Bystander Sayings and Quotes

Below you will find our collection of inspirational, wise, and humorous old bystander quotes, bystander sayings, and bystander proverbs, collected over the years from a variety of sources.

There are no innocent bystanders. What were they doing there in the first place? William S. Burroughs
The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. Edmund Burke
Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Elie Wiesel
A person seldom falls sick but the bystanders are animated with a faint hope that he will die. Ralph Waldo Emerson
Like secondhand smoke, the leakage of emotions can make a bystander an innocent casualty of someone else's toxic state. Daniel Goleman
There are no bystanders in life. Our humanity makes us each a part of something greater than ourselves. Sonia Sotomayor
Art changes posture and posture changes innocent bystanders. Seth Godin
All the bystanders at an event worthy of note adopt various gestures of admiration when contemplating the occurrence. Leonardo da Vinci
A man's work is his dilemma: his job is his bondage, but it also gives him a fair share of his identity and keeps him from being a bystander in somebody else's world. Melvin Maddocks
The measure of a civilization is in the courage, not of its soldiers, but of its bystanders. Jack Mcdevitt
One of the ill effects of cruelty is that it makes the bystanders cruel. Sir Fowell Buxton
The torments of martyrdom are probably most keenly felt by the bystanders. Ralph Waldo Emerson
One eye witness is better than ten hear sayers. Plautus
The honest and good man ought to be exactly like a man who smells strong, so that the bystander as soon as he comes near him must smell whether he choose or not. Marcus Aurelius
What hurts the victim most is not the cruelty of the oppressor, but the silence of the bystander. Elie Wiesel
The man who is honest and good ought to be exactly like a man who smells strong, so that the bystander as soon as he comes near him must smell whether he choose or not. Marcus Aurelius
Thou shall not be a victim, thou shall not be a perpetrator, and thou shall never, but never, be a bystander. Yehuda Bauer