QuoteProject
That's what the Senate is about. It's the last bastion of minority rights, where a minority can be heard, where a minority can stand on its feet, one individual if necessary, and speak until he falls into the dust
Robert Byrd
ShareWTF𝕏

Interpretation

What this quote means

The Senate serves as a vital platform for minority voices, ensuring they are heard and represented.

In this quote, Robert Byrd emphasizes the role of the Senate as a protective space for minority rights, illustrating that it is a crucial institution where even one individual can stand up and have their voice heard. He portrays the Senate as a last fortress for those who may be marginalized in society, underlining the importance of democratic representation and the duty of each senator to advocate for those without power.

Themes

SenateMinority RightsRepresentationDemocracyAdvocacy

In practice

Example use cases

In a discussion about political representation, one might quote Byrd to emphasize the importance of minority voices in governance.

More from Robert Byrd

Hitler never abandoned the cloak of legality; he recognized the enormous psychological value of having the law on his side. Instead, he turned the law inside out and made illegality legal.
Robert ByrdRead

Similar quotes

The 20th century shows that the form of government that we take for granted, a constitutional democratic republic with checks and balances and a rule of law - that form of government is usually temporary.
Timothy D. SnyderRead
The need for peace in Northern Ireland goes well beyond political stability. It now speaks to regional Europe and even global stability.
Hillary ClintonRead
To be an enemy of America can be dangerous, but to be a friend is fatal
Henry A. KissingerRead
If more government is the answer, then it was a really stupid question.
Ronald ReaganRead
What, after all, is the public under present conditions? What are the reasons for its eclipse? What hinders it from finding and identifying itself? By what means shall its inchoate and amorphous estate be organized into effective political action relevant to present social needs and opportunities? What has happened to the public in the century and a half since the theory of political democracy was urged with such assurance and hope?
John DeweyRead
I'm not naive. All politics is about identity, right? Neighborhood politics, cultural politics, issue politics. It's not as though I don't get that. It's just - it has to be, I think, tempered in a way that is for our overall advancement and not to our detriment or obliteration. When I say 'our,' I don't mean just communities of color.
Ayanna PressleyRead

A little wisdom, now and then

Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.