The Hangman (poem)
The Hangman (poem)
"The Hangman" is a poem written by Maurice Ogden in 1951 and first published in 1954. The poem was originally published under the title "Ballad of the Hangman" in Masses & Mainstream magazine under the pseudonym "Jack Denoya", before later being "[r]evised and retitled".
The poem is usually cited as an indictment of those who stand idly by while others commit grave evil or injustice, such as during the Holocaust. The story it tells is very similar to that of the famous statement First They Came that has been attributed to the anti-Nazi pastor Martin Niemöller as early as 1946. However, Steve Goldman, whose father Les Goldman produced an animated version of the poem, said <blockquote>… Though the poem on which the film is based has Holocaust parallels, the poet, Maurice Ogden, was actually writing about America during the McCarthy era. Ogden was an actor and writer who was denied work and persecuted by the House Un-American Activities Committee during the 1950's and early 60's for allegedly having been a member of the Communist Party many years earlier.</blockquote>
Animated film In 1964, an animated 11-minute film was made by Les Goldman and Paul Julian. Herschel Bernardi narrated. The film was a co-winner of the Silver Sail award at the Locarno International Film Festival in 1964.
Legacy Ogden's poem was set to music by Alison Krauss & Union Station and is the second song in their 2025 album Arcadia.
The poem is often used in educational resources, using it to explore bystander behavior and the challenges of speaking up against injustice.