I Will Not Sit In Silence

Martin Niemöller was a person, much like other people. He woke up, he ate breakfast, he went to work. He lived his life. He was a Naval veteran, and was awarded the Iron Cross (First Class) for bravery in battle, which was only awarded to those who performed at least four acts of courage. After getting out of the navy, he married his childhood sweetheart Else, and sought to be a farmer. But after working for a while in this field, he realized he would never be able to afford his own farm, and decided to go into the “family business” as it were, and take up the avocation his father had practiced.

His father had been a Lutheran Pastor, so at the ripe old age of 27, Martin began university for his theology degree, which was granted four years later. At the age of 32, Martin was ordained, and started working himself as a Lutheran Pastor, just like his father. As many religiously inclined people, Martin was politically conservative. He openly supported conservative candidates for political office, and like many conservatives, believed that the “silent majority” just needed to speak up and have their voices heard. If they did, the conservative wave of conservatives elected would lead to a revival of the nation, he thought.

Like a lot of conservatives, he wasn’t wild about everything the leading candidate proposed, and was especially bothered by some of the things that the leading candidate had to say about minorities, but reasoned that the greater good a conservative candidate could achieve outweighed these concerns. So he shelved those concerns, and put the full force of his effort helping the conservative candidate to win the election.

Right now, a lot of GOP voters, and perhaps even independent voters, sort of identify with Martin, and the choices he made. The major difference, between you and Martin, is that the candidate Martin backed wasn’t Donald Trump, but rather Adolf Hitler. Martin lived in Germany, and died in 1984. So why am I writing about Martin today? Because Martin lived to regret the support he gave to the conservative candidate. Martin lived to regret having set aside his concerns over the negative rhetoric the conservative candidate had asserted against immigrants. And after that election, grew increasingly concerned that the rhetoric which he’d been willing to overlook during the election season, was now being visited upon actual people. He started to speak up. Martin is best known for the following speech:

First, they came for the Communists, and I did not speak out — Because, I was not a Communist.

Then, they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out — Because, I was not a Socialist.

Then, they came for the Democratic Socialists, and I did not speak out — Because, I was not a Democratic Socialist.

Then, they came for the Unions, and I did not speak out — Because, I was not a member of a Union.

Then, they came for the disabled, and I did not speak out — Because, I was not a disabled.

Then, they came for the Jehovah’s Witnesses, and I did not speak out — Because, I was not a Jehovah’s Witness.

Then, they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out — Because, I was not a Jew.

Then, they came for me — and there was no one left to speak for me.

Martin was, arrested, convicted, and sent to the Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp, and then later, was transferred to Dachau. He spent nearly 8 years in the concentration camps, before being liberated in 1945.

My point here is NOT to suggest that Donald Trump is a Nazi, for he is not. The point of this speech was not to condemn Nazis, it was to condemn people that made the choices Martin himself made. For it was their willingness to overlook matters of obvious concern, and in so doing, were complicit in their silence. They were COMPLICIT in the positions espoused by the candidate they supported.

You CANNOT support the Trump Candidacy, without being complicit in the racism, the misogyny, the fear mongering, the ridicule of the disabled, the attacks on freedom of the press, the ATTACKS ON TRUTH. So I am putting you all on notice…ANY supporter of the Trump Candidacy: you are my ENEMY. You stand for everything I am against. I will not treat you politely. I will not attempt to discuss these issues with you calmly. I will call you what you are, which is Racist, Misogynist, Perpetrator of Hatred and Ignorance. A vote for this candidate will forever label you as one who was willing to overlook these most vile of assertions, and no matter your justification, it will not change these realities. And I will never let you live it down.