The statement was published in a book by Milton Mayer, They Thought They Were Free (1955), based on interviews he had conducted in Germany several years earlier.
Báseň bola uverejnená v roku 1955 v knihe Miltona Mayera,They Thought They Were Free (Mysleli si, že boli voľní), založenej na rozhovoroch, ktoré urobil v Nemecku niekoľko rokov predtým.