"There are people who are suffering beyond description. They are innocent people, they didn't bring this upon themselves. They are the victims of the sins of other people. And while it's hard to see, it's important to understand that these people exist"
About this Quote
The subtext is a rebuke to a reflexive skepticism that asks what victims did to “deserve” their circumstances. “They didn’t bring this upon themselves” anticipates the most common dodge in public discourse: blame the afflicted so the observer can feel safe. By framing suffering as “the sins of other people,” Farrow shifts the focus from pity to responsibility, from bad luck to human-made harm. “Sins” is deliberately loaded; it’s moral language in a political world, aimed at readers who prefer neutrality because it feels sophisticated.
Context matters because Farrow is an actress who became publicly associated with humanitarian advocacy, especially around war and displacement. Celebrity activism is often dismissed as performative, so she leans on blunt, unornamented sentences and repetition. The point isn’t to dazzle; it’s to make denial harder. “It’s hard to see” acknowledges the psychic cost of attention, then refuses to treat that discomfort as a valid excuse. Understanding, for her, is the first ethical act: not empathy as a mood, but recognition as a commitment.
Quote Details
| Topic | Human Rights |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Farrow, Mia. (2026, January 16). There are people who are suffering beyond description. They are innocent people, they didn't bring this upon themselves. They are the victims of the sins of other people. And while it's hard to see, it's important to understand that these people exist. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/there-are-people-who-are-suffering-beyond-120319/
Chicago Style
Farrow, Mia. "There are people who are suffering beyond description. They are innocent people, they didn't bring this upon themselves. They are the victims of the sins of other people. And while it's hard to see, it's important to understand that these people exist." FixQuotes. January 16, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/there-are-people-who-are-suffering-beyond-120319/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"There are people who are suffering beyond description. They are innocent people, they didn't bring this upon themselves. They are the victims of the sins of other people. And while it's hard to see, it's important to understand that these people exist." FixQuotes, 16 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/there-are-people-who-are-suffering-beyond-120319/. Accessed 8 Feb. 2026.







