---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: However, some things must be said, and…"
description: "\"However, some things must be said, and there are times when silence becomes an accomplice to injustice.\" — Ayaan Hirsi Ali"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/ayaan-hirsi-ali-2858_accomplices_however-some-things-must-be-said-and-the_761312.jpg"
---

#  However, some things must be said, and there are times…

![“However, some things must be said, and there are times when silence becomes an accomplice to injustice.” quote by Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/ayaan-hirsi-ali-2858_accomplices_however-some-things-must-be-said-and-the_761312.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/ayaan-hirsi-ali-2858_accomplices_however-some-things-must-be-said-and-the_761312.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/ayaan-hirsi-ali-2858_accomplices_however-some-things-must-be-said-and-the_761312.jpg)

> “However, some things must be said, and there are times when silence becomes an accomplice to injustice.”

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Silence can enable wrongdoing when we fail to speak out against injustice.

**In simple terms:** Staying quiet can support injustice.

Key Takeaway

Speak up against unfairness.

Themes

justice silence responsibility

Mood

thoughtful concerned

Type

ethical motivational

When to use this quote

- activism
- workplace
- family
- community
- null

Key Concepts

ethical duty social activism

Questions to Reflect On

- When have you stayed silent and why?
- What risks arise from speaking out?

A Different Perspective

Silence may be necessary for safety in some contexts.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Accomplice Injustice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accomplice-injustice-3823964/) [Accomplices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accomplices/) [Healing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/healing/) [Injustice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/injustice/) [Justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice/) [Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said/) [Silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence/) [Silence Accomplice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence-accomplice-2011593/) [Things Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-said/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Times Silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/times-silence-1030247/)

## Related quotes

> [“There are times when silence becomes an accomplice to injustice.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/there-are-times-when-silence-becomes-an-accomplice-to-injustice/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

> [When struck on one cheek to turn the other, is really joining a conspiracy to secure the triumph of brutality. To agree not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/when-struck-on-one-cheek-to-turn-the-other-is-really-joining-a/)

[Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/)

> [People ask me if I have some kind of death wish, to keep saying the things I do. The answer is no: I would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/people-ask-me-if-i-have-some-kind-of-death-wish-to-keep-saying-the/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

> [“Silence is the accomplice of wisdom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/silence-is-the-accomplice-of-wisdom/)

[Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/)

> [There are times when silence has the loudest voice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leroy-brownlow/there-are-times-when-silence-has-the-loudest-voice/)

[Leroy Brownlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leroy-brownlow/)

> [“...there are times when silence is a poem.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/there-are-times-when-silence-is-a-poem/)

[John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/)

> [There are times when silence is the most sacred of responses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-kennedy/there-are-times-when-silence-is-the-most-sacred-of-responses/)

[Eugene Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-kennedy/)

> [“There are times when silence is better than any other words in the dictionary...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-chalifour/there-are-times-when-silence-is-better-than-any-other-words-in-the/)

[Francis Chalifour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-chalifour/)

> [There are times when silence is the best way to yell at the top of your voice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orlando-aloysius-battista/there-are-times-when-silence-is-the-best-way-to-yell-at-the-top-of/)

[Orlando Aloysius Battista](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orlando-aloysius-battista/)

> [The injustice of defeat lies in the fact that its most innocent victims are made to look like heartless accomplices. It is impossible to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-injustice-of-defeat-lies-in-the-fact-that-its-most-innocent/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [An American professor complained that a crypto-Marxist like me was invited in the USA, and I was denounced by the press in Eastern European…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-foucault/an-american-professor-complained-that-a-crypto-marxist-like-me-was/)

[Michel Foucault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-foucault/)

> [Insecurity is miserable. That's the bottom line. We don't need it. We don't want it. And we really can live without it. So what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/insecurity-is-miserable-that-s-the-bottom-line-we-don-t-need-it-we/)

[Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/)

> [And this is the forbidden truth, the unspeakable taboo - that evil is not always repellent but frequently attractive; that it has the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/and-this-is-the-forbidden-truth-the-unspeakable-taboo-that-evil-is/)

[Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/)

> [Americans will not allow any Islamic regime to reach the position of governance except if it is an accomplice to the Americans, just like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayman-al-zawahiri/americans-will-not-allow-any-islamic-regime-to-reach-the-position-of/)

[Ayman al-Zawahiri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayman-al-zawahiri/)

> [It takes little or nothing to undo reputations, the merest trifle makes and remakes them, it is simply a question of finding the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/it-takes-little-or-nothing-to-undo-reputations-the-merest-trifle/)

[Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/)

## More by Ayaan Hirsi Ali

> [Women covering their heads is traditional, but now we're seeing more and more women covering themselves from head to toe. This is said to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/women-covering-their-heads-is-traditional-but-now-we-re-seeing-more/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

> [I am grateful to my father for sending me to school, and that we moved from Somalia to Kenya, where I learned English.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/i-am-grateful-to-my-father-for-sending-me-to-school-and-that-we-moved/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

> [In Holland I have seen well-meaning, principled people blinded by multiculturalism, overwhelmed by the imperative to be sensitive and respectful of immigrant culture, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/in-holland-i-have-seen-well-meaning-principled-people-blinded-by/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

> [If we don't take effective measures now, the Netherlands could be torn between two extreme rights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/if-we-don-t-take-effective-measures-now-the-netherlands-could-be-torn/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

> [I see no difference between Islam and Islamism. Islam is defined as submission to the will of Allah, as it is described in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/i-see-no-difference-between-islam-and-islamism-islam-is-defined-as/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

> [They decided to let immigrants in and I am an immigrant. They gave us a chance to participate in this country's life and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/they-decided-to-let-immigrants-in-and-i-am-an-immigrant-they-gave-us/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

> [I want people to emphasize life before death as opposed to life after death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/i-want-people-to-emphasize-life-before-death-as-opposed-to-life-after/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

> [“Wishful thinking about the peaceful tolerance of Islam cannot interpret away this reality: hands are still cut off, women still stoned and enslaved, just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/wishful-thinking-about-the-peaceful-tolerance-of-islam-cannot/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

> [By declaring our Prophet infallible and not permitting ourselves to question him, we Muslims had set up a static tyranny. The Prophet Muhammad attempted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/by-declaring-our-prophet-infallible-and-not-permitting-ourselves-to/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

> [“The will of little girls is stifled by Islam. By the time they menstruate they are rendered voiceless. They are reared to become submissive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/the-will-of-little-girls-is-stifled-by-islam-by-the-time-they/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

> [I am not against migration. It is simply pragmatic to restrict migration, while at the same time encouraging integration and fighting discrimination. I support…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/i-am-not-against-migration-it-is-simply-pragmatic-to-restrict/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

> [I confront the European elite's self-image as tolerant 'while under their noses women are living like slaves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/i-confront-the-european-elite-s-self-image-as-tolerant-while-under/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

> [What matters is abuse, and how it is anchored in a religion that denies women their rights as humans. What matters is that atrocities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/what-matters-is-abuse-and-how-it-is-anchored-in-a-religion-that/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

> [“When I look at people talking about intersectionality, what I see is the human being magnifying a biological attribute, and then putting them aside,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/when-i-look-at-people-talking-about-intersectionality-what-i-see-is/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

> [We must reclaim and retake feminism from our fellow idiotic women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/we-must-reclaim-and-retake-feminism-from-our-fellow-idiotic-women/)

[Ayaan Hirsi Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

[Explore all 147 Ayaan Hirsi Ali quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/)

## More Accomplices quotes

> [It takes little or nothing to undo reputations, the merest trifle makes and remakes them, it is simply a question of finding the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/it-takes-little-or-nothing-to-undo-reputations-the-merest-trifle/)

[Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/)

> [Americans will not allow any Islamic regime to reach the position of governance except if it is an accomplice to the Americans, just like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayman-al-zawahiri/americans-will-not-allow-any-islamic-regime-to-reach-the-position-of/)

[Ayman al-Zawahiri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayman-al-zawahiri/)

> [And this is the forbidden truth, the unspeakable taboo - that evil is not always repellent but frequently attractive; that it has the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/and-this-is-the-forbidden-truth-the-unspeakable-taboo-that-evil-is/)

[Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/)

> [Insecurity is miserable. That's the bottom line. We don't need it. We don't want it. And we really can live without it. So what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/insecurity-is-miserable-that-s-the-bottom-line-we-don-t-need-it-we/)

[Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/)

> [An American professor complained that a crypto-Marxist like me was invited in the USA, and I was denounced by the press in Eastern European…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-foucault/an-american-professor-complained-that-a-crypto-marxist-like-me-was/)

[Michel Foucault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-foucault/)

> [And the past held only this wisdom: that love was a damaging mistake, and its accomplice, hope, a treacherous illusion. And whenever those twin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/and-the-past-held-only-this-wisdom-that-love-was-a-damaging-mistake-2/)

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

> [You're only a victim once. The next time you're an accomplice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-judd/you-re-only-a-victim-once-the-next-time-you-re-an-accomplice/)

[Naomi Judd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-judd/)

> [Then one day I realized that a false picture of the German camps had been created and that the problem of the concentration camps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-rassinier/then-one-day-i-realized-that-a-false-picture-of-the-german-camps-had/)

[Paul Rassinier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-rassinier/)

> [And what is an authentic madman? It is a man who preferred to become mad, in the socially accepted sense of the word, rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonin-artaud/and-what-is-an-authentic-madman-it-is-a-man-who-preferred-to-become/)

[Antonin Artaud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonin-artaud/)

> [The injustice of defeat lies in the fact that its most innocent victims are made to look like heartless accomplices. It is impossible to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-injustice-of-defeat-lies-in-the-fact-that-its-most-innocent/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Simply because, one hand, there are the haters, The hater has power. All we can do is oppose it, or one becomes an accomplice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/simply-because-one-hand-there-are-the-haters-the-hater-has-power-all/)

[Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/)

> [I have never seen more Senators express discontent with their jobs…I think the major cause is that, deep down in our hearts, we have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-danforth/i-have-never-seen-more-senators-express-discontent-with-their-jobs-i/)

[John C. Danforth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-danforth/)

> [You give up the world line by line. Stoically. And then one day you realize that your courage is farcical. It doesn't mean anything.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/you-give-up-the-world-line-by-line-stoically-and-then-one-day-you/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [We become accomplices in evil every time we seek to soothe the unslakable appetites of the crime family that sits in Pyongyang.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/we-become-accomplices-in-evil-every-time-we-seek-to-soothe-the/)

[Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/)

> [When struck on one cheek to turn the other, is really joining a conspiracy to secure the triumph of brutality. To agree not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/when-struck-on-one-cheek-to-turn-the-other-is-really-joining-a/)

[Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/)

[Browse all 95 Accomplices quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accomplices/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "However, some things must be said, and there are times when silence becomes an accomplice to injustice.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Ayaan Hirsi Ali"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/however-some-things-must-be-said-and-there-are-times-when-silence/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Accomplices"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/however-some-things-must-be-said-and-there-are-times-when-silence/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/ayaan-hirsi-ali-2858_accomplices_however-some-things-must-be-said-and-the_761312.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/ayaan-hirsi-ali-2858_accomplices_however-some-things-must-be-said-and-the_761312.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ff/ayaan-hirsi-ali-2858_accomplices_however-some-things-must-be-said-and-the_761312.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“However, some things must be said, and there are times when silence becomes an accomplice to injustice.” — Ayaan Hirsi Ali",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Ayaan Hirsi Ali",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayaan-hirsi-ali/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "However, some things must be said,...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/however-some-things-must-be-said-and-there-are-times-when-silence/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayaan-hirsi-ali/however-some-things-must-be-said-and-there-are-times-when-silence/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
