"We meet in an hour of grief and challenge. Dag Hammarskjold is dead. But the United Nations lives. His tragedy is deep in our hearts, but the task for which he died is at the top of our agenda. A noble servant of peace is gone. But the quest for peace lies before us. The problem is not the death of one man — the problem is the life of this organization. It will either grow to meet the challenges of our age, or it will be gone with the wind, without influence, without force, without respect. Were we to let it die, to enfeeble its vigor, to cripple its powers, we would condemn our future. For in the development of this organization rests the only true alternative to war — and war appeals no longer as a rational alternative. Unconditional war can no longer lead to unconditional victory. It can no longer serve to settle disputes. It can no longer concern the great powers alone. For a nuclear disaster, spread by wind and water and fear, could well engulf the great and the small, the rich and the poor, the committed and the uncommitted alike. Mankind must put an end to war — or war will put an end to mankind. So let us here resolve that Dag Hammarskjold did not live, or die, in vain. Let us call a truce to terror. Let us invoke the blessings of peace. And as we build an international capacity to keep peace, let us join in dismantling the national capacity to wage war."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
John F. Kennedy, Speech to the General Assembly of the United Nations (25 September 1961) [http://www.jfklibrary.org/Asset-Viewer/Archives/JFKWHA-050.aspx
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Dag_Hammarskj%C3%B6ld
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Dag Hammarskjöld
79 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Dag Hammarskjöld →
Related Quotes
"The pursuit of peace and progress cannot end in a few years in either victory or defeat. The pursuit of peace and pro…"
"It has been said that the United Nations was not created in order to bring us to heaven, but in order to save us from…"
"A task becomes a duty from the moment you suspect it to be an essential part of that integrity which alone entitles a…"
"Our work for peace must begin within the private world of each one of us. To build for man a world without fear, we m…"
"Forty years ago today, the [Nobel Peace] Prize for 1961 was awarded for the first time to a Secretary-General of the …"
"Maturity: among other things, the unclouded happiness of the child at play, who takes it for granted that he is at on…"
"Give me a pure heart — that I may see Thee. A humble heart — that I may hear Thee, A heart of love — that I may serve…"
"Godhet är något så enkelt: att alltid finnas för andra, att aldrig söka sig själv."
"The only kind of dignity which is genuine is that which is not diminished by the indifference of others."
"A man of firm convictions does not ask, and does not receive, understanding from those with whom he comes into confli…"