More from Elie Wiesel

My commandment is, 'Thou shall not stand idly by.' When you witness an injustice, don't stand idly by. You must intervene. You must interfere.

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Elie Wiesel

Dartmouth College Commencement 2006, 2006

The Story Behind This Quote

Wiesel told the Dartmouth graduates that for him, the greatest commandment was not among the Ten Commandments but came from elsewhere in the Bible: the prohibition against standing idly by when others suffer. He called it the 'motto of human rights' — a secular religion he applauded and participated in throughout his life. Wiesel had spent decades traveling to places of suffering as a witness — from Bosnia, where he served as a Presidential Envoy under Clinton, to refugee camps across the world. In Bosnia, he went from tent to tent asking victims to tell their stories. None could finish. They all broke down in tears. Wiesel realized that his mission was to finish their stories for them — to collect their tears and turn them into testimony. This commandment to act, to intervene, to refuse the comfort of looking away, was the core of everything he stood for.

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