A free, virtuous, and enlightened people must know full well the great principles and causes upon which their happiness depends.
James MonroeRead
Of the liberty of conscience in matters of religious faith, of speech and of the press; of the trial by jury of the vicinage in civil and criminal cases; of the benefit of the writ of habeas corpus; of the right to keep and bear arms.... If these rights are well defined, and secured against encroachment, it is impossible that government should ever degenerate into tyranny.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the importance of protecting fundamental rights to prevent government tyranny.
James Monroe’s quote highlights several essential rights, such as freedom of conscience, speech, and the press, and the right to a fair trial and to bear arms. It asserts that when these rights are clearly defined and safeguarded against infringement, a government cannot become tyrannical, reinforcing the idea that individual liberties are foundational to a just society.
Themes
LibertyRightsGovernmentTyrannyFreedom
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about civil liberties, a politician might quote Monroe to advocate for the preservation of individual rights.
More from James Monroe
All quotes →Peace is the best time for improvement and preparation of every kind; it is in peace that our commerce flourishes most, that taxes are most easily paid, and that the revenue is most productive.
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[In a republic,] it is not the people themselves who make the decisions, but the people they themselves choose to stand in their places.
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How prone all human institutions have been to decay; how subject the best-formed and most wisely organized governments have been to lose their check and totally dissolve; how difficult it has been for mankind, in all ages and countries, to preserve their dearest rights and best privileges, impelled as it were by an irresistible fate of despotism.
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It was by one Union that we achieved our independence and liberties, and by it alone can they be maintained.
James MonroeRead
I enter on the trust to which I have been called by the suffrages of my fellow-citizens with my fervent prayers to the Almighty that He will be graciously pleased to continue to us that protection which He has already so conspicuously displayed in our favor.
James MonroeRead
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