I grew up in the Westboro Baptist Church. Here's why I left | Megan Phelps-Roper

Prevoditelj: Irma Komljenović Recezent: Tilen Pigac - EFZG

I was a blue-eyed, chubby-cheeked five-year-old

Bila sam plavooka petogodišnjakinja bucmastih obraza

when I joined my family on the picket line for the first time.

kad sam se pridružila svojoj obitelji pred ogradama.

My mom made me leave my dolls in the minivan.

Mama me natjerala da lutke ostavim u kombiju.

I'd stand on a street corner in the heavy Kansas humidity,

Stajala sam na uglu ulice na teškoj vlazi Kansasa

surrounded by a few dozen relatives,

okružena desecima rođaka,

with my tiny fists clutching a sign that I couldn't read yet:

a moje su ručice držale znak s natpisom kojeg još nisam znala pročitati:

"Gays are worthy of death."

"Gejevi zaslužuju smrt."

This was the beginning.

To je bio početak.

Our protests soon became a daily occurrence

Naši su prosvjedi postali dnevna pojava

and an international phenomenon,

i međunarodni fenomen,

and as a member of Westboro Baptist Church,

a kao članica Westborovske baptističke crkve,

I became a fixture on picket lines across the country.

postala sam stalni gost ograda po cijeloj zemlji.

The end of my antigay picketing career

Kraj moje karijere prosvjednika

and life as I knew it,

i života kakvog sam poznavala

came 20 years later,

došao je 20 godina kasnije,

triggered in part by strangers on Twitter

djelomično uzrokovan strancima na Twitteru

who showed me the power of engaging the other.

koji su mi pokazali moć angažiranja drugih.

In my home,

U mom domu

life was framed as an epic spiritual battle between good and evil.

život je bio prikazivan kao epska duhovna borba dobra i zla.

The good was my church and its members,

Dobro su predstavljali moja crkva i njeni članovi,

and the evil was everyone else.

a zlo svi ostali.

My church's antics were such

Zbog budalaština moje crkve

that we were constantly at odds with the world,

konstantno smo bili u borbi sa svijetom,

and that reinforced our otherness on a daily basis.

a to bi svakodnevno pojačavalo našu različitost.

"Make a difference between the unclean and the clean,"

"Razlikuj nečisto od čistog,"

the verse says,

stih kaže,

and so we did.

pa i jesmo.

From baseball games to military funerals,

Od utakmica bejzbola do vojnih sprovoda,

we trekked across the country with neon protest signs in hand

putovali smo zemljom s neonskim prosvjednim plakatima u rukama

to tell others exactly how "unclean" they were

kako bi drugima rekli koliku su zapravo "nečisti"

and exactly why they were headed for damnation.

i zašto ih čeka prokletstvo.

This was the focus of our whole lives.

To je bilo središte naših života.

This was the only way for me to do good in a world that sits in Satan's lap.

To je bio jedini način da činim dobro u svijetu koji sjedi na krilu vraga.

And like the rest of my 10 siblings,

I poput mojih ostalih 10 braće i sestara,

I believed what I was taught with all my heart,

vjerovala sam u što su me učili cijelim srcem,

and I pursued Westboro's agenda with a special sort of zeal.

i izvršavala sam namjere Westbora s posebnim žarom.

In 2009, that zeal brought me to Twitter.

U 2009., taj me žar doveo na Twitter.

Initially, the people I encountered on the platform

Na početku su ljudi na koje sam tamo naišla

were just as hostile as I expected.

bili neljubazni, baš kao što sam očekivala.

They were the digital version of the screaming hordes

Bili su digitalna verzija vrištećih horda ljudi

I'd been seeing at protests since I was a kid.

koje sam gledala na prosvjedima još odmalena.

But in the midst of that digital brawl,

No usred sve te digitalne svađe

a strange pattern developed.

razvio se čudan uzorak.

Someone would arrive at my profile with the usual rage and scorn,

Netko bi stigao na moj profil s uobičajenim bijesom i prezirom,

I would respond with a custom mix of Bible verses, pop culture references

odgovorila bih sa svojom mješavinom biblijskih stihova, referenci na pop kulturu

and smiley faces.

i smajlića.

They would be understandably confused and caught off guard,

Tako bih ih, razumljivo, zbunila,

but then a conversation would ensue.

no onda bi slijedio razgovor.

And it was civil --

Bio je civilan --

full of genuine curiosity on both sides.

pun istinske znatiželje na obje strane.

How had the other come to such outrageous conclusions about the world?

Kako je onaj drugi došao do tako nečuvenih zaključaka o svijetu?

Sometimes the conversation even bled into real life.

Nekad bi se razgovor prebacio i u stvarni svijet.

People I'd sparred with on Twitter

Ljudi s kojima sam boksala na Twitteru

would come out to the picket line to see me

došli bi me vidjeti kraj ograde

kad sam prosvjedovala u njihovom gradu.

when I protested in their city.

A man named David was one such person.

David je bio takva osoba.

He ran a blog called "Jewlicious,"

Upravljao je blogom koji se zvao "Jewlicious"

and after several months of heated but friendly arguments online,

i nakon nekoliko mjeseci strastvenih, no prijateljskih online rasprava

he came out to see me at a picket in New Orleans.

došao me upoznati kraj ograde u New Orleansu.

He brought me a Middle Eastern dessert from Jerusalem, where he lives,

Donio mi je srednjoistočni desert iz Jeruzalema, gdje živi,

and I brought him kosher chocolate

a ja sam njemu donijela košer čokoladu

and held a "God hates Jews" sign.

i držala znak na kojem piše "Bog mrzi Židove."

(Laughter)

(Smijeh)

There was no confusion about our positions,

Nije bilo zabune o našim stajalištima,

but the line between friend and foe was becoming blurred.

no granica između prijatelja i neprijatelja postala je jako nejasna.

We'd started to see each other as human beings,

Vidjeli smo jedno drugoga kao ljude,

and it changed the way we spoke to one another.

a to je promijenilo način na koji smo razgovarali.

It took time,

Trebalo je vremena,

no ti su razgovori konačno u mene usadili sjeme sumnje.

but eventually these conversations planted seeds of doubt in me.

My friends on Twitter took the time to understand Westboro's doctrines,

Moji prijatelji na Twitteru pokušali su shvatiti Westborovsku doktrinu

and in doing so,

i radeći to

they were able to find inconsistencies I'd missed my entire life.

uspjeli su naći proturječja koja dotad nisam uočila.

Why did we advocate the death penalty for gays

Zašto smo podržavali smrtnu kaznu za gejeve

when Jesus said, "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone?"

kad je Isus rekao "Tko je od vas bez grijeha, neka baci prvi kamen?"

How could we claim to love our neighbor

Kako smo tvrdili da volimo svog susjeda,

while at the same time praying for God to destroy them?

dok smo se u isto vrijeme molili da će ga Bog uništiti?

The truth is that the care shown to me by these strangers on the internet

Istina je da je briga koju su mi ti neznanci na internetu pokazali

was itself a contradiction.

i sama bila proturječje.

It was growing evidence

Bila je dokaz

that people on the other side were not the demons I'd been led to believe.

da ljudi na drugoj strani nisu demoni kojim sam ih smatrala.

These realizations were life-altering.

Shvatiti to promijenilo mi je život.

Once I saw that we were not the ultimate arbiters of divine truth

Kad sam shvatila da nismo najviši suci božanske istine,

but flawed human beings,

nego ljudi s manama,

I couldn't pretend otherwise.

nisam se više mogla pretvarati.

I couldn't justify our actions --

Nisam mogla opravdati naša djela --

especially our cruel practice of protesting funerals

pogotovo naš okrutni običaj protestiranja na sprovodima

and celebrating human tragedy.

i slavljenja ljudske tragedije.

These shifts in my perspective

Te promjene moje perspektive

contributed to a larger erosion of trust in my church,

dovele su do veće erozije povjerenja u moju crkvu

and eventually it made it impossible for me to stay.

i na kraju zbog njih više nisam mogla ostati.

In spite of overwhelming grief and terror, I left Westboro in 2012.

Unatoč ogromnoj tuzi i strahu, napustila sam Westboro u 2012.

In those days just after I left,

Idućih par dana nakon mojeg odlaska

the instinct to hide was almost paralyzing.

instinkt da se sakrijem bio je paralizirajuć.

Željela sam se sakriti od osuđivanja svoje obitelji,

I wanted to hide from the judgement of my family,

who I knew would never speak to me again --

znala sam da više nikad neće pričati sa mnom --

people whose thoughts and opinions had meant everything to me.

ljudi čije su mi misli i mišljenja najviše značila.

And I wanted to hide from the world I'd rejected for so long --

I željela sam se sakriti od svijeta kojeg sam tako dugo odbacivala --

people who had no reason at all to give me a second chance

ljudi koji nisu imali nijedan razlog da mi daju drugu šansu

after a lifetime of antagonism.

nakon cjeloživotnog antagonizma.

And yet, unbelievably,

A ipak, nevjerojatno,

they did.

jesu.

The world had access to my past because it was all over the internet --

Svijet je imao pristup mojoj prošlosti jer je bila posvuda na internetu --

thousands of tweets and hundreds of interviews,

tisuće tweetova i stotine intervjua,

everything from local TV news to "The Howard Stern Show" --

sve od lokalnih vijesti do "The Howard Stern Show-a" --

but so many embraced me with open arms anyway.

no toliko me ljudi svejedno primilo otvorenih ruku.

I wrote an apology for the harm I'd caused,

Napisala sam ispriku za svo zlo koje sam načinila,

but I also knew that an apology could never undo any of it.

no znala sam da isprika to nikada neće moći poništiti.

All I could do was try to build a new life

Mogla sam samo probati izgraditi nov život

and find a way somehow to repair some of the damage.

i naći način da popravim dio štete.

People had every reason to doubt my sincerity,

Ljudi su imali stotinu razloga sumnjati u iskrenost,

but most of them didn't.

no većina njih nije.

And --

Te --

given my history,

uzevši u obzir moju povijest,

it was more than I could've hoped for --

nisam se ni mogla nadati nečem većem --

forgiveness and the benefit of the doubt.

opraštanje i ne donošenje preuranjenih zaključaka.

It still amazes me.

Još uvijek me zadivljuje.

I spent my first year away from home

Prvu godinu izvan kuće provela sam

adrift with my younger sister,

bez nekakvog odredišta s mlađom sestrom

who had chosen to leave with me.

koja je odlučila otići sa mnom.

We walked into an abyss,

Uhodale smo u bezdan,

but we were shocked to find the light and a way forward

no iznenadile smo se jer smo našle svjetlo i put naprijed

in the same communities we'd targeted for so long.

u istim zajednicama koje su nam tako dugo bile mete.

David,

David,

my "Jewlicious" friend from Twitter,

moj "Jewlicious" prijatelj s Twittera,

invited us to spend time among a Jewish community in Los Angeles.

pozvao nas je da odsjednemo u Židovskoj zajednici u Los Angelesu.

We slept on couches in the home of a Hasidic rabbi and his wife

Spavali smo na kaučima u kući hasidskog rabina, njegove žene,

and their four kids --

i njihovih četvero djece --

the same rabbi that I'd protested three years earlier

rabina protiv kojeg sam prosvjedovala tri godine ranije

with a sign that said, "Your rabbi is a whore."

sa znakom "Tvoj rabin je kurva."

We spent long hours talking about theology and Judaism and life

Satima smo razgovarali o teologiji, Židovstvu i životu

while we washed dishes in their kosher kitchen

dok smo prali suđe u njihovoj košer kuhinji

and chopped vegetables for dinner.

i sjeckali povrće za večeru.

They treated us like family.

Ponašali su se prema nama kao prema obitelji.

They held nothing against us,

Ništa nam nisu zamjerali,

and again I was astonished.

i iznova me to zapanjilo.

That period was full of turmoil,

To je razdoblje bilo puno nemira,

but one part I've returned to often

no često se vraćam

is a surprising realization I had during that time --

iznenađujućem saznanju koje sam tada imala --

that it was a relief and a privilege to let go of the harsh judgments

bilo je olakšanje i privilegija napustiti okrutne osude

that instinctively ran through my mind about nearly every person I saw.

koje su instinktivno prolazile mojim umom o svakoj osobi koju sam vidjela.

I realized that now I needed to learn.

Shvatila sam da trebam učiti.

I needed to listen.

Trebam slušati.

This has been at the front of my mind lately,

U zadnje vrijeme to često imam na umu,

because I can't help but see in our public discourse

jer ne mogu ne vidjeti u javnim raspravama

so many of the same destructive impulses that ruled my former church.

iste destruktivne impulse koji su vladali mojom crkvom.

We celebrate tolerance and diversity more than at any other time in memory,

Slavimo toleranciju i raznolikost više nego ikad,

and still we grow more and more divided.

a ipak smo sve više međusobno podijeljeni.

We want good things --

Želimo dobre stvari --

justice, equality, freedom, dignity, prosperity --

pravdu, jednakost, slobodu, dostojanstvo, prosperitet --

but the path we've chosen

no put koji smo izabrali

looks so much like the one I walked away from four years ago.

jako je sličan onom koji sam napustila prije četiri godine.

We've broken the world into us and them,

Razdvojili smo svijet na nas i njih,

only emerging from our bunkers long enough

iz svojih bunkera izlazimo tek

to lob rhetorical grenades at the other camp.

da prebacimo retoričke granate na drugi logor.

We write off half the country as out-of-touch liberal elites

Otpisujemo pola zemlje kao zastarjele liberalne elite

or racist misogynist bullies.

ili rasističke nasilnike, mrzitelje žena.

No nuance, no complexity, no humanity.

Bez razlike, bez složenosti, bez ljudskosti.

Even when someone does call for empathy and understanding for the other side,

Čak i kad netko zatraži empatiju i razumijevanje za drugu stranu,

the conversation nearly always devolves

razgovor je gotovo uvijek doveden

into a debate about who deserves more empathy.

do debate o tome tko zaslužuje više empatije.

And just as I learned to do,

Baš kao što sam i ja naučila,

we routinely refuse to acknowledge the flaws in our positions

rutinski odbijamo priznati mane u našim stajalištima

or the merits in our opponent's.

ili vrijednosti u istima naših protivnika.

Compromise is anathema.

Kompromis je anatema.

We even target people on our own side when they dare to question the party line.

Napadamo i ljude na našoj strani kad se usude sumnjati u stranku.

This path has brought us cruel, sniping, deepening polarization,

Ovaj nam je put donio okrutnu, produbljujuću polarizaciju,

and even outbreaks of violence.

čak i izljeve nasilja.

I remember this path.

Sjećam se tog puta.

It will not take us where we want to go.

Neće nas dovesti ondje gdje želimo ići.

What gives me hope is that we can do something about this.

Daje mi nadu što možemo nešto napraviti u vezi toga.

The good news is that it's simple,

Dobra je vijest da je jednostavno,

and the bad news is that it's hard.

a loša je vijest da je teško.

We have to talk and listen to people we disagree with.

Moramo pričati i slušati ljude s kojima se ne slažemo.

It's hard because we often can't fathom

Teško je jer često ne možemo shvatiti

how the other side came to their positions.

kako je druga strana došla do svojih stajališta.

It's hard because righteous indignation,

Teško je, jer pravedni gnjev,

that sense of certainty that ours is the right side,

osjećaj sigurnosti da je naša prava strana,

is so seductive.

zna biti iznimno zavodljiv.

It's hard because it means extending empathy and compassion

Teško je jer znači produžiti empatiju i samilost

to people who show us hostility and contempt.

na ljude koji nam pokazuju prezir i neljubaznost.

The impulse to respond in kind is so tempting,

Impuls da im uzvratimo primamljiv je,

but that isn't who we want to be.

ali ne želimo biti takvi.

We can resist.

Možemo se oduprijeti.

And I will always be inspired to do so by those people I encountered on Twitter,

Uvijek ću biti nadahnuta za odupiranje, zbog ljudi na koje sam naišla na Twitteru,

apparent enemies who became my beloved friends.

očitih neprijatelja koji su postali moji dragi prijatelji.

And in the case of one particularly understanding and generous guy,

Isti je slučaj s jednim osobito suosjećajnim i darežljivim dečkom,

my husband.

mojim mužem.

There was nothing special about the way I responded to him.

Ništa nije bilo posebno u odgovoru koji sam mu napisala.

What was special was their approach.

Poseban je bio njihov pristup.

I thought about it a lot over the past few years

Puno sam o tome razmišljala zadnjih par godina

and I found four things they did differently

i našla sam četiri stvari koje su drukčije napravili

that made real conversation possible.

zbog kojih je pravi razgovor postao moguć.

These four steps were small but powerful,

Ta četiri koraka mala su, ali moćna,

and I do everything I can to employ them in difficult conversations today.

i radim sve što mogu kako bih ih upotrijebila u teškim razgovorima.

The first is don't assume bad intent.

Prvi je ne pretpostavljati lošu namjeru.

My friends on Twitter realized

Moji prijatelji na Twitteru shvatili su

that even when my words were aggressive and offensive,

da, čak i ako su moje riječi bile agresivne i uvredljive,

I sincerely believed I was doing the right thing.

iskreno sam vjerovala da radim pravu stvar.

Assuming ill motives almost instantly cuts us off

Pretpostaviti zao motiv odmah nam ne dopušta

from truly understanding why someone does and believes as they do.

da stvarno shvatimo zašto osoba radi i vjeruje u nešto.

We forget that they're a human being

Zaboravimo da je to čovjek

with a lifetime of experience that shaped their mind,

sa životnim iskustvima koja su oblikovala njegov um,

and we get stuck on that first wave of anger,

a mi zaglavimo na prvom valu ljutnje,

and the conversation has a very hard time ever moving beyond it.

tako da razgovor ima male šanse za nastavak.

But when we assume good or neutral intent,

No kad pretpostavimo dobru ili neutralnu namjeru,

we give our minds a much stronger framework for dialogue.

svojim umovima dajemo puno jači okvir za dijalog.

The second is ask questions.

Drugi je postavljanje pitanja.

When we engage people across ideological divides,

Kad angažiramo ljude duž ideoloških podjela,

asking questions helps us map the disconnect

postavljanje pitanja pomaže nam naći

between our differing points of view.

gdje se naša stajališta razilaze.

That's important because we can't present effective arguments

To je bitno jer ne možemo dati efikasne argumente

if we don't understand where the other side is actually coming from

ako ne razumijemo otkud druga strana dolazi

and because it gives them an opportunity to point out flaws in our positions.

i jer im daje priliku istaknuti mane u našim stajalištima.

But asking questions serves another purpose;

No postavljanje pitanja ima i drugu svrhu;

it signals to someone that they're being heard.

pokazuje nekome da ih čujemo.

When my friends on Twitter stopped accusing

Kad su moji prijatelji sa Twittera prestali okrivljavati

and started asking questions,

i počeli postavljati pitanja,

I almost automatically mirrored them.

gotovo sam automatski počela raditi istu stvar.

Their questions gave me room to speak,

Zbog njihovih sam pitanja imala gdje pričati,

but they also gave me permission to ask them questions

no tako su mi dali dopuštenje da njima postavljam pitanja

and to truly hear their responses.

i da stvarno čujem njihove odgovore.

It fundamentally changed the dynamic of our conversation.

Istinski je promijenilo dinamiku našeg razgovora.

The third is stay calm.

Treći je korak ostati miran.

This takes practice and patience,

Za to je potrebna vježba i strpljenje,

but it's powerful.

no moćno je.

At Westboro, I learned not to care how my manner of speaking affected others.

U Westboru sam naučila ne brinuti o utjecaju mog načina govorenja na druge.

I thought my rightness justified my rudeness --

Mislila sam da to što sam u pravu opravdava moju nepristojnost --

harsh tones, raised voices, insults, interruptions --

grubi tonovi, povišeni glasovi, uvrede, prekidi --

but that strategy is ultimately counterproductive.

ta strategija nije pretjerano produktivna.

Dialing up the volume and the snark is natural in stressful situations,

Pojačati glasnoću i sarkazam prirodno je u stresnim situacijama,

but it tends to bring the conversation to an unsatisfactory, explosive end.

ali često vodi razgovor prema razočaravajućem, eksplozivnom kraju.

When my husband was still just an anonymous Twitter acquaintance,

Dok je moj muž još bio tek anoniman poznanik sa Twittera,

our discussions frequently became hard and pointed,

naše su rasprave često postajale teške i prodorne,

but we always refused to escalate.

no odbijali smo eskalirati.

Instead, he would change the subject.

Umjesto toga, promijenio bi temu.

He would tell a joke or recommend a book

Ispričao bi vic ili preporučio knjigu

or gently excuse himself from the conversation.

ili se nježno odmaknuo od razgovora.

We knew the discussion wasn't over,

Znali smo da rasprava nije gotova,

just paused for a time to bring us back to an even keel.

samo smo ju pauzirali kako bi se vratili na istu razinu.

People often lament that digital communication makes us less civil,

Ljudi se često žale da nas digitalna komunikacija čini manje civilnima,

but this is one advantage that online conversations have over in-person ones.

no ovo je prednost koju online razgovori imaju pred onima vođenima uživo.

We have a buffer of time and space

Imamo štit vremena i prostora

between us and the people whose ideas we find so frustrating.

između nas i ljudi čije ideje smatramo frustrirajućima.

We can use that buffer.

Možemo iskoristiti taj štit.

Instead of lashing out, we can pause, breathe,

Umjesto napada, možemo se zaustaviti, disati,

change the subject or walk away,

promijeniti temu ili otići,

and then come back to it when we're ready.

pa se vratiti kad smo spremni.

And finally ...

I napokon ...

make the argument.

napravi argument.

This might seem obvious,

Možda se čini očito,

but one side effect of having strong beliefs

ali nuspojava jakih uvjerenja je

is that we sometimes assume

da nekad pretpostavimo

that the value of our position is or should be obvious and self-evident,

kako je, vrijednost našeg stajališta očita ili bi trebala biti,

that we shouldn't have to defend our positions

da ne trebamo braniti svoja stajališta

because they're so clearly right and good

jer su očigledno toliko ispravna i dobra

that if someone doesn't get it, it's their problem --

da je to problem onoga koji to ne shvaća --

that it's not my job to educate them.

nije moj posao educirati ga.

But if it were that simple,

Da je sve tako jednostavno,

we would all see things the same way.

vidjeli bismo stvari na isti način.

As kind as my friends on Twitter were,

Koliko su god moji prijatelji s Twittera dragi,

if they hadn't actually made their arguments,

da na kraju nisu izrekli svoje argumente,

it would've been so much harder for me to see the world in a different way.

bilo bi mi puno teže vidjeti svijet na različit način.

We are all a product of our upbringing,

Svi smo mi proizvod našeg odgoja,

and our beliefs reflect our experiences.

i naše vjere odražavaju naša iskustva.

We can't expect others to spontaneously change their own minds.

Ne možemo očekivati od drugih da spontano promijene mišljenje.

If we want change,

Želimo li promjenu,

we have to make the case for it.

moramo imati i razloge.

My friends on Twitter didn't abandon their beliefs or their principles --

Moji prijatelji s Twittera nisu napustili svoja vjerovanja i principe --

only their scorn.

samo svoj prezir.

They channeled their infinitely justifiable offense

Usmjerili su svoj opravdan napad

and came to me with pointed questions tempered with kindness and humor.

i došli k meni s britkim pitanjima ublaženim ljubaznošću i humorom.

They approached me as a human being,

Prišli su mi kao ljudskom biću,

and that was more transformative

i to je više promijenilo moj život

than two full decades of outrage, disdain and violence.

nego cijela dva desetljeća bijesa, prezira i nasilja.

I know that some might not have the time or the energy or the patience

Znam da neki možda nemaju vrijeme, energiju ili strpljenje

for extensive engagement,

za ovako opsežno sudjelovanje,

but as difficult as it can be,

no koliko god teško bilo,

reaching out to someone we disagree with

doprijeti do nekoga s kim se ne slažemo

is an option that is available to all of us.

opcija je dostupna svima nama.

And I sincerely believe that we can do hard things,

Iskreno vjerujem da možemo učiniti teške stvari,

not just for them but for us and our future.

ne samo za njih, već i za nas i našu budućnost.

Escalating disgust and intractable conflict

Rastuće gađenje i tvrdoglavi sukobi

are not what we want for ourselves,

nisu nešto što želimo sebi,

or our country

ili svojoj državi

or our next generation.

ili idućoj generaciji.

My mom said something to me a few weeks before I left Westboro,

Mama mi je rekla nešto par tjedana prije no što sam napustila Westboro,

when I was desperately hoping

kad sam se očajnički nadala

there was a way I could stay with my family.

kako postoji način da ostanem s obitelji.

People I have loved with every pulse of my heart

S ljudima koje sam voljela svakim otkucajem srca

since even before I was that chubby-cheeked five-year-old,

još i prije no što sam bila petogodišnjakinja bucmastih obraza,

standing on a picket line holding a sign I couldn't read.

koja stoji pokraj ograde i drži znak koji ne može pročitati.

She said, "You're just a human being,

Rekla je, "Samo si čovjek,

my dear, sweet child."

moje drago, slatko dijete."

She was asking me to be humble --

Tražila je od mene da budem skromna --

not to question but to trust God and my elders.

ne preispitujem, nego vjerujem u Boga i starije od sebe.

But to me, she was missing the bigger picture --

Vjerovala sam da ona ne vidi veću sliku --

that we're all just human beings.

i oni su samo ljudi.

That we should be guided by that most basic fact,

Trebala bi nas voditi samo ta osnovna činjenica

and approach one another with generosity and compassion.

i trebali bismo prilaziti jedni drugima s darežljivošću i suosjećanjem.

Each one of us contributes to the communities

Svatko od nas pridonosi zajednicama,

and the cultures and the societies that we make up.

kulturama i društvima koje činimo.

The end of this spiral of rage and blame begins with one person

Kraj ovog vrtloga bijesa i krivnje počinje s jednom osobom

who refuses to indulge these destructive, seductive impulses.

koja odbija prepustiti se tim destruktivnim, zavodljivim impulsima.

We just have to decide that it's going to start with us.

Mi samo trebamo odlučiti da će početi s nama.

Thank you.

Hvala vam.

(Pljesak)

(Applause)