It was less than a year after September 11, and I was at the Chicago Tribune writing about shootings and murders, and it was leaving me feeling pretty dark and depressed. I had done some activism in college, so I decided to help a local group hang door knockers against animal testing. I thought it would be a safe way to do something positive, but of course I have the absolute worst luck ever, and we were all arrested. Police took this blurry photo of me holding leaflets as evidence.
当时911事件尚未届满一年, 我还在《芝加哥论坛报》 撰写关于枪击和谋杀的新闻 在工作(中遇到的一些事情)让我觉得 十分阴郁沮丧。 我大学时参加过社运, 所以决定帮助一个当地组织, 以逐户塞传单的方式游说反动物实验。 我以为这是比较安全的办法 去做一些有意义的事情 不过可以预见的是,我的运气糟透了, 我们全遭逮捕。 警方还拍到我拿着传单, 这张模糊不清的照片就是罪证。
My charges were dismissed, but a few weeks later, two FBI agents knocked on my door, and they told me that unless I helped them by spying on protest groups, they would put me on a domestic terrorist list. I'd love to tell you that I didn't flinch, but I was terrified, and when my fear subsided, I became obsessed with finding out how this happened, how animal rights and environmental activists who have never injured anyone could become the FBI's number one domestic terrorism threat.
指控我的告诉后来撤销了, 不过数周后, 二名联邦调查局探员登门告知, 除非我答应帮忙 监控抗争团体, 不然将被视为境内恐怖份子。 我很想说自己并未就此退缩, 不过当时我怕死了! 等到恐惧平复后, 我忍不住想知道, 这到底是怎么回事。 为什么,拥护动物权和环保的人士, 从不伤害任何人, 却成为联邦调查局榜上, 头号境内恐怖份子
A few years later, I was invited to testify before Congress about my reporting, and I told lawmakers that, while everybody is talking about going green, some people are risking their lives to defend forests and to stop oil pipelines. They're physically putting their bodies on the line between the whalers' harpoons and the whales. These are everyday people, like these protesters in Italy who spontaneously climbed over barbed wire fences to rescue beagles from animal testing. And these movements have been incredibly effective and popular, so in 1985, their opponents made up a new word, eco-terrorist, to shift how we view them. They just made it up.
几年后,我被要求在 国会面前质证(判定我是境内恐怖分子)的报告。 我告诉议员, 虽然人人都在谈环保, 但有些人是冒生命危险, 保护森林并遏阻油管架设。 他们用血肉之躯挺身挡在 捕鲸叉和鲸鱼间。 他们都只是普通人, 如同这些意大利的抗议人士, 不假思索便爬过刺网围篱, 只为拯救一只米格鲁 免于沦为动物实验品。 这些社会运动获得巨大的成功, 且获得广大回响; 所以1985年时,对手为他们扣上 生态恐怖主义(Eco-terrorism)的名号, 为的是改变外界观感, 所以就编出这样一个称号。
Now these companies have backed new laws like the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act, which turns activism into terrorism if it causes a loss of profits. Now most people never even heard about this law, including members of Congress. Less than one percent were in the room when it passed the House. The rest were outside at a new memorial. They were praising Dr. King as his style of activism was branded as terrorism if done in the name of animals or the environment.
这些公司向来支持立法, 像〈动物企业保护法〉(the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act) 就认为社会运动者如造成营利损失, 将被视为恐怖份子。 包括国会议员在内, 大多数人都不知道这项法律。 因为众院通过此法的时候, 出席人数不到1%。 其余的当时在外参加 马丁路德金先生的纪念仪式, 即使是他那样的社运方式,如果冠上动物权或环保的名义, 也会被扭曲成恐怖行为。
Supporters say laws like this are needed for the extremists: the vandals, the arsonists, the radicals. But right now, companies like TransCanada are briefing police in presentations like this one about how to prosecute nonviolent protesters as terrorists. The FBI's training documents on eco-terrorism are not about violence, they're about public relations. Today, in multiple countries, corporations are pushing new laws that make it illegal to photograph animal cruelty on their farms. The latest was in Idaho just two weeks ago, and today we released a lawsuit challenging it as unconstitutional as a threat to journalism.
新法支持者表示,这种法律的意义在于 遏制极端分子, 诸如极端份子、破坏狂、纵火者和激进份子。 但目前像TransCanada等企业, 正在让警察代表他们的权益 以侦办恐怖份子的方式, 起诉和平抗议者。 美国联邦调查局 有关生态恐怖主义的训练教材, 内容非关暴力行为, 反倒偏向公关。 在许多国家, 企业们正在推动新法, 禁止有人在旗下所属农场 拍摄动物受虐的情形。 最近加入行列的, 是两周前通过此法案的爱达荷州, 而我们今天以法律诉讼形式, 质疑这项立法违宪, 因为这项立法将伤害新闻业。
The first of these ag-gag prosecutions, as they're called, was a young woman named Amy Meyer, and Amy saw a sick cow being moved by a bulldozer outside of a slaughterhouse as she was on the public street. And Amy did what any of us would: She filmed it. When I found out about her story, I wrote about it, and within 24 hours, it created such an uproar that the prosecutors just dropped all the charges.
这类所谓ag-gag法案实行后 因为这个法案首个被起诉的人 是一名叫爱咪. 梅尔(Amy Meyer)的年轻女性。 当时她在大街上, 见到屠宰场外有人用堆高机, 搬运一头病牛。 爱咪做了我们都会做的一件事, 就是录像 我听闻此事便写了相关报导 24小时内便引发群情激愤, 检察官才撤销所有告诉。
But apparently, even exposing stuff like that is a threat. Through the Freedom of Information Act, I learned that the counter-terrorism unit has been monitoring my articles and speeches like this one. They even included this nice little write-up of my book. They described it as "compelling and well-written." (Applause) Blurb on the next book, right?
不过显然接露这类事情 也被视为威胁; 通过`《信息自由法》, 我得知反恐单位 一直在监控我的文章, 还有类似今天这样的演讲。 另有一篇有关我著作的评论, 其中写到:「文笔不错且言之有理。」 (掌声) 可当下一本书的宣传了,对吧?
The point of all of this is to make us afraid, but as a journalist, I have an unwavering faith in the power of education. Our best weapon is sunlight.
这些手段就是要我们害怕, 不过身为记者, 我始终坚信教育的力量, 我们最有力的武器就是阳光。
Dostoevsky wrote that the whole work of man is to prove he's a man and not a piano key. Over and over throughout history, people in power have used fear to silence the truth and to silence dissent. It's time we strike a new note.
杜斯妥也夫斯基曾说,人终其一生 就是要证明自己是人而非琴键。 历史上屡见不鲜的是, 当权者不断利用恐惧, 让真相与异议消音。 现在该轮到我们发声了!
Thank you.
谢谢!
(Applause)
(掌声)