stand up and be counted

• stand and be counted

stand up and be counted

1. (idiomatic) To publicly make known one's views, contributions, or vote, especially in a contentious situation where fortitude is required.
   • 1960 Oct. 24, "Foreign News: A New Look at Neutralism," Time (retrieved 5 Nov 2016):

     Only four years ago many a small nation felt required to stand up and be counted, either for or against the U.S.

   • 1981 Nov. 25, UPI, "‘Miami's for Me’ Slogan Aims at a Better Image," New York Times (retrieved 5 Nov 2016):

     "We're here because we're willing to stand up and be counted and we're willing to do something about the problems of this community."

   • 2016 Jan. 12, Lucy Gorman, "Voices: Queer Christians like me deserve to pray without prejudice," Independent (UK) (retrieved 5 Nov 2016):

     [A]s an LGBT community we need to stand up and be counted, and force people into action by holding our ground on the importance of inclusion in the church.

2. (idiomatic, often sports) To take significant individual action to help a group effort.
   • 2009 Sep. 6, Jonah Freedman, "Best player U.S. has ever produced comes through when it counts," Sports Illustrated (retrieved 5 Nov 2016):

     "You definitely want to stand up and be counted," said Dempsey. "You're a player the team looks to to get goals and you want to try to help the team win."

   • 2013 Feb. 4, Daniel Taylor, "Steven Gerrard fears England may slip into World Cup play-offs," Guardian (UK) (retrieved 5 Nov 2016):

     "It was a really tough game [against Montenegro] last time and this one will be the same. We've all got to stand up and be counted."

• nail one's colours to the mast
• take a stand
• take one for the team

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