What Unites Us: Reflections on Patriotism

by Dan Rather

Ultimately, democracy is an action more than a belief.

Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel, in his acceptance speech for the Nobel Peace Prize, said, “I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere.”