--- title: Read George W. Bush's Speech on How Bigotry Is Emboldened description: The former President said the U.S. is suffering from a "crisis of confidence." canonical: https://time.com/4989764/george-w-bush-bigotry-seems-emboldened-speech-transcript/ author: Alana Abramson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-10-19T19:20:31.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-08T09:57:50.605Z article:section: Politics og:title: 'Bigotry Seems Emboldened.' Read George W. Bush's Speech on Nationalism and Politics og:description: The former President said the U.S. is suffering from a "crisis of confidence" og:url: https://time.com/4989764/george-w-bush-bigotry-seems-emboldened-speech-transcript/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfa06ff5bba068187/6988e2a2cf40a82358c49e29/shutterstock_9159226aa.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4684 og:image:height: 2635 og:image:alt: George W. Bush Liberty Forum og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 'Bigotry Seems Emboldened.' Read George W. Bush's Speech on Nationalism and Politics twitter:description: The former President said the U.S. is suffering from a "crisis of confidence" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfa06ff5bba068187/6988e2a2cf40a82358c49e29/shutterstock_9159226aa.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 video:duration: 00:52 video:published: 2017-10-19 section: politics topics: prejudice, bigotry, bullying, civic values, American identity, racial equality, white supremacy, moral education, Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy, national creed genre: speech, commentary tones: somber, moral, earnest, measured emotions: concern (medium), conviction (high), hope (medium) sentiment: neutral audience: general public, educators and parents, policymakers, civic-minded citizens people: George W. Bush, Martin Luther King Jr. content_suitability: hate [00:00-00:52] transcript_source: publisher captions transcript_reviewed: not applicable ---  # ‘Bigotry Seems Emboldened.’ Read George W. Bush's Speech Attacking Nationalism in Politics > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. Senior correspondent Philip Elliott brings sharp context to the issues driving the capital, connecting the decisions made in Washington to the institutions, industries and people they affect. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=15bd65d3-88b1-4e47-b2ae-a3a3eb3c5357&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: George W. Bush Speaks About Prejudice and Bigotry [Watch (HLS stream): George W. Bush Speaks About Prejudice and Bigotry](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/5LJBOx69.m3u8) (0:52)  _Published 2017-10-19. Former President George W. Bush speaks about prejudice and bigotry at an event in NYC._ Description, summary, key points, chapters, key quotes, questions and transcript, where present, were produced automatically from the video or its captions and were not reviewed. ## Summary Former President George W. Bush speaks about how bullying and prejudice in public life set the national tone and can compromise the moral education of children. He argues that American identity is based on creed rather than geography, ethnicity, or blood, and draws on Martin Luther King Jr.'s call to judge people by the content of their character. He concludes that people of every race, religion, and ethnicity can be fully and equally American, and that bigotry or white supremacy is blasphemy against the American creed. ## Key points - Bullying and prejudice in public life sets the national tone and provides permission for cruelty and bigotry. (00:00) - Prejudice in public life compromises the moral education of children. (00:00) - The only way to pass along civic values is to first live up to them. (00:02) - Unlike many other nations, American identity is not determined by geography, garden, ethnicity, soil, or blood. (00:15) - Americans should recognize one another by the content of their character, not the color of their skin, as Martin Luther King Jr. called for. (00:26) - People of every race, religion, and ethnicity can be fully and equally American. (00:38) - Bigotry or white supremacy in any form is blasphemy against the American creed. (00:45) ## Chapters - [00:00 to 00:38] Prejudice, civic values, and American identity. Bush argues that public prejudice corrupts civic education and that American identity rests on creed rather than ancestry or geography. - [00:38 to 00:52] Equal American identity and rejecting bigotry. Bush states that people of every background can be fully American and that bigotry and white supremacy violate the American creed. ## Key quotes - [00:00] George W. Bush: "Bullying and prejudice in our public life sets the national tone." - [00:15] George W. Bush: "Our identity as a nation unlike many other nations is not determined by geography garden or ethnicity." - [00:26] George W. Bush: "We become the eras of Martin Luther King Jr. by recognizing one another not by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character." - [00:45] George W. Bush: "bigotry or white supremacy in any form is blasphemy against the American creed." ## Questions this video answers - How does public bullying and prejudice affect the national tone? [00:00] - What does Bush say the only way to pass along civic values is? [00:10] - What, according to Bush, determines American national identity? [00:15] - What did Martin Luther King Jr. call for in judging people? [00:26] - Can people of every race, religion, and ethnicity be fully and equally American? [00:38] - How does Bush characterize bigotry and white supremacy against the American creed? [00:45] ## Content suitability - hate [00:00-00:52]: The speech discusses bigotry, prejudice, and white supremacy, though it condemns them rather than promoting them.  by [Alana Abramson](https://time.com/author/alana-abramson/)  ## Alana Abramson Oct 19, 2017 7:20 PM UTC Former President George W. Bush speaks about prejudice and bigotry at an event in NYC.  by [Alana Abramson](https://time.com/author/alana-abramson/)  ## Alana Abramson Oct 19, 2017 7:20 PM UTC [Former President George W. Bush ](http://time.com/4858235/bill-clinton-george-w-bush-presidential-scholars/)expressed concern Thursday over the [rise of isolationist sentiment](http://time.com/4820160/trump-america-first-global-leadership/) in the United States, claiming the country is suffering from a “crisis of confidence.” “We’ve seen nationalism distorted into nativism – forgotten the dynamism that immigration has always brought to America. We see a fading confidence in the value of free markets and international trade – forgetting that conflict, instability, and poverty follow in the wake of protectionism. We have seen the return of isolationist sentiments – forgetting that American security is directly threatened by the chaos and despair of distant places, where threats such as terrorism, infectious disease, criminal gangs and drug trafficking tend to emerge,” Bush said, speaking at a national forum on liberty hosted by the George W. Bush institute in New York City. “In all these ways, we need to recall and recover our own identity. Americans have a great advantage: To renew our country, we only need to remember our values.” The solution, Bush cautioned, was not for the U.S. to retreat internationally, but to retain the reins of leadership. “One strength of free societies is their ability to adapt to economic and social disruptions,” he said. “And that should be our goal: to prepare American workers for new opportunities, to care in practical, empowering ways for those who may feel left behind.” Bush also implicitly referred to the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, noting that “repressive governments” attempted “a major effort to encourage division in western societies and undermine the legitimacy of elections. ” Bush’s speech bared similarities to the one his former Republican primary opponent, Arizona Senator John McCain, delivered earlier this week after accepting the Liberty Medal at the U.S. Constitution. In that speech, [McCain slammed](http://time.com/4986307/john-mccain-donald-trump-1930s-fight-back/) what he called “some half-baked, spurious nationalism cooked up by people who would rather find scapegoats than solve problems.” Neither Bush nor McCain directly mentioned President Donald Trump by name. But concern about current United States’ leadership was evident in both set of remarks. But ultimately, Bush expressed optimism the United States would prevail in its current challenges. “The American spirit does not say we shall manage or we shall make the best of it, it says we shall overcome,” he concluded. “And that is exactly what we are going to do with God’s help.” Read Bush’s full speech below. --- > “” --- ## Transcript [00:00] Bullying and prejudice in our public life sets the [00:02] national tone. Provides permission for cruelty [00:07] and bigotry and compromises the moral education of [00:10] children. The only way to pass along civic values [00:15] is to first live up to them. Our identity as a nation [00:19] unlike many other nations is not determined by [00:22] geography garden or ethnicity. By soil or blood. [00:26] We become the eras of Martin Luther King Jr. by [00:30] recognizing one another not by the color of their skin, [00:34] but by the content of their character. This [00:38] means that people of every race, religion, ethnicity can [00:40] be fully and equally American. It [00:45] means that bigotry or white supremacy in any form is [00:49] blasphemy against the American creed. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4989764/george-w-bush-bigotry-seems-emboldened-speech-transcript/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4989764/george-w-bush-bigotry-seems-emboldened-speech-transcript/"},"headline":"‘Bigotry Seems Emboldened.’ Read George W. 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