I don't think I'm an idealist. I'm a realist. And I see the progress. The progress has been remarkable. Look at the emancipation of woman in my lifetime. You're sitting here as a female. Look what's happened to the same-sex marriages. To tell somebody a man can become a woman, a woman can become a man, and a man can marry a man, they would have said, "You're crazy." But it's a reality today. So the world is changing. And you shouldn't - you know - be despairing because it's never happened before. Nothing new ever happened before.
Benjamin B. FerenczIf it's naive to want peace instead of war, let 'em make sure they say I'm naive. Because I want peace instead of war.
Benjamin B. FerenczPeople get discouraged. They should remember, from me, it takes courage not to be discouraged.
Benjamin B. FerenczNuremberg taught me that creating a world of tolerance and compassion would be a long and arduous task. And I also learned that if we did not devote ourselves to developing effective world law, the same cruel mentality that made the Holocaust possible might one day destroy the entire human race.
Benjamin B. FerenczWar makes murderers out of otherwise decent people. All wars, and all decent people.
Benjamin B. FerenczWhat has happened here [aftermath of 9/11] is not war in its traditional sense. This is clearly a crime against humanity. War crimes are crimes which happen in war time. There is a confusion there. This is a crime against humanity because it is deliberate and intentional killing of large numbers of civilians for political or other purposes. That is not tolerable under the international systems. And it should be prosecuted pursuant to the existing laws.
Benjamin B. Ferencz