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The renunciation of war as expressed in the Japanese Constitution has given a first ray of hope to a world in darkness and despair, and men today cling to this hope passionately. Can we really do something about it or are we to stand aside as idle onlookers, unable to contribute for better or for worse?

— Martin Niemöller

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More quotes by Martin Niemöller

For politicians truth and falsehood are unimportant. So I never could become a politician — not even a church politician.

Our people are trying to break the bond set by God. That is human conceit rising against God.

One thing is clear, the president of North Vietnam is not a fanatic. He is a very strong and determined man, but capable of listening, something that is very rare in a person of his position.

Then they came for the Jews, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew.

We had been frightened of atomic weapons since 1945. In those days I became convinced — and remain convinced now — that, after Hitler, Truman was the greatest murderer in the world.

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Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Martin Niemöller (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.