Editor,
What is happening in the America today reminds me of the poem by Martin Niemöller (1892–1984). He was a prominent Protestant pastor who emerged as an outspoken public foe of Adolf Hitler and spent the last seven years of Nazi rule in concentration camps.
The poem is as pertinent today as it was in the ‘30s; just substitute today’s targeted groups for the ones in the poem.
“First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Socialist.
“Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
“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.
Johanna Felder, Laguna Beach
