# Quote of the day: Alan Barth on dissent and majorities 2026-08-17T06:16:55+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Alan Barth, the American journalist and civil liberties writer, wrote in his 1951 book 'The Loyalty of Free Men' that thought which is silenced is always rebellious. He argued that majorities are often mistaken, and silencing minorities is necessarily dangerous because criticism and dissent are the indispensable antidote to major delusions. Barth, an editorial writer at The Washington Post for three decades, challenged the assumption that being in the majority means being right. He contended that suppressing disagreement can make an opposing idea more resistant and more deeply held, and that minority views can draw attention to flaws that the majority has overlooked. The quote, published by Deccan Herald on the day of this story, presents dissent not as a threat to society but as an important part of a healthy democratic culture. No further action follows from the quote. ## Coverage - deccanherald.com This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Tags: Alan Barth, Deccan Herald Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/quote-of-the-day-alan-barth-on-dissent-and-majorities/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/quote-of-the-day-alan-barth-on-dissent-and-majorities/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes. How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/