An Ode to the ODE

In talking about the Oregon Daily Emerald strike, I was reminded of the poem "First they came…", by Pastor Martin Niemöller (1892–1984) about political apathy. While I originally raised the poem in a purely sardonic manner, the more I read it the more I feel its author would feel comfortable that I cite it in relation to our small contest. Unionists, schools and the press are often included in the list, and ultimately the point of the poem is that no fight is too small to be fought - we are all part of the larger community.

Original (1976):

Als die Nazis die Kommunisten holten,
habe ich geschwiegen;
ich war ja kein Kommunist.

Als sie die Sozialdemokraten einsperrten,
habe ich geschwiegen;
ich war ja kein Sozialdemokrat.

Als sie die Gewerkschafter holten,
habe ich nicht protestiert;
ich war ja kein Gewerkschafter.

Als sie die Juden holten,
habe ich geschwiegen;
ich war ja kein Jude.

Als sie mich holten,
gab es keinen mehr, der protestieren konnte.


Translation:

When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.

When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I was not a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.