Black life at the intersection of birth and death | Mwende "FreeQuency" Katwiwa

Translator: Solveig Vendelbo Reviewer: Jette Thrane

My name is Mwende Katwiwa

Mit navn er Mwende Katwiwa,

and I am a poet,

og jeg er digter,

a Pan-Africanist

pan-afrikaner

and a freedom fighter.

og frihedskæmper.

I was 23 years old

Jeg var 23 år gammel,

when I first heard about Reproductive Justice.

da jeg først hørte om "forplantningsretfærdighed".

I was working at Women with a Vision,

Jeg arbejdede for Women with a Vision

where I learned that Reproductive Justice was defined by Sister Song as:

hvor jeg lærte, at Søster Song definerede forplantningsretfærdighed som:

One: A woman's right to decide if and when she will have a baby

Et: En kvindes ret til at beslutte om og hvornår, hun vil have et barn,

and the conditions under which she will give birth.

og de betingelser hun føder under.

Two: A woman's right to decide if she will not have a baby

To: En kvindes ret til at beslutte ikke at få et barn,

and her options for preventing or ending a pregnancy.

og hendes muligheder for at afværge eller afbryde en graviditet.

And three: A woman's right to parent the children she already has

Og tre: En kvindes ret til at opfostre de børn, hun allerede har,

in safe and healthy environments

i sikre og sunde omgivelser,

without fear of violence

uden frygt for vold

from individuals or the government.

udført af individer eller statsmagten.

I've always wanted to be a mother.

Jeg har altid ville være mor.

Growing up, I heard all about the joys of motherhood.

Under min opvækst hørte jeg alt om moderskabets glæder.

I used to dream of watching my womb weave wonder into this world.

Jeg plejede at drømme om at se min livmoder bringe et under til verden.

Ser I, jeg vidste godt, at jeg var ung;

See, I knew I was young.

But I figured,

men jeg tænkte,

it couldn't hurt to start planning for something so big, so early.

at det ikke kunne skade at planlægge så stor en ting i god tid.

But now,

Men nu

I'm 26 years old.

er jeg 26 år gammel.

And I don't know if I have what it takes to stomach motherhood in this country.

Og jeg ved ikke, om jeg kan klare at være mor her i landet.

See, over the years, America has taught me more about parenting

Ser I, i årenes løb har Amerika lært mig mere om at være forældre

than any book on the subject.

end nogen bog om emnet.

It has taught me how some women give birth to babies

Det har lært mig, at nogle kvinder føder babyer,

and others to suspects.

mens andre kvinder føder mistænkte.

It has taught me that this body will birth kin

Det har lært mig, at denne krop vil føde børn,

who are more likely to be held in prison cells

med højere risiko for at opleve en fængselscelle

than to hold college degrees.

end at afslutte universitetet.

There is something about being Black in America

Der er noget ved at være sort i Amerika,

that has made motherhood seem

som har fået moderskab til at synes

complicated.

kompliceret.

Seem like,

Det synes,

I don't know what to do to raise my kids right

at jeg ikke ved, hvordan jeg skal opdrage mine børn

and keep them alive.

og holde dem i live.

Do I tell my son not to steal because it is wrong,

Skal jeg sige til min søn, at han ikke skal stjæle, fordi det er forkert -

or because they will use it to justify his death?

eller fordi de vil bruge det til at retfærdiggøre hans død?

Do I tell him

Bør jeg fortælle ham,

that even if he pays for his Skittles and sweet tea

at selv om han betaler for sit slik og sin isthe,

there will still be those who will watch him

vil der stadig være folk, der holder øje med ham

and see a criminal before child;

og se en kriminel snarere end et barn;

who will call the police and not wait for them to come.

som ringer til politiet uden at vente på, at de kommer.

Do I even want the police to come?

Ønsker jeg overhovedet, at politiet kommer?

Too many Sean Bells go off in my head when I consider calling 911.

jeg hører klokker [Sean Bells ] i mit hoved, når jeg overvejer det.

I will not take it for Oscar Grant-ed that they will not come and kill my son.

Jeg vil ikke tage for givet [Oscar Grant], at de ikke kommer og dræber min søn.

So, we may have gotten rid of the nooses,

Vi har nok droppet galgeløkkerne,

but I still consider it lynching when they murder Black boys

men jeg ser stadig en lynchning, når de myrder sorte drenge

and leave their bodies for four hours in the sun.

og efterlader deres kroppe i solen i fire timer.

As a historical reminder

Som en historisk påmindelse om,

that there is something about being Black in America

at der er noget ved at være sort i Amerika,

that has made motherhood sound

som har fået moderskab til at lyde

like mourning.

som sorg.

Sound like one morning I could wake up

Til at lyde, som om jeg kunne vågne en morgen

and see my son as a repeat of last week's story.

og opleve min søn i en gentagelse af sidste uges historie.

Sound like I could wake up and realize

Som om jeg kunne vågne op og erkende,

the death of my daughter wouldn't even be newsworthy.

at min datters død ikke engang har nyhedsværdi.

So you can't tell me that Sandra Bland is the only Black woman

Så sig ikke til mig, at Sandra Bland er den eneste sorte kvinde,

whose violence deserves more than our silence.

hvis voldspåførelse fortjener mere end vores tavshed.

What about our other dark-skinned daughters in distress

Hvad med vores andre mørklødede døtre, der lider,

whose deaths we have yet to remember?

hvis dødsfald vi endnu skal erindre?

What about our children

Hvad med vores børn,

whose lives don't fit neatly between the lives of your genders?

hvis liv ikke passer nydeligt mellem kønnenes opdeling?

See, apparently, nothing is a great protector

Ser I, åbenbart findes der ingen rigtig beskyttelse,

if you come out of a body that looks like this.

hvis man fødes af en krop, der ser ud som denne.

See, there is something about being Black in America

Der er noget ved at være sort i Amerika,

that has made motherhood sound

som har fået moderskab til at lyde

like something I'm not sure I look forward to.

som noget, jeg ikke er sikker på, at jeg ser frem til.

I've written too many poems about dead Black children to be naïve

Jeg har skrevet for mange digte om døde sorte børn til at overse,

about the fact that there could one day be a poem written about my kids.

at der måske en dag bliver skrevet et digt om mine børn.

But I do not want to be a mother who gave birth to poems.

Men jeg vil ikke være en mor, der gav liv til digte.

I do not want a stanza for a son

Jeg vil ikke være et vers for en søn,

nor a line for a little girl

eller en linje for en lille pige,

nor a footnote for a child who doesn't fit into this world.

eller en fodnote for et barn, der ikke passer ind i denne verden.

No.

Nej.

I do not want children who will live forever

Jeg vil ikke have børn, der lever evigt

in the pages of poetry,

på poesiens blade,

yet can't seem to outlive

og dog ikke synes at kunne leve længere

me.

end mig.

(Applause)

(Klapsalve)

I was invited to the TEDWomen conference

Jeg blev indbudt til TEDWomen konferencen,

to perform a poem.

til at optræde med et digt.

But for me, poetry is not about art and performance.

Men for mig handler poesi ikke om kunst og optræden.

It is a form of protest.

Det er en slags protest.

Yesterday,

I går,

during rehearsal,

under prøver,

I was told that there had been

fik jeg at vide, at der har været

two to three recent TED Talks about Black Lives Matter.

2-3 nylige TED Talks om bevægelsen "Black Lives Matter".

That maybe I should cut down my TED Talk

Måske burde jeg forkorte mit TED foredrag

so it could "just" be about Reproductive Justice.

så det "bare" handlede om forplantningsretfærdighed.

But that poem and this talk

Men det digt og dette foredrag

is fundamentally about my inability to separate the two.

handler fundamentalt om min manglende evne til at adskille de to.

I was 21 years old --

Jeg var 21 år gammel -

(Applause)

(Klapsalve)

I was 21 years old when Trayvon Martin was murdered.

Jeg var 21 år gammel, da Trayvon Martin blev myrdet.

Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old Black boy,

Trayvon Martin, en 17 årig sort dreng,

a Black child,

et sort barn,

reminded me

mindede mig

reminded us

mindede os

how little this nation actually values Black life.

om hvor lille en værdi, dette land egentlig tilskriver sorte liv.

The hashtag #BlackLivesMatter

Hashtaggen #BlackLivesMatter

became the most recognized call

blev det mest udbredte opråb

for Black people and our children

om at sorte mennesker og vores børn

to live in safe environments and healthy communities

bør kunne leve i sikre omgivelser og sunde fællesskaber

without fear

uden at frygte

from violence from individuals or the state or government.

vold fra individer eller staten eller regeringen.

Months later,

Et par måneder senere,

when George Zimmerman was not held responsible

da George Zimmerman ikke blev holdt ansvarlig

for murdering Trayvon Martin,

for at myrde Trayvon Martin,

I heard Sybrina Fulton,

hørte jeg Sybrina Fulton,

Trayvon Martin's mother, speak.

Trayvon Martins mor, tale.

Her testimony so deeply impacted me

Hendes vidnesbyrd påvirkede mig så dybt,

that I found myself constantly asking,

at jeg konstant spurgte mig selv,

hvilken konsekvens har det at være mor i Amerika

what would it mean to mother in the United Stated of America

in this skin?

med denne hud?

What does motherhood really mean,

Hvad betyder moderskab egentlig,

when for so many who look like me

når det for så mange, der ser ud som jeg,

it is synonymous with mourning?

er synonymt med sorg?

Without realizing it,

Uden at erkende det,

I had begun to link the Reproductive Justice framework

var jeg begyndt at forbinde forplantningsretfærdighed

and the Movement for Black Lives.

med bevægelsen "Movement for Black Lives".

As I learned more about Reproductive Justice

Mens jeg lærte mere om forplantningsretfærdighed

at Women With A Vision,

og Women With A Vision,

and as I continued to be active in the Movement for Black Lives,

og mens jeg fortsat var aktiv i Movement for Black Lives,

I found myself wanting others to see and feel these similarities.

ville jeg at også andre skulle opdage disse lighedspunkter.

I found myself asking:

Jeg spurgte mig selv:

Whose job is it in times like this

Hvis ansvar er det i tider som disse

to connect ideas realities and people?

at sammenknytte ideer, virkelighedsopfattelser og mennesker?

I want to dedicate this talk and that poem

Jeg ønsker at tilegne dette foredrag og det digt

to Constance Malcolm.

til Constance Malcolm.

She is the mother of Ramarley Graham

Hun er mor til Ramarley Graham,

who was another Black child

som er endnu et sort barn,

who was murdered before their time.

der blev myrdet før sin tid.

En dag, under et måltid,

She reminded me once over dinner,

as I was struggling to write that poem,

i en tid hvor jeg kæmpede med det digt, sagde hun.

that it is the artist's job

at det er kunstnerens ansvar

to unearth stories that people try to bury

at afdække historier, som folk forsøger at begrave

with shovels of complacency and time.

med skovle af ligegyldighed og tid.

Recently,

For nylig

Toni Morrison wrote,

skrev Toni Morrison:

"In times of dread,

"I frygtens timer

artists must never choose to remain silent.

må kunstnere aldrig vælge at forblive stumme.

There is no time for self-pity,

Der er ikke tid til selvmedlidenhed,

no room for fear."

ikke plads til frygt."

Yesterday, during rehearsal,

Til prøven i går,

when I was told that I should

da jeg blev bedt om

"maybe cut the Black Lives Matter portion from my talk,"

"måske at skære det om Black Lives Matter ud" af mit foredrag,

I found myself fearful for a moment.

blev jeg bange et øjeblik.

Fearful that again our stories were being denied

Bange for, at vores historier igen nægtes adgang

the very stages they deserve to be told on.

præcis de steder, hvor de bør fortælles.

And then I remembered the words I had just spoken.

Og så huskede jeg de ord, som jeg netop havde sagt.

"In times of dread,

"I frygtens timer

artists must never choose to remain silent.

må kunstnere aldrig vælge at forblive stumme.

There is no time for self-pity.

Der er ikke tid til selvmedlidenhed.

(Applause)

(Klapsalve)

There is no time for self-pity.

Der er ikke tid til selvmedlidenhed.

And no room for fear."

Og ingen plads til frygt.

And I have made my choice.

Jeg har valgt.

And I am always choosing.

Og jeg vælger hele tiden.

Thank you.

Mange tak.

(Applause)

(Klapsalve)