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I am an optimist about America. But how can I maintain that optimism after Vietnam, after the murder of so many who fought for civil rights, after th… - Anthony Lewis
" "I am an optimist about America. But how can I maintain that optimism after Vietnam, after the murder of so many who fought for civil rights, after the Red scare and after the abusive tactics planned by government today? I can because we have regretted our mistakes in the past, relearning every time that no ruler can be trusted with arbitrary power. And I believe we will again.… But after all, this has always been a country of unbounded optimism, a country that struggles with itself and conquers corrupting habit.… In the end I believe that faith in reason will prevail. But it will not happen automatically. Freedom under law is hard work. If rulers cannot be trusted with arbitrary power, it is up to citizens to raise their voices at injustice.
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About Anthony Lewis
Anthony Lewis (March 27, 1927, New York City — March 25, 2013, Cambridge, Massachusetts) was a prominent liberal intellectual, writing for The New York Times op-ed page and The New York Review of Books, among other publications. Lewis who is a two-time recipient of the Pulitzer Prize, is credited with creating the field of legal journalism in the United States.
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Alternative Names:
Joseph Anthony Lewis
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Additional quotes by Anthony Lewis
The meaning of the First Amendment has been, and will be, shaped by each American generation: by judges, political leaders, citizens. There will always be authorities who try to make their own lives more comfortable by suppressing critical comment.… But I am convinced that the fundamental American commitment to free speech, disturbing speech, is no longer in doubt.
The conflict about the meaning of free speech went on through the 1920s, Holmes and Brandeis persisting in their view and expressing it in strongly worded dissents. In one sense it was a curious performance by the two of them, for each had a deep commitment to the Supreme Court as an institution and thought that division among the justices should be avoided when possible.
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