“Here at home there is an unease and a fear that drives the public debates and our public policies in ways that divide us one from one another. Elections are run by those who seek so-called wedge issues that prey on misinformation and demonization of the opposition. We hear that illegal aliens are taking our jobs, that women get the work that should be going to men, and some minority groups are described as lazy, violent, and ignorant. [...] I believe we must seize every opportunity to eliminate those who use the public discourse to spread that kind of misinformation and sow the seeds of disunity among us.”
Our Quote of the Week lays out how misinformation and the demonization of others creates polarization. It also urges us to seize every opportunity to shut down talking points that aim to scare and divide us. We share these words as we reflect on the results of the 2026 midterm elections.
Speaking at Washington and Lee University in 2002, Sargent Shriver gave a positive and heartwarming speech to graduates and invited guests. He started with the message: “I wish I were you,” pointing out that his young audience was well positioned to “make the 21st century what it should be, a new unified, compassionate, courageous and peaceful century!” He tells the graduates:
“If our world is to enjoy peace and avoid war for a long time, your generation is the one which has to work to make that dream come true.”
As our Quote of the Week shows, however, Shriver does not shy away from addressing the negative forces that shape the needless divisions between people—misinformation and othering—with which we are all too familiar today.
Another notable point in the speech occurs when Sargent Shriver stresses that our collective struggle for peace must not end at our borders, but that we must care for the plight of those around the world:
“What we need is a rallying together, a mutual struggle, not just a commitment to our country’s candidates, but a commitment of all world citizens to one another, and to an entity which will represent us all, individually and collectively.”
As we process the historic results of the 2026 midterm elections, it becomes clear that the majority of voters did precisely what Sargent Shriver was urging: reject false, divisive arguments by politicians, and commit to a path that promises a more peaceful, sustainable future not only for those inside the country, but for the world community, as well. As a new congress and senate come together in 2027, may they remember the will of the voters and may they usher in a new era of collaboration that benefits all of us, in the United States and internationally.
Like this quote? Read the speech, watch it on video, and subscribe to receive our Quote of the Week by email.
