We should honor - not attack - those who have stood up for

In the solemn and noble words of Brian Krzanich, a leader not only of industry but of conscience, we are reminded of a truth that echoes through the annals of civilization: “We should honor — not attack — those who have stood up for equality and other cherished American values.” Though spoken in the language of modern times, these words carry the weight of ancient wisdom. They speak of the eternal struggle between those who strive for justice and those who resist it, between courage and complacency, between light and shadow in the human heart. Krzanich’s call is not merely to defend people, but to defend principle — to cherish those who have dared to speak truth when silence was safer, to uplift those who have borne the burdens of conscience for the sake of the common good.

To understand the meaning of this quote, one must first grasp the essence of honor. To honor is to recognize sacrifice, to give reverence where it is due. Those who stand for equality, for fairness, for the inherent dignity of all, do so often at great personal cost. They are mocked, ostracized, and misunderstood, yet they continue, for they see beyond themselves. They know that values such as freedom, justice, and compassion are not possessions of one age or nation — they are the soul of humanity itself. When Krzanich says we must honor such people, he reminds us that progress is not born of comfort, but of courage. The future is shaped not by the compliant, but by the bold.

The origin of this truth lies deep within the American story, and indeed, within the story of humankind. From the founding of the Republic, the nation has declared its allegiance to equality, even as it has struggled to fulfill it. Each generation has produced voices that rose above fear and hatred to call the nation closer to its promise. Yet how often have those voices been scorned in their own time! Consider Abraham Lincoln, reviled and ridiculed in life, now revered as the preserver of freedom. Consider Martin Luther King Jr., arrested, threatened, and ultimately slain for daring to proclaim that equality was not a dream but a destiny. These men, and countless others like them, stood for cherished values — not for their own glory, but for the soul of their people. And it is to such spirits that Krzanich’s words call us: not to tear down the brave, but to lift them up.

In every age, the defenders of justice are first met with resistance. The Greek philosopher Socrates, who sought only to awaken the moral conscience of Athens, was condemned to drink poison by the very city he sought to enlighten. The prophet Jeremiah, speaking against corruption, was cast into a pit. The reformer Galileo, revealing truths of the heavens, was silenced by the powers of his day. Yet time vindicates the righteous. The stones once hurled in scorn become monuments of honor. So too, Krzanich warns against the modern impulse to attack those who act upon conscience — for to do so is to repeat the errors of history, to blind ourselves once more to the light that guides human progress.

When Krzanich speaks of cherished American values, he invokes more than patriotism — he speaks of the universal virtues that have made the nation a beacon: liberty, justice, tolerance, and the dignity of every individual. These ideals are not the property of a flag or government; they are born of the collective yearning of all people to live in harmony and fairness. But such values are fragile — they depend not on law alone, but on the hearts of citizens willing to defend them. To honor those who stand for these values is to strengthen the moral foundation of society itself. To attack them is to weaken the very principles we claim to uphold.

Let us recall a modern example of this truth: when individuals have stood up for equality in the workplace, for inclusion, for civil rights, or for environmental justice, they have often faced scorn and isolation. Yet their persistence has brought transformation. From the abolitionists who ended slavery, to the suffragettes who won women the vote, to the civil rights leaders who opened the doors of democracy wider than ever before — each generation’s progress has been written by those who refused to bow to fear. The wise do not mock such courage; they honor it, knowing that without it, humanity stagnates in ignorance and injustice.

The lesson, then, is clear: a society that punishes its truth-tellers destroys its own future. We must not merely tolerate those who fight for equality, but celebrate them; not merely defend them, but learn from them. For every person who rises to defend what is right is a mirror of what is best within us all. To honor such people is to honor the conscience of our civilization.

Therefore, let these words of Krzanich be carried as a commandment for the generations to come: Honor, do not attack, those who stand for what is just. When we see courage, let us nurture it; when we hear truth, let us listen. The measure of a people is not how it treats its powerful, but how it cherishes its principled. For in the end, it is not the destroyers of values who shape the world, but the defenders of them — those who stand, often alone, yet stand still, for equality, for justice, and for the eternal light of human dignity.