--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: That was when they suspended the…" description: "\"That was when they suspended the Constitution. They said it would be temporary. There wasn't even any rioting in the streets. People stayed home at nig..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db5/margaret-atwood-40_constitution_that-was-when-they-suspended-the-constit_2766446.jpg" --- # That was when they suspended the Constitution. They said… ![“That was when they suspended the Constitution. They said it would be temporary. There wasn't even any rioting in the streets. People stayed home at night, watching television, looking for some direction. There wasn't even an enemy you could put your finger on.” quote by Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db5/margaret-atwood-40_constitution_that-was-when-they-suspended-the-constit_2766446.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db5/margaret-atwood-40_constitution_that-was-when-they-suspended-the-constit_2766446.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db5/margaret-atwood-40_constitution_that-was-when-they-suspended-the-constit_2766446.jpg) > “That was when they suspended the Constitution. They said it would be temporary. There wasn't even any rioting in the streets. People stayed home at night, watching television, looking for some direction. There wasn't even an enemy you could put your finger on.” [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A suspended constitution leads to passive compliance, not active rebellion. **In simple terms:** People become passive when authority fades. Key Takeaway Question authority and stay engaged. Themes politics society compliance Mood cautionary thought‑provoking Type critical philosophical When to use this quote - elections - civil unrest - media consumption Key Concepts authoritarianism media influence public apathy Questions to Reflect On - Why do people accept loss of freedoms? - How can civic engagement be revived? A Different Perspective Passive acceptance can enable oppression. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Constitution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/constitution/) [Dystopia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dystopia/) [Enemy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enemy/) [Home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/home/) [Night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/night/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Rioting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rioting/) [Streets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/streets/) [Television](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/television/) ## Related quotes > [“That was when they suspended the Constitution. 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The story I have to tell is so small, of the people who stayed when everyone else fled.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-francis-slattery/do-you-see-the-story-i-have-to-tell-is-so-small-of-the-people-who/) [Brian Francis Slattery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-francis-slattery/) > [Our problem right now is that we're so specialized that if the lights go out, there are a huge number of people who are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/our-problem-right-now-is-that-we-re-so-specialized-that-if-the-lights/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“I am alive, I live, I breathe, I put my hand out, unfolded, into the sunlight.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-am-alive-i-live-i-breathe-i-put-my-hand-out-unfolded-into-the-2/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [America promised equality. Its constitution said so. My schoolbooks said so. The country wasn't perfect, to be sure. But its ideals were. And every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-t-conway-iii/america-promised-equality-its-constitution-said-so-my-schoolbooks/) [George T. Conway III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-t-conway-iii/) ## More by Margaret Atwood > [“I'm fine," said Pilar, "for the moment. And the moment is the only time we can be fine in.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-m-fine-said-pilar-for-the-moment-and-the-moment-is-the-only-time-we/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [And yet it disturbs me to learn I have hurt someone unintentionally. I want all my hurts to be intentional.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/and-yet-it-disturbs-me-to-learn-i-have-hurt-someone-unintentionally-i/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Mary: Some call this "Eve's curse," but I think that is stupid because the real curse of Eve was having to put up with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/mary-some-call-this-eve-s-curse-but-i-think-that-is-stupid-because/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“The birds were singing around me, but I reflected that the very birds were strangers to me, for I did not even know their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/the-birds-were-singing-around-me-but-i-reflected-that-the-very-birds/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Strange how we decorate pain. These ribbons, for instance, and the small hard teardrops of blood. Who are they for? 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I am forgetting too much.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/it-s-my-fault-i-am-forgetting-too-much/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [All fiction is about people, unless it's about rabbits pretending to be people. It's all essentially characters in action, which means characters moving through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/all-fiction-is-about-people-unless-it-s-about-rabbits-pretending-to/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Simon walks back to the house alone. 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She desperately needs to believe such pure joy is still possible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/she-knows-she-s-deceiving-herself-about-that-but-she-prefers-to/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) [Explore all 2,072 Margaret Atwood quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) ## More Constitution quotes > [ Next came the Patent laws. These began in England in 1624; and, in this country, with the adoption of our constitution. 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