Children Quote by Sinclair Lewis
““Remember our Red scares and our Catholic scares, when all well-informed people knew that the O.G.P.U. were hiding out in Oskaloosa, and the Republicans campaigning against Al Smith told the Carolina mountaineers that if Al won the Pope would illegitimatize their children? Remember Tom Heflin and Tom Dixon? Remember when the hick legislators in certain states, in obedience to William Jennings Bryan, who learned his biology from his pious old grandma, set up shop as scientific experts and made the whole world laugh itself sick by forbidding the teaching of evolution?. . .Remember the Kentucky night-riders? Remember how trainloads of people have gone to enjoy lynchings? Not happen here? Prohibition—shooting down people just because they might be transporting liquor—no, that couldn’t happen in America! Why, where in all history has there ever been a people so ripe for a dictatorship as ours!””
About This Quote
Source Speech: Political Commentary, 1930s United States
The quote condemns fear‑mongering, anti‑intellectualism, and the rise of authoritarian sentiment in America, highlighting how propaganda and prejudice erode democratic values.
In simple terms: Fear and prejudice threaten democracy.
Key Takeaway
Guard against demagoguery.
Themes
politics
history
authoritarianism
propaganda
social critique
Mood
critical
concerned
Type
political
historical
When to use this quote
- political rallies
- educational policy debates
- civil rights activism
- media analysis
Key Concepts
democracy
fearmongering
intellectual suppression
Questions to Reflect On
- What modern parallels can you identify?
- How can societies resist fear‑based politics?
A Different Perspective
It may exaggerate specific historical events for rhetorical effect.
![“The Salem [witch] trials…can be seen as an example of the propensity of the American people to be convulsed by spasms of self-righteous rage against enemies, real or imaginary, of their society and way of living. Hence the parallels later drawn between Salem in 1692 and the “Red Scare” of 1919-20…” quote by Paul Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/67d/paul-johnson-4585_american-people_the-salem-witch-trials-can-be-seen-as-an_82157.jpg)
