You can ask anyone you want, and they will tell you that they are sick and tired of fighting for justice. People of color and members of the LGBT community are tired of carrying the burden of speaking up and stepping up even when they're being silenced and pushed back down. And white allies and cis allies are tired, too. Tired of being told they're doing it wrong or that it isn't even their place to show up at all. This fatigue is impacting all of us. And in fact, I believe we won't succeed until we approach justice in a new way.
Možete pitati koga god želite i reći će vam da im je dosta borbe za pravdu. Manjinama i LGBT zajednici je dosta toga što je na njima da progovaraju i istupaju čak i kada ih se pokušava ušutkati i potisnuti. A bijelim saveznicima i cis saveznicima je također dosta. Dosta im je toga da im govore da krivo djeluju ili da uopće nije na njima da se miješaju. Ovaj umor utječe na sve nas. Zapravo, vjerujem da nećemo uspjeti dok ne pristupimo pravdi na novi način.
I grew up in the middle of the civil rights movement in the segregated South. As a five-year-old girl, I was very interested in ballet. It seemed to be the five-year-old-girl thing to do in the 1960s. My mother took me to a ballet school. You know, the kind of school that had teachers that talked about your gifts and talents knowing that you'd never be a ballerina.
Odrasla sam tijekom pokreta za ljudska prava na segregiranom Jugu. Kao petogodišnja djevojčica, jako me zanimao balet. To se činilo baš kao nešto što su petogodišnje djevojčice činile u 60-ima. Majka me odvela u baletnu školu. Znate, školu koja je imala učitelje koji bi hvalili vašu nadarenost i talent znajući da nikad nećete biti balerina.
(Laughter)
(Smijeh)
When we arrived, they said nicely that they "did not accept Negroes." We got back in the car as if we were just leaving a grocery store that was out of orange juice. We said nothing ... just drove to the next ballet school. They said, "We don't accept Negroes."
Kada smo došle tamo, pristojno su nam rekli da „ne primaju crnce.” Vratile smo se u auto kao da smo jednostavno izašle iz dućana u kojem nije bilo soka od naranče. Ništa nismo rekle ... samo smo se odvezle do sljedeće škole. Oni su rekli: „Ne primamo crnce.”
Well, I was confused. And I asked my mother why they didn't want me. And she said, "Well, they're just not smart enough to accept you right now, and they don't know how excellent you are."
Bila sam zbunjena. Pa sam pitala majku zašto me ne žele. A ona je rekla: „Jednostavno nisu dovoljno pametni da te sad prime i ne znaju kako si odlična."
(Cheers)
(Uzvici)
(Applause and cheers)
(Pljesak i uzvici)
Well, I didn't know what that meant.
Pa, ja nisam znala što to znači.
(Laughter)
(Smijeh)
But I was sure it wasn't good, because I could see it in my mother's eyes. She was angry, and it looked like she was on the verge of tears. Well, I decided right then and right there that ballet was dumb.
Ali sam bila sigurna da nije dobro jer sam to mogla vidjeti u majčinim očima. Bila je ljuta i izgledalo je kao da će početi plakati. Upravo sam u tom trenutku odlučila da je balet glup.
(Laughter)
(Smijeh)
You know, I had lots of experiences like that along the way, but as I got older, I started to get angry. And not just angry at the outright racism and injustice. I was angry at people that stood by and didn't say anything. Like, why didn't the white parents in that ballet school say "Uh, that's wrong. Let that little girl dance." Or why --
Znate, imala sam puno takvih iskustava tijekom života, ali kako sam odrastala počela sam se ljutiti. I to ne samo na izravni rasizam i nepravdu. Bila sam ljuta na ljude koji su stajali sa strane i ništa nisu rekli. Na primjer, zašto nisu bijeli roditelji u baletnoj školi rekli: „To nije u redu. Dopustite djevojčici da pleše.” Ili zašto --
(Applause)
(Pljesak)
Why didn't the white patrons in the segregated restaurants say "Hey, that's not right. Let that family eat." Well, it didn't take me long to realize that racial injustice wasn't the only place that people in the majority were staying quiet. When I'd sit in church and hear some homophobic comment being disguised as something scriptural, I'd say, "I'm sorry, why aren't the heterosexual churchgoers disrupting this nonsense?"
Zašto nisu bijeli gosti u segregiranim restoranima rekli: „Hej, to nije u redu. Dopustite toj obitelji da jede.” Nije mi trebalo dugo da shvatim da rasna nepravda nije jedino područje u kojem su ljudi iz većine bili tihi. Kada bih sjedila u crkvi i čula nekakav homofobičan komentar prerušen u nešto iz Svetog pisma, rekla bih: „Oprostite, ali zašto heteroseksualni vjernici ne prekidaju ovu glupost?”
(Applause)
(Pljesak)
Or ... in a room filled with boomers and Gen-Xers who started degrading their millennial colleagues as being spoiled, lazy and overconfident, I'd say, "I'm sorry, why isn't someone my age saying 'stop stereotyping?'"
Ili ... u sobi punoj starijih osoba koji napadaju svoje mlađe kolege da su razmaženi, lijeni i previše samouvjereni, rekla bih: „Oprostite, zašto netko mojih godina ne govori 'prestanite stereotipizirati'?”
(Audience) Yes!
(Publika) Da!
(Applause)
(Pljesak)
I was used to standing up on issues like this, but why wasn't everyone else?
Bila sam navikla na reagiranje oko ovakvih problema, ali zašto ostali nisu?
My fifth grade teacher, Mrs. McFarland, taught me that justice requires an accomplice. Not just anyone will do. She said we need unlikely allies if we want to see real change happen. And for those of us experiencing injustice up front, we need to be willing to accept the help, because when we don't, change takes too long.
Moja me učiteljica u petom razredu, gospođa McFarland, naučila da pravda zahtijeva suučesnika. Ali nije dovoljan bilo tko. Rekla je da su nam potrebni neočekivani saveznici ako želimo vidjeti pravu promjenu. A mi koji osjećamo nepravdu na svojoj koži, moramo biti spremni prihvatiti pomoć, jer ako je ne prihvatimo, promjene su prespore.
I mean, imagine if heterosexual and gay people had not come together under the banner of marriage equality. Or what if President Kennedy just wasn't interested in the civil rights movement? Most of our major movements in this country might have been delayed or even dead if it weren't for the presence of unlikely allies. When the same people speak up in the same ways they've always spoken up, the most we'll ever get are the same results over and over again.
Mislim, zamislite da se heteroseksualni i gej ljudi nisu složili oko bračne jednakosti. Ili da predsjednik Kennedy nije bio zainteresiran za pokret za ljudska prava? Većina velikih promjena u ovoj zemlji dogodile bi se kasnije ili uopće ne bi da nije bilo neočekivanih saveznika. Kada isti ljudi govore na isti način na koji su uvijek govorili, najviše što možemo dobiti isti su rezultati iznova i iznova.
You know, allies often stand on the sidelines waiting to be called up. But what if unlikely allies led out in front of issues? Like ... what if Black and Native American people stood in front of immigration issues?
Znate, saveznici često sa strane čekaju da ih se pozove. Ali što bi bilo da neočekivani saveznici vode rasprave o ovim problemima? Na primjer ... što kad bi crnci i američki starosjedioci vodili raspravu o imigraciji?
(Applause)
(Pljesak)
Or what if white people led the charge to end racism?
Ili kad bi bijelci vodili napad za zaustavljanje rasizma?
(Applause and cheers)
(Pljesak i uzvici)
Or ... what if men led the charge on pay equity for women?
Ili ... kad bi muškarci vodili promjenu za jednakost plaća za žene?
(Applause and cheers)
(Pljesak i uzvici)
Or ... what if heterosexual people stood in front of LGBTQ issues?
Ili ... kada bi heteroseksualne osobe vodile bitku za LGBTQ prava?
(Applause and cheers)
(Pljesak i uzvici)
And what if able-bodied people advocated for people living with disabilities?
I što kad bi se ljudi bez invaliditeta zalagali za one s invaliditetom?
(Applause and cheers)
(Pljesak i uzvici)
You know, we can stand up for issues, weigh in and advocate even when it seems like the issue has nothing to do with us. And actually, those are the issues that are most compelling. And sure, people will have no idea why you are there, but that's why those of us facing injustice must be willing to accept the help. You know, we have to fight injustice with a consciousness of grace. When white guys stand up to fight for the liberation of Black and Brown people, Black and Brown people will have to be willing to accept their help. And I know that's complicated, but this is collective work and it requires everyone to be all in.
Znate, možemo istupiti oko ovih problema, dati svoje mišljenje i zalagati se čak i kada nam se čini da problem nema veze s nama. I zapravo, to su problemi koji su najprivlačniji. I da, ljudima neće biti jasno zašto ste vi tamo, ali zato mi koji se nosimo s nepravdom moramo biti spremni prihvatiti pomoć. Znate, moramo se boriti protiv nepravde sa sviješću o milosti. Kada se bijelci počnu boriti za oslobođenje crnih i smeđih ljudi, crni i smeđi ljudi će morati biti spremni prihvatiti njihovu pomoć. I znam da je komplicirano, ali ovo je kolektivan rad i potrebno je da u njemu svi daju sve od sebe.
One day when I was at kindergarten, our teacher introduced us to this beautiful, tall, white lady named Miss Ann. I thought she was the prettiest white lady I'd ever seen. Well, if I can be honest with you, I think it was the first time we'd ever seen a white lady in our school ever.
Jedan dan kada sam bila u vrtiću učiteljica nam je predstavila lijepu, visoku bijelu damu, gospođicu Ann. Mislila sam da je najljepša bjelkinja koju sam ikad vidjela. Da budem iskrena, mislim da smo tada prvi put vidjeli bjelkinju u našoj školi.
(Laughter)
(Smijeh)
Miss Ann stood in front of us, and she said she was going to start teaching ballet classes right there are our school and that she was proud to be our dance teacher. It was unreal. All of a sudden -- (sings) I didn't think ballet was dumb anymore.
Gospođica Ann je stajala pred nama i rekla nam je da će početi držati nastavu baleta baš u našoj školi i da je ponosna što je naša učiteljica plesa. Bilo je to nevjerojatno. I tako odjednom -- (pjevajući) nisam više mislila da je balet glup.
(Laughter)
(Smijeh)
You see, what I know now is Miss Ann was fully aware that the white ballet schools would not accept Black girls. She was incensed by that. So she came to the Black neighborhood to start teaching the dance classes herself. And you know, it took love and courage for her to do that.
Vidite, sad znam da je gospođica Ann jako dobro znala da bjelačke baletne škole neće primiti crne djevojčice. To ju je ljutilo. Pa je došla u crnački kvart i sama počela držati nastavu baleta. I znate, bili su joj potrebni ljubav i hrabrost da bi to učinila.
(Applause)
(Pljesak)
And where there was no justice, she just built it. We all survived, because we stood on the shoulders of our Black ancestors. We all thrived, because Miss Ann was an unlikely ally.
I tamo gdje nije bilo pravde, ona ju je samo izgradila. Svi smo mi preživjeli jer smo stajali na ramenima naših crnih predaka. Svi smo uspjeli jer je gospođica Ann bila neočekivani saveznik.
You know, when you add your voice and your actions to situations that you don't think involve you, you actually inspire others to do the same. Miss Ann inspired me to always be on the lookout for situations that weren't about me but where I saw injustice and inequality happening anyway. I hope she inspires you, too, because to win the fight for equity we will all need to speak up and stand up. We will all need to do that. And we will all need to do that even when it's hard and even when we feel out of place, because it is your place, and it is our place. Justice counts on all of us.
Znate, kada dodate svoje glas i svoje djelovanje u situacije za koje mislite da vas se ne tiču, zapravo inspirirate druge da čine isto. Gospođica Ann me inspirirala da uvijek obraćam pažnju na situacije koje nisu o meni, ali gdje vidim da su nepravda i nejednakost ipak prisutne. Nadam se da će i vas inspirirati jer da bi se dobila bitka za pravičnost svi ćemo morati progovoriti i istupiti. Svi mi ćemo morati to učiniti. I svi ćemo morati to učiniti čak i kad je teško i čak i kad osjećamo da nas se ne tiče jer vas se tiče i tiče se svih nas. Pravda računa na sve nas.
Thank you.
Hvala.
(Applause and cheers)
(Pljesak i uzvici)