
  • educate peers
  • challenge bias

Questions to consider

  • What small acts of tolerance have you witnessed?
  • When did you stay silent?

Another view

Individual protest alone cannot dismantle systemic racism or institutional bias.

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