Elie Wiesel Persuasive Speech

“I am obsessed with silence because of the silence of the world. I do not understand why the world was silent when we needed its outcry. I always come back to that problem. Where were the humanists, the leaders, the liberals, the spokesmen for mankind? The victims needed them. If they had spoken up, the slaughtered would not have succeeded in his task.” - Elie Wiesel

Elie Wiesel not only spoke on his behalf but also on behalf of all the victims of the Holocaust. His words do not only pertain to his situation but to the situations of every world crisis that has been failed to be acknowledged. Elie’s words can be related universally and makes you question, where were these people that are supposedly suppose to be the voices for the silent? The world thrives for equality but how can a world grow and unit if the people are silent. Elie makes valid points throughout the novel that can be referred to other situations in the past and are to come in the future.

“The look in his eyes, as they stared into mine.

has never left me.” (Wiesel, 109). So many times, people are saying the things they’re gonna do but never follow through with it. Although Elie isn’t one of them, the people that fight injustice are. This isn’t the only Holocaust or massacre the world has seen. The Armenian Genocide took place in 1915, a time where the government was trying to get rid of it’s minority Armenian subjects from their historic homeland. It lasted up to the 1920s with 1.5 million deaths. The horrific events that took place were much similar to the Holocaust. People were burned to death, tested on, and drowned. It’s almost as if this was a stepping stone to saying that this was okay. Where were the leaders, the liberals, the spokesmen for mankind? These are the type of things that stick and are hard to forget, and it’s something that has left a negative mark on

history.
The Holocaust not only proved the humanity of the world, it showed how one man's actions and words can change a nation’s point of view. If one man can cause so much harm and darkness, why can’t one man bring justice and unity? Down the line, acts of violence toward one another continues. Yet, when our own nation is at threat, we take all procedures seriously. 9/11 is a perfect example. When our nation was attacked, we took a stand and fought back. When the people of another nation is in need of help, we turn the other cheek, only until the reputation of the leaders begin to get affected.
Is one cry as equivalent as a million? If so, why doesn’t anyone act upon it? We need leaders that lead, spokesmen that speak, and liberals that liberate. The Jews had faith for humanity even when their people were being stripped of their moral and ethical rights. Elie Wiesel, Anne Frank, and many more are examples of perseverance. Now, if they can survive, what is today to be considered, the worst massacre and still have faith; why can’t we put the human back into humanity?