In perhaps his most philosophically sophisticated argument, Brooke addressed the paradox of protest in a democracy: that the tools of dissent, originally designed to give voice to the voiceless, can themselves become instruments of coercion when wielded by groups with significant social capital — such as students at elite universities. Brooke was not arguing against the students' right to protest, but asking them to recognize that their protests carried real power and therefore real responsibility. As someone who had navigated the American power structure as a Black man in an era of overt racism, he understood both the necessity of challenging unjust power and the dangers of exercising power without accountability. His message was that moral authority does not exempt anyone from the obligation to use power responsibly.