It's important that we elevate and primarily focus on the rights of American citizens, but it's also important that we don't forget, 95 percent of the world's population lives beyond our own borders.
Edward SnowdenRead
Even though we may focus first on the rights of our own country, that does not mean that we should disregard the rights of everyone else.
Interpretation
What this quote means
National interests should not overshadow global human rights.
Edward Snowden's quote emphasizes the importance of recognizing and valuing the rights of individuals beyond one's own national borders. While it's natural to prioritize one's own country's interests, it is crucial to maintain a commitment to universal human rights, suggesting a responsibility to advocate for justice and equality for all people, irrespective of their nationality.
Themes
Human RightsJusticeGlobal ResponsibilityNational InterestEquality
In practice
Example use cases
During a human rights conference, this quote can serve as a reminder to prioritize global justice.
More from Edward Snowden
All quotes βI think the most important idea is to remember that there have been times throughout American history where what is right is not the same as what is legal.
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Congress hasn't declared war on the countries - the majority of them are our allies - but without asking for public permission, NSA is running network operations against them that affect millions of innocent people. And for what? So we can have secret access to a computer in a country we're not even fighting?
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A child born today will grow up with no conception of privacy at all.
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Being called a traitor by Dick Cheney is the highest honor you can give an American, and the more panicked talk we hear from people like him... the better off we all are.
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I don't see myself as a hero because what I'm doing is self-interested: I don't want to live in a world where there's no privacy and therefore no room for intellectual exploration and creativity.
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