If freedom of speech is taken away, then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter.

The line warns that suppressing free expression is not a minor political inconvenience but a decisive step toward collective powerlessness. Without the ability to speak, criticize, publish, and organize, citizens lose the means to resist deception and coercion; they become passive, easily directed, and vulnerable to violence or tyranny. The simile “like sheep to the slaughter” intensifies the claim: silence is not neutral—it can be fatal, because it removes the social mechanisms that expose wrongdoing and coordinate defense of rights. Even when attributed to Washington, the sentiment reflects a broader Enlightenment and republican conviction that liberty depends on an informed public and open debate.