--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: This is the 21st century, and you cannot…" description: "\"This is the 21st century, and you cannot hold a nation captive against their will.\" — Mark Francois" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f3/mark-francois-45421_21st-century_this-is-the-21st-century-and-you-cannot_961671.jpg" --- # This is the 21st century, and you cannot hold a nation… ![“This is the 21st century, and you cannot hold a nation captive against their will.” quote by Mark Francois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f3/mark-francois-45421_21st-century_this-is-the-21st-century-and-you-cannot_961671.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f3/mark-francois-45421_21st-century_this-is-the-21st-century-and-you-cannot_961671.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f3/mark-francois-45421_21st-century_this-is-the-21st-century-and-you-cannot_961671.jpg) > “This is the 21st century, and you cannot hold a nation captive against their will.” [Mark Francois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-francois/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Individuals cannot be forced to obey against their collective will; freedom resists oppression. **In simple terms:** People resist being forced. Key Takeaway Respect autonomy. Themes freedom politics rights Mood determined defiant Type political activist When to use this quote - activism - policy making - civil disobedience Key Concepts self-determination social contract Questions to Reflect On - How do societies protect individual will? - What mechanisms ensure consent? A Different Perspective Power can be limited by collective resistance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [21st century](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/21st-century/) [Cannot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cannot/) [Century](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/century/) [Century Hold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/century-hold-1784835/) [Hold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hold/) [Hold Nation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hold-nation-1784834/) [Nation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nation/) [Nation Captive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nation-captive-1784833/) [Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/will/) ## Related quotes > [A renewed commitment to the freedom and opportunity of our people is the touchstone of our time. In this new century, where tests are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-owens/a-renewed-commitment-to-the-freedom-and-opportunity-of-our-people-is/) [Bill Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-owens/) > [Never, since the fall of communism, has it been so abundantly clear that an ethos exists, which is loath to accept the freedoms and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-walsh/never-since-the-fall-of-communism-has-it-been-so-abundantly-clear/) [Jim Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-walsh/) > [What I love about making albums in the 21st century is that so few people buy albums! I can make an album without any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moby/what-i-love-about-making-albums-in-the-21st-century-is-that-so-few/) [Moby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moby/) > [Like the railroads that brought us together in the 19th century, these trails will bring us together in the 20th and 21st centuries. (at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/like-the-railroads-that-brought-us-together-in-the-19th-century-these/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [Human Race is all over universe! And I am the first person to inform you. I am the most influential person of this decade…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashwani-kumar-ojha/human-race-is-all-over-universe-and-i-am-the-first-person-to-inform/) [Ashwani Kumar Ojha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashwani-kumar-ojha/) > [Facebook, Twitter...Welcome to The 21st Century...Where Someone can stalk you without leaving the couch!..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/facebook-twitter-welcome-to-the-21st-century-where-someone-can-stalk/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I firmly believe that the mission of religion in the 21st century must be to contribute concretely to the peaceful coexistence of humankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/i-firmly-believe-that-the-mission-of-religion-in-the-21st-century/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [The 20th century has been marked by cynicism, selfishness, greed, and the desire to please, all without changing the status quo. In the 21st…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scar-arias/the-20th-century-has-been-marked-by-cynicism-selfishness-greed-and/) [Óscar Arias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scar-arias/) > [Maybe we need a tax credit for the poorest Americans to buy a laptop. Now, maybe that's wrong, maybe that's expensive, maybe we can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/newt-gingrich/maybe-we-need-a-tax-credit-for-the-poorest-americans-to-buy-a-laptop/) [Newt Gingrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/newt-gingrich/) > [The hope of Internet anarchists was that repressive governments would have only two options: accept the Internet with its limitless possibilities of spreading information,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/the-hope-of-internet-anarchists-was-that-repressive-governments-would/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Undeniably, character does count for our citizens, out communities, and our Nation, and this week we celebrate the importance of character in our individual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/undeniably-character-does-count-for-our-citizens-out-communities-and/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [Like many others, I have deep misgivings about the state of education in the United States. Too many of our students fail to graduate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/like-many-others-i-have-deep-misgivings-about-the-state-of-education/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [“I am made of a thousand ghosts. Only you can shoot me down.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bella-james/i-am-made-of-a-thousand-ghosts-only-you-can-shoot-me-down/) [Bella James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bella-james/) > [“You know it’s the 21st Century when someone TEXTS you from the washroom to ask you to bring them a roll of toilet paper.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/comic-strip-mama/you-know-it-s-the-21st-century-when-someone-texts-you-from-the/) [Comic Strip Mama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/comic-strip-mama/) > [The young people today are the 21st century.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-scorsese/the-young-people-today-are-the-21st-century/) [Martin Scorsese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-scorsese/) ## More by Mark Francois > [We have civil servants like Ollie Robbins who are very pro-E.U., who have never wanted us to leave and have done everything in their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-francois/we-have-civil-servants-like-ollie-robbins-who-are-very-pro-e-u-who/) [Mark Francois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-francois/) > [Some people write me off as a bit of a hick from an Essex council estate. I realize that. But I can read.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-francois/some-people-write-me-off-as-a-bit-of-a-hick-from-an-essex-council/) [Mark Francois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-francois/) > [My father, Reginald Francois, was a D-Day veteran. He never submitted to bullying by any German, and neither will his son.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-francois/my-father-reginald-francois-was-a-d-day-veteran-he-never-submitted-to/) [Mark Francois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-francois/) > [I'm not going to criticise Nick Boles because he fought off cancer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-francois/i-m-not-going-to-criticise-nick-boles-because-he-fought-off-cancer/) [Mark Francois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-francois/) > [I was in the Army. I wasn't trained to lose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-francois/i-was-in-the-army-i-wasn-t-trained-to-lose/) [Mark Francois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-francois/) > [The British people voted to leave the European Union - let's just leave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-francois/the-british-people-voted-to-leave-the-european-union-let-s-just-leave/) [Mark Francois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-francois/) > [I believe Theresa May has failed as leader of our party, which she threatens to destroy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-francois/i-believe-theresa-may-has-failed-as-leader-of-our-party-which-she/) [Mark Francois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-francois/) > [Some MPs, some very senior civil servants and others, are basically conspiring - and I use the word deliberately - in order to try…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-francois/some-mps-some-very-senior-civil-servants-and-others-are-basically/) [Mark Francois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-francois/) [Explore all 9 Mark Francois quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-francois/) ## More 21st century quotes > [The young people today are the 21st century.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-scorsese/the-young-people-today-are-the-21st-century/) [Martin Scorsese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-scorsese/) > [“You know it’s the 21st Century when someone TEXTS you from the washroom to ask you to bring them a roll of toilet paper.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/comic-strip-mama/you-know-it-s-the-21st-century-when-someone-texts-you-from-the/) [Comic Strip Mama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/comic-strip-mama/) > [“I am made of a thousand ghosts. Only you can shoot me down.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bella-james/i-am-made-of-a-thousand-ghosts-only-you-can-shoot-me-down/) [Bella James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bella-james/) > [Like many others, I have deep misgivings about the state of education in the United States. Too many of our students fail to graduate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/like-many-others-i-have-deep-misgivings-about-the-state-of-education/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [Undeniably, character does count for our citizens, out communities, and our Nation, and this week we celebrate the importance of character in our individual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/undeniably-character-does-count-for-our-citizens-out-communities-and/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [The hope of Internet anarchists was that repressive governments would have only two options: accept the Internet with its limitless possibilities of spreading information,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/the-hope-of-internet-anarchists-was-that-repressive-governments-would/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Maybe we need a tax credit for the poorest Americans to buy a laptop. Now, maybe that's wrong, maybe that's expensive, maybe we can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/newt-gingrich/maybe-we-need-a-tax-credit-for-the-poorest-americans-to-buy-a-laptop/) [Newt Gingrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/newt-gingrich/) > [The 20th century has been marked by cynicism, selfishness, greed, and the desire to please, all without changing the status quo. In the 21st…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scar-arias/the-20th-century-has-been-marked-by-cynicism-selfishness-greed-and/) [Óscar Arias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scar-arias/) > [I firmly believe that the mission of religion in the 21st century must be to contribute concretely to the peaceful coexistence of humankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/i-firmly-believe-that-the-mission-of-religion-in-the-21st-century/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [Facebook, Twitter...Welcome to The 21st Century...Where Someone can stalk you without leaving the couch!..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/facebook-twitter-welcome-to-the-21st-century-where-someone-can-stalk/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Human Race is all over universe! And I am the first person to inform you. I am the most influential person of this decade…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashwani-kumar-ojha/human-race-is-all-over-universe-and-i-am-the-first-person-to-inform/) [Ashwani Kumar Ojha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashwani-kumar-ojha/) > [Like the railroads that brought us together in the 19th century, these trails will bring us together in the 20th and 21st centuries. (at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/like-the-railroads-that-brought-us-together-in-the-19th-century-these/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [What I love about making albums in the 21st century is that so few people buy albums! I can make an album without any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moby/what-i-love-about-making-albums-in-the-21st-century-is-that-so-few/) [Moby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moby/) > [As a former Apollo astronaut, I think it's safe to say that SpaceX and the other commercial developers embody the 21st century version of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rusty-schweickart/as-a-former-apollo-astronaut-i-think-it-s-safe-to-say-that-spacex-and/) [Rusty Schweickart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rusty-schweickart/) > [The computer provides the only way to give students a real foundation in 21st-century skills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-negroponte/the-computer-provides-the-only-way-to-give-students-a-real-foundation/) [Nicholas Negroponte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-negroponte/) [Browse all 771 21st century quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/21st-century/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "This is the 21st century, and you cannot hold a nation captive against their will.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Francois" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-francois/this-is-the-21st-century-and-you-cannot-hold-a-nation-captive-against/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "21st century" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-francois/this-is-the-21st-century-and-you-cannot-hold-a-nation-captive-against/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f3/mark-francois-45421_21st-century_this-is-the-21st-century-and-you-cannot_961671.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f3/mark-francois-45421_21st-century_this-is-the-21st-century-and-you-cannot_961671.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f3/mark-francois-45421_21st-century_this-is-the-21st-century-and-you-cannot_961671.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“This is the 21st century, and you cannot hold a nation captive against their will.” — Mark Francois", "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": "Mark Francois", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-francois/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "This is the 21st century, and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-francois/this-is-the-21st-century-and-you-cannot-hold-a-nation-captive-against/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-francois/this-is-the-21st-century-and-you-cannot-hold-a-nation-captive-against/#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 } } ] } ```