--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We must dissent from the indifference. We…" description: "\"We must dissent from the indifference. We must dissent from the apathy. We must dissent from the fear, the hatred and the mistrust. We must dissent fro..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e9/thurgood-marshall-10063_absence_we-must-dissent-from-the-indifference-we_1538638.jpg" --- # We must dissent from the indifference. We must dissent… ![“We must dissent from the indifference. We must dissent from the apathy. We must dissent from the fear, the hatred and the mistrust. We must dissent from a nation that has buried its head in the sand, waiting in vain for the needs of its poor, its elderly, and its sick to disappear and just blow…” quote by Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e9/thurgood-marshall-10063_absence_we-must-dissent-from-the-indifference-we_1538638.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e9/thurgood-marshall-10063_absence_we-must-dissent-from-the-indifference-we_1538638.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e9/thurgood-marshall-10063_absence_we-must-dissent-from-the-indifference-we_1538638.jpg) > “We must dissent from the indifference. We must dissent from the apathy. We must dissent from the fear, the hatred and the mistrust. We must dissent from a nation that has buried its head in the sand, waiting in vain for the needs of its poor, its elderly, and its sick to disappear and just blow away. We must dissent from a government that has left its young without jobs, education or hope. We must dissent from the poverty of vision and the absence of moral leadership. We must dissent because America can do better, because America has no choice but to do better.” [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker calls for active opposition to societal apathy, fear, and neglect, urging moral leadership to address poverty, unemployment, and lack of hope in America. **In simple terms:** Stand against indifference and demand better for all. Key Takeaway Demand moral leadership and systemic change. Themes justice leadership poverty hope activism Mood determined urgent hopeful Type political inspirational call‑to‑action When to use this quote - community organizing - policy advocacy - public education - grassroots campaigns Key Concepts civic duty ethical responsibility social reform Questions to Reflect On - How can individuals influence systemic change? - What policies could reduce poverty and unemployment? A Different Perspective Change requires collective action and political will, not just rhetoric. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Absence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absence/) [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Apathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apathy/) [Apathy Dissent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apathy-dissent-5725889/) [Blow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blow/) [Buried](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buried/) [Can do](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/can-do/) [Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) [Disappear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disappear/) [Dissent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dissent/) [Dissent America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dissent-america-5725888/) [Dissent Apathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dissent-apathy-5725890/) [Dissent Poverty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dissent-poverty-5725891/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Elderly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elderly/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Hatred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hatred/) [Indifference](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/indifference/) [Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jobs/) [Left](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/left/) [Mistrust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistrust/) [Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral/) [Moral leadership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral-leadership/) [Nations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nations/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Poor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poor/) [Poverty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poverty/) [Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sand/) [Sick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sick/) [Vain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vain/) [Vision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vision/) [Waiting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waiting/) [Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young/) ## Related quotes > [I wish I could say that racism and prejudice were only distant memories. We must dissent from the indifference. We must dissent from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/i-wish-i-could-say-that-racism-and-prejudice-were-only-distant/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) > [We must dissent from the fear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/we-must-dissent-from-the-fear/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) > [Since when do grown men and women, who presume to hold high government office and exercise what they think of as "moral leadership," require…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meg-greenfield/since-when-do-grown-men-and-women-who-presume-to-hold-high-government/) [Meg Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meg-greenfield/) > [In fact, the converse is true: At a time when the United States has been called on for a level of moral leadership, vision…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-schiff/in-fact-the-converse-is-true-at-a-time-when-the-united-states-has/) [Adam Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-schiff/) > [When President Bush sees America, he sees only a military superpower. I see a moral and idealistic beacon. Mr. Bush may talk about democracy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kerry/when-president-bush-sees-america-he-sees-only-a-military-superpower-i/) [John F. Kerry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kerry/) > [America's greatness has always been demonstrated by our moral leadership.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hickenlooper/america-s-greatness-has-always-been-demonstrated-by-our-moral/) [John Hickenlooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hickenlooper/) > [“When it comes to leaders we have, if anything, a superabundance—hundreds of Pied Pipers…ready and anxious to lead the population. They are scurrying around,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-w-tuchman/when-it-comes-to-leaders-we-have-if-anything-a-superabundance/) [Barbara W. Tuchman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-w-tuchman/) > [The Court's great power is its ability to educate, to provide moral leadership.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-o-douglas/the-court-s-great-power-is-its-ability-to-educate-to-provide-moral/) [William O. Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-o-douglas/) > [ “Theodore Sorensen wrote for \[Robert Kennedy's 1968\] announcement speech: “At stake is not simply the leadership of our party, and even our own country,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-halberstam/theodore-sorensen-wrote-for-robert-kennedy-s-1968-announcement-speech/) [David Halberstam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-halberstam/) > [We were hoping Obama would reclaim moral leadership for America. That failed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lech-walesa/we-were-hoping-obama-would-reclaim-moral-leadership-for-america-that/) [Lech Walesa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lech-walesa/) > [Yes, America must do the right thing, but to provide moral leadership, America must do it in the right way, too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cameron/yes-america-must-do-the-right-thing-but-to-provide-moral-leadership/) [David Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cameron/) > [“I've learned that solutions to poverty must be driven by discipline, accountability, and market strength, not easy sentimentality. I've learned that many of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/i-ve-learned-that-solutions-to-poverty-must-be-driven-by-discipline/) [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) > [In the past, Americans have brought forth their best in times of crisis. After Trump abased our country on the world stage for four…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-auchincloss/in-the-past-americans-have-brought-forth-their-best-in-times-of/) [Jake Auchincloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-auchincloss/) > [Great literature is like moral leadership; everyone deplores the lack of it, but there is a tendency to prefer it from the safely dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-hazzard/great-literature-is-like-moral-leadership-everyone-deplores-the-lack/) [Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) > [The presidency is not merely an administrative office...It is pre-eminently a place of moral leadership.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-d-roosevelt/the-presidency-is-not-merely-an-administrative-office-it-is-pre/) [Franklin D. Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-d-roosevelt/) ## More by Thurgood Marshall > [None of us got where we are solely by pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/none-of-us-got-where-we-are-solely-by-pulling-ourselves-up-by-our/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) > [This is a great country, but fortunately for you, it is not perfect. There is much to be done to bring about complete equality.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/this-is-a-great-country-but-fortunately-for-you-it-is-not-perfect/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) > [Classifications and distinctions based on race or color have no moral or legal validity in our society. They are contrary to our constitution and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/classifications-and-distinctions-based-on-race-or-color-have-no-moral/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) > [Our whole constitutional heritage rebels at the thought of giving government the power to control men's minds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/our-whole-constitutional-heritage-rebels-at-the-thought-of-giving/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) > [We are all the same](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/we-are-all-the-same/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) > [We could get more action in the South because the Negroes had a feeling that they were being oppressed. But you take New York,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/we-could-get-more-action-in-the-south-because-the-negroes-had-a/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) > [We must dissent from the fear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/we-must-dissent-from-the-fear/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) > [I have a lifetime appointment and I intend to serve it. I expect to die at 110, shot by a jealous husband.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/i-have-a-lifetime-appointment-and-i-intend-to-serve-it-i-expect-to/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) > [The Ku Klux Klan never dies. They just stop wearing sheets because sheets cost too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/the-ku-klux-klan-never-dies-they-just-stop-wearing-sheets-because/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) > [Some may more quietly commemorate the suffering, struggle, and sacrifice that has triumphed over much of what was wrong with the original document, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/some-may-more-quietly-commemorate-the-suffering-struggle-and/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) > [It is now well established that the Constitution protects the right to receive information and ideas. ... This right to receive information and ideas,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/it-is-now-well-established-that-the-constitution-protects-the-right/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) > [To the contrary, the government they devised was defective from the start, requiring several amendments, a civil war and momentous social transformation to attain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/to-the-contrary-the-government-they-devised-was-defective-from-the/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) > [Today's Constitution is a realistic document of freedom only because of several corrective amendments. Those amendments speak to a sense of decency and fairness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/today-s-constitution-is-a-realistic-document-of-freedom-only-because/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) > [Truth is more than a mental exercise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/truth-is-more-than-a-mental-exercise/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) > [I wish I could say that racism and prejudice were only distant memories. We must dissent from the indifference. We must dissent from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurgood-marshall/i-wish-i-could-say-that-racism-and-prejudice-were-only-distant/) [Thurgood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) [Explore all 68 Thurgood Marshall quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurgood-marshall/) ## More Absence quotes > [Distance sometimes endears friendship, and absence sweeteneth it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howell/distance-sometimes-endears-friendship-and-absence-sweeteneth-it/) [James Howell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howell/) > [The work, the work, the work. This is what the business is all about. This is the fun, the glory, the pleasure. It's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-dusenberry/the-work-the-work-the-work-this-is-what-the-business-is-all-about/) [Phil Dusenberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-dusenberry/) > [Total depravity means the entire absence of holiness, not the highest intensity of sin. 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Ambedkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-r-ambedkar/) [Browse all 2,057 Absence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absence/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We must dissent from the indifference. We must dissent from the apathy. We must dissent from the fear, the hatred and the mistrust. We must dissent from a nation that has buried its head in the sand, waiting in vain for the needs of its poor, its elderly, and its sick to disappear and just blow away. We must dissent from a government that has left its young without jobs, education or hope. We must dissent from the poverty of vision and the absence of moral leadership. 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