--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The system was afraid of Vaclav Havel…" description: "\"The system was afraid of Vaclav Havel. And so they either harassed him for put him in jail.\" — Judy Woodruff" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b50/judy-woodruff-4310_harassed_the-system-was-afraid-of-vaclav-havel-an_2125643.png" --- # The system was afraid of Vaclav Havel. And so they either… ![“The system was afraid of Vaclav Havel. And so they either harassed him for put him in jail.” quote by Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b50/judy-woodruff-4310_harassed_the-system-was-afraid-of-vaclav-havel-an_2125643.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b50/judy-woodruff-4310_harassed_the-system-was-afraid-of-vaclav-havel-an_2125643.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b50/judy-woodruff-4310_harassed_the-system-was-afraid-of-vaclav-havel-an_2125643.png) > “The system was afraid of Vaclav Havel. And so they either harassed him for put him in jail.” [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Authoritarian regimes suppress dissent, leading to harassment or imprisonment of critics. **In simple terms:** Oppressive systems target outspoken individuals. Key Takeaway Defend free expression and protect dissenters. Themes politics human rights oppression Mood concerned determined Type critical historical When to use this quote - journalism - activism - legal advocacy - international diplomacy Key Concepts authoritarianism civil liberties Questions to Reflect On - What safeguards can protect critics? - How does fear influence public discourse? A Different Perspective Oppression may also be subtle, making detection hard. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Jail](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jail/) ## Related quotes > [Vaclav Havel didn't want to ride around in big black cars. And he had his own car with a little red heart on it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/vaclav-havel-didn-t-want-to-ride-around-in-big-black-cars-and-he-had/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [Vaclav Havel was a really popular leader. He couldn't believe that he was really there. I mean, he still dressed in black T-shirts and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/vaclav-havel-was-a-really-popular-leader-he-couldn-t-believe-that-he/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [ I think he \[Vaclav Havel\] felt that he could speak more truth, in a way, through writing plays. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/i-think-he-vaclav-havel-felt-that-he-could-speak-more-truth-in-a-way/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [I knew that Vaclav Havel didn't want to look into people's eyes, because he said that, when he was being interrogated during the communist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/i-knew-that-vaclav-havel-didn-t-want-to-look-into-people-s-eyes/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [Vaclav Havel had moral stature. The president in first Czechoslovakia and the Czech Republic in many ways is a ceremonial role. And so, speaking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/vaclav-havel-had-moral-stature-the-president-in-first-czechoslovakia/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [Vaclav Havel had this great sense of humor. And you kind of felt that he was making a little bit fun of everything at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/vaclav-havel-had-this-great-sense-of-humor-and-you-kind-of-felt-that/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [Vaclav Havel was the most amazing man in terms of being the combination of somebody with massive moral authority, great courage for having espoused…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/vaclav-havel-was-the-most-amazing-man-in-terms-of-being-the/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [ I think he \[Vaclav Havel\] is one of the great figures of the 20th century. He is one of the people that was able… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/i-think-he-vaclav-havel-is-one-of-the-great-figures-of-the-20th/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [ He \[Vaclav Havel\] did love music. And so much about the Czech revolution was about music. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/he-vaclav-havel-did-love-music-and-so-much-about-the-czech-revolution/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [I think that, from Vaclav Havel own experience, he knew if we all paid attention to what was going on, the chances were that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/i-think-that-from-vaclav-havel-own-experience-he-knew-if-we-all-paid/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [ I think he \[Vaclav Havel\] probably would have liked to have written more plays. I think he missed being a playwright.I think he talked… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/i-think-he-vaclav-havel-probably-would-have-liked-to-have-written/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [“The real test of a man is not when he plays the role that he wants for himself, but when he plays the role…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-p-buford/the-real-test-of-a-man-is-not-when-he-plays-the-role-that-he-wants/) [Bob P. Buford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-p-buford/) > [“Communism went against life, against man’s fundamental needs, against the need for freedom, the need to be enterprising, to associate freely against the will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-g-chang/communism-went-against-life-against-man-s-fundamental-needs-against/) [Gordon G. Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-g-chang/) > [“Very often the test of one's allegiance to a cause or to a people is precisely the willingness to stay the course when things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/very-often-the-test-of-one-s-allegiance-to-a-cause-or-to-a-people-is/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Fyodor Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov and Milan Kundera’s The Unbearable Lightness of Being might suit our moment. Sinclair Lewis’s novel It Can’t Happen Here…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-snyder/fyodor-dostoevsky-s-the-brothers-karamazov-and-milan-kundera-s-the/) [Timothy Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-snyder/) ## More by Judy Woodruff > [There have been trade-offs every day, every month, every year. There's a lot that I missed and I do have regrets in that area.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/there-have-been-trade-offs-every-day-every-month-every-year-there-s-a/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [One can understand the politics of that at this moment. It's an effort to buy time for a constituency of workers who have really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/one-can-understand-the-politics-of-that-at-this-moment-it-s-an-effort/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [Vaclav Havel didn't want to ride around in big black cars. And he had his own car with a little red heart on it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/vaclav-havel-didn-t-want-to-ride-around-in-big-black-cars-and-he-had/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [From one perspective, we're in the early stage in artificial intelligence, but exponentials start out slowly, and then they take off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/from-one-perspective-we-re-in-the-early-stage-in-artificial/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [We haven't learned to be the majority party. We haven't learned how to lead. We're still stuck in the opposition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/we-haven-t-learned-to-be-the-majority-party-we-haven-t-learned-how-to/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [One of the main things we have been looking at is, how can we get a robot to think about situations it's never seen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/one-of-the-main-things-we-have-been-looking-at-is-how-can-we-get-a/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [My mother was adored by her family and by the scores of children she took care of and their parents, all of whom called…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/my-mother-was-adored-by-her-family-and-by-the-scores-of-children-she/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [ That was an exception within the \[Barack\] Obama administration's economic policy, a crisis that he inherited from the previous administration, and felt it was… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/that-was-an-exception-within-the-barack-obama-administration-s/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [Every news organization should ideally be as broadly representative as possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/every-news-organization-should-ideally-be-as-broadly-representative/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [ I think, as a historian, what strikes one the most about this \[Donald'd Trump\] program is just simply its nationalism, with his commitment to… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/i-think-as-a-historian-what-strikes-one-the-most-about-this-donald-d/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [Viewing that complex relationship one-sidedly from the aspect of manufacturing and the impact of Chinese imports on the United States makes sense from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/viewing-that-complex-relationship-one-sidedly-from-the-aspect-of/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [I don't think anyone is closer to the voters in Washington than members of the House of Representatives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/i-don-t-think-anyone-is-closer-to-the-voters-in-washington-than/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [Some days you feel like you've had the greatest ego massage, then the next day you've been trampled on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/some-days-you-feel-like-you-ve-had-the-greatest-ego-massage-then-the/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [I have no doubt about it. I think this is a part of the nature of man, a desire for freedom, for dignified life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/i-have-no-doubt-about-it-i-think-this-is-a-part-of-the-nature-of-man/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) > [People put on their earphones, they lay out their phones, they put - open up their computers, and they convince themselves that they're most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-woodruff/people-put-on-their-earphones-they-lay-out-their-phones-they-put-open/) [Judy Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) [Explore all 113 Judy Woodruff quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-woodruff/) ## More Harassed quotes > [Kids made fun of me and harassed me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-lepore/kids-made-fun-of-me-and-harassed-me/) [Amanda Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-lepore/) > [A certain section of the media was very... They bullied me and harassed me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mallika-sherawat/a-certain-section-of-the-media-was-very-they-bullied-me-and-harassed/) [Mallika Sherawat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mallika-sherawat/) > [“Will you call me first thing tomorrow?” “I must say, if I knew all this creepy stuff was going to elicit this much attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-faria-stolarz/will-you-call-me-first-thing-tomorrow-i-must-say-if-i-knew-all-this/) [Laurie Faria Stolarz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-faria-stolarz/) > [I'm used to seeing women being degraded, slut shamed, harassed for what they look like. Even the most powerful women in the world are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petra-collins/i-m-used-to-seeing-women-being-degraded-slut-shamed-harassed-for-what/) [Petra Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petra-collins/) > [Twenty years ago, when I spoke about women getting harassed by politicians, people said I was getting personal. Today, the climate has changed. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/subramanian-swamy/twenty-years-ago-when-i-spoke-about-women-getting-harassed-by/) [Subramanian Swamy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/subramanian-swamy/) > [“I don't think I'm being harassed by little green stalkers. I don't know what's really going on, but I'd rather try to eliminate all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomm-quackenbush/i-don-t-think-i-m-being-harassed-by-little-green-stalkers-i-don-t/) [Thomm Quackenbush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomm-quackenbush/) > [I don't know any woman that hasn't been harassed at a gym or maybe touched inappropriately, or something like that. That builds up inside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katy-o-brian/i-don-t-know-any-woman-that-hasn-t-been-harassed-at-a-gym-or-maybe/) [Katy O'Brian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katy-o-brian/) > [Bullying is a problem that shouldn't exist. No one should ever feel harassed or unsafe in a school simply because they act or think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-moores/bullying-is-a-problem-that-shouldn-t-exist-no-one-should-ever-feel/) [Sarah Moores](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-moores/) > [I've been harassed or on the receiving end of sexist and inappropriate behavior almost every place I've ever worked.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsten-powers/i-ve-been-harassed-or-on-the-receiving-end-of-sexist-and/) [Kirsten Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirsten-powers/) > [What you Have ever heard, A girl because a boy has discredited the value, and he harassed and are committed suicide / I never heard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/what-you-have-ever-heard-a-girl-because-a-boy-has-discredited-the/) Mak\_786 > [I am not someone who enjoys being followed and harassed. I prefer to stay at home with my family than to go out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roberto-firmino/i-am-not-someone-who-enjoys-being-followed-and-harassed-i-prefer-to/) [Roberto Firmino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roberto-firmino/) > [Most of the times to be honest with you, I get sexually harassed certainly more than I do to females, because... they are comfortable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-williams/most-of-the-times-to-be-honest-with-you-i-get-sexually-harassed/) [Brad Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-williams/) > [“You (must) do plenty of ‘pratikraman’. Do the ‘pratikraman’ for an hour every day of everyone who is living around you, whomever you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/you-must-do-plenty-of-pratikraman-do-the-pratikraman-for-an-hour/) [Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/) > [“Seurity!" I yelled. "I'm being harassed!" Security officers swarm around me and one orders me to step inside the small office area. "What's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-mcafee/seurity-i-yelled-i-m-being-harassed-security-officers-swarm-around-me/) [Stephanie McAfee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-mcafee/) > [Most women I know have been harassed in some way. And you never wanted to report it, because you were afraid of losing your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-biden/most-women-i-know-have-been-harassed-in-some-way-and-you-never-wanted/) [Jill Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-biden/) Browse all 57 Harassed quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The system was afraid of Vaclav Havel. 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