Brittney Cooper: The racial politics of time | TED

Prevodilac: Ivana Krivokuća Lektor: Tijana Mihajlović

What if I told you that time has a race,

Šta ako bih vam rekla da vreme ima rasu,

a race in the contemporary way that we understand race

rasu u savremenom smislu našeg razumevanja rase

in the United States?

u Sjedinjenim Državama?

Typically, we talk about race in terms of black and white issues.

Obično govorimo o rasi u vezi sa problemima crnaca i belaca.

In the African-American communities from which I come,

U afroameričkim zajednicama iz kojih ja potičem,

we have a long-standing multi-generational joke

imamo dugoprisutnu višegeneracijsku šalu

about what we call "CP time,"

o onome što nazivamo „vreme za OLj“

or "colored people's time."

ili „vreme za obojene ljude“.

Now, we no longer refer to African-Americans as "colored,"

Više ne govorimo o Afroamerikancima kao „obojenima“,

but this long-standing joke

ali ova stara šala

about our perpetual lateness to church,

o našem stalnom kašnjenju u crkvu,

to cookouts, to family events

na izlete, na porodična dešavanja,

and even to our own funerals, remains.

pa čak i na sopstvenu sahranu, nastavlja da traje.

I personally am a stickler for time.

Lično sam cepidlaka za vreme.

It's almost as if my mother, when I was growing up, said,

Kao da je moja majka rekla dok sam odrastala:

"We will not be those black people."

„Nećemo biti takvi crnci.“

So we typically arrive to events 30 minutes early.

Tako da obično stižemo na događaje 30 minuta ranije.

But today, I want to talk to you more about the political nature of time,

Ali danas želim da vam govorim više o političkoj prirodi vremena,

for if time had a race,

jer kada bi vreme imalo rasu,

it would be white.

ona bi bila bela.

White people own time.

Belci poseduju vreme.

I know, I know.

Znam, znam.

Making such "incendiary statements" makes us uncomfortable:

Usled iznošenja takvih „zapaljivih izjava“ osećamo se neprijatno.

Haven't we moved past the point where race really matters?

Zar nismo prevazišli tu tačku u kojoj je rasa stvarno bitna?

Isn't race a heavy-handed concept?

Zar rasa nije grub koncept?

Shouldn't we go ahead with our enlightened, progressive selves

Zar ne treba da krenemo napred sa svojom prosvetljenošću i progresivnoću

and relegate useless concepts like race to the dustbins of history?

i odstranimo beskorisne koncepte poput rase na smetlište istorije?

How will we ever get over racism if we keep on talking about race?

Kako ćemo ikada prebroditi rasizam ako nastavimo da govorimo o rasi?

Perhaps we should lock up our concepts of race in a time capsule,

Možda bi trebalo da zaključamo svoje koncepte rase u vremensku kapsulu,

bury them and dig them up in a thousand years,

zakopamo ih i iskopamo za hiljadu godina,

peer at them with the clearly more enlightened,

sagledavajući ih uz jasno prosvetljeniju,

raceless versions of ourselves that belong to the future.

bezrasnu verziju nas samih koja pripada budućnosti.

But you see there,

Međutim, vidite,

that desire to mitigate the impact of race and racism shows up

ta želja da ublažimo uticaj rase i rasizma

prikazuje se u načinu na koji pokušavamo da upravljamo vremenom,

in how we attempt to manage time,

in the ways we narrate history,

u načinu na koji pričamo istoriju,

in the ways we attempt to shove the negative truths of the present

u načinima na koje pokušavamo

da gurnemo negativne istine o sadašnjosti u prošlost,

into the past,

u načinima na koje pokušavamo da tvrdimo da je budućnost kojoj se nadamo

in the ways we attempt to argue that the future that we hope for

is the present in which we're currently living.

sadašnjost u kojoj trenutno živimo.

Now, when Barack Obama became President of the US in 2008,

Kada je Barak Obama postao predsednik SAD 2008. godine,

many Americans declared that we were post-racial.

mnogi Amerikanci su izjavili da smo „postrasni“.

I'm from the academy

Ja sam sa akademije

where we're enamored with being post-everything.

gde smo oduševljeni time da smo „post“ svega.

We're postmodern, we're post-structural, we're post-feminist.

Postmoderni smo, poststrukturalni, postfeministički.

"Post" has become a simple academic appendage

„Post“ je postao jednostavan akademski dodatak

that we apply to a range of terms

koji primenjujemo na niz termina

to mark the way we were.

da bismo naznačili kakvi smo bili.

But prefixes alone don't have the power to make race and racism

Ipak, prefiksi sami po sebi nemaju moć

da učine rasu i rasizam stvarima prošlosti.

a thing of the past.

SAD nikada nisu bile „prerasne“.

The US was never "pre-race."

So to claim that we're post-race when we have yet to grapple with the impact

Dakle, tvrdnja da smo postrasni,

kada tek treba da se borimo sa uticajem rase na crnce,

of race on black people, Latinos or the indigenous

Latinoamerikance i urođeničke narode

is disingenuous.

je neiskrena.

Just about the moment we were preparing to celebrate

Baš u trenutku kada smo se spremali

da proslavimo svoju postrasnu budućnost,

our post-racial future,

our political conditions became the most racial they've been

naši politički uslovi su postali rasni najviše što su bili u proteklih 50 godina.

in the last 50 years.

So today, I want to offer to you three observations,

Danas želim da vam iznesem tri zapažanja

about the past, the present and the future of time,

o prošlosti, sadašnjosti i budućnosti vremena,

as it relates to the combating of racism and white dominance.

što se tiče borbe protiv rasizma i dominacije bele rase.

First: the past.

Prvo, prošlost.

Time has a history,

Vreme ima istoriju,

and so do black people.

kao i crnci.

But we treat time as though it is timeless,

Ali mi se ophodimo prema vremenu kao da je neograničeno,

as though it has always been this way,

kao da je uvek bilo ovako,

as though it doesn't have a political history

kao da nema političku istoriju

bound up with the plunder of indigenous lands,

vezanu za pljačku zemlje starosedelaca,

genocid domaćih naroda

the genocide of indigenous people

and the stealing of Africans from their homeland.

i krađu Afrikanaca iz svoje domovine.

When white male European philosophers

Kada su beli evropski filozofi muškog roda prvi put pomislili

first thought to conceptualize time and history, one famously declared,

da osmisle vreme i istoriju, poznato je da je jedan izjavio:

"[Africa] is no historical part of the World."

„Afrika nije istorijski deo sveta.“

He was essentially saying

U suštini je govorio da su Afrikanci ljudi izvan istorije

that Africans were people outside of history

who had had no impact on time

koji nisu imali uticaj na vreme

or the march of progress.

niti ubrzano kretanje napretka.

This idea, that black people have had no impact on history,

Ova ideja da ljudi crne rase nisu imali nikakav uticaj na istoriju

is one of the foundational ideas of white supremacy.

jedna je od temeljnih ideja za uverenje o superiornosti bele rase.

It's the reason that Carter G. Woodson created "Negro History Week" in 1926.

Razlog je tome što je Karter G. Vudson 1926. stvorio „nedelju crnačke istorije“.

It's the reason that we continue to celebrate Black History Month

Razlog je tome što nastavljamo da slavimo mesec crnačke istorije

in the US every February.

u SAD svakog februara.

Now, we also see this idea

Takođe vidimo ideju da su crnci narod

that black people are people either alternately outside of the bounds of time

koji je naizmenično ili izvan granica vremena

or stuck in the past,

ili zarobljen u prošlosti,

in a scenario where, much as I'm doing right now,

u scenariju u kome, kao što ja radim sada,

a black person stands up and insists that racism still matters,

osoba crne rase ustane i insistira da je rasizam i dalje bitan,

and a person, usually white,

a neka osoba, obično bele rase,

says to them,

joj kaže: „Zašto si zatočen u prošlosti?

"Why are you stuck in the past?

Why can't you move on?

Zašto ne možeš da nastaviš?

We have a black president.

Imamo crnog predsednika.

We're past all that."

Prevazišli smo sve to.“

William Faulkner famously said,

Poznato je da je Vilijem Fokner rekao:

"The past is never dead.

„Prošlost nikada nije mrtva.

It's not even past."

Nije čak nikada ni prošla.“

But my good friend Professor Kristie Dotson says,

Ali moja dobra prijateljica profesorka Kristi Dotson kaže:

"Our memory is longer than our lifespan."

„Naše pamćenje traje duže od našeg životnog veka.“

We carry, all of us,

Svi mi nosimo nade i snove porodice i zajednice sa sobom.

family and communal hopes and dreams with us.

We don't have the luxury of letting go of the past.

Nemamo taj luksuz da oslobodimo prošlost.

But sometimes,

Međutim, ponekad,

our political conditions are so troubling

naša politička situacija toliko zabrinjava

that we don't know if we're living in the past

da ne znamo da li živimo u prošlosti ili sadašnjosti.

or we're living in the present.

Uzmite, na primer, kada demonstranti pokreta „Životi crnaca su važni“

Take, for instance, when Black Lives Matter protesters

go out to protest unjust killings of black citizens by police,

izađu da protestuju protiv nepravednih ubistava

crnih građana od strane policije,

and the pictures that emerge from the protest

a slike koje se pojave sa protesta

look like they could have been taken 50 years ago.

izgledaju kao da su mogle biti uslikane pre 50 godina.

The past won't let us go.

Prošlost neće da nas pusti.

But still, let us press our way into the present.

Ipak, hajde da se probijemo u sadašnjost.

At present, I would argue

U sadašnjosti, rekla bih

that the racial struggles we are experiencing

da rasne borbe koje doživljavamo

are clashes over time and space.

predstavljaju sukobe nad vremenom i prostorom.

What do I mean?

Kako to mislim?

Well, I've already told you that white people own time.

Pa, već sam vam rekla da belci poseduju vreme.

Those in power dictate the pace of the workday.

Oni koji su na snazi diktiraju dinamiku radnog dana.

They dictate how much money our time is actually worth.

Diktiraju koliko novca naše vreme zapravo zavređuje.

And Professor George Lipsitz argues

Profesor Džordž Lipstic smatra

that white people even dictate the pace of social inclusion.

da belci diktiraju čak i dinamiku društvene inkluzije.

They dictate how long it will actually take

Diktiraju koliko dugo će zapravo potrajati

for minority groups to receive the rights that they have been fighting for.

da bi manjinske grupe dobile prava za koja su se borile.

Let me loop back to the past quickly to give you an example.

Dopustite da ponovo zaronim u prošlost na brzinu da bih vam dala primer.

If you think about the Civil Rights Movement

Ako pomislite na pokret za građanska prava

and the cries of its leaders for "Freedom Now,"

i vapaje njegovih predvodnika za „slobodu sada“,

they were challenging the slow pace of white social inclusion.

oni su se suprotstavili sporosti bele društvene inkluzije.

By 1965, the year the Voting Rights Act was passed,

Do 1965. godine, kada je donet Zakon o pravu glasa,

there had been a full 100 years

prošlo je punih 100 godina

between the end of the Civil War

između okončanja građanskog rata

and the conferral of voting rights on African-American communities.

i dodeljivanja prava na glasanje afroameričkim zajednicama.

Despite the urgency of a war,

Uprkos hitnosti rata,

it still took a full 100 years for actual social inclusion to occur.

ipak je bilo potrebno čitavih 100 godina da se zaista dogodi društvena inkluzija.

Since 2012,

Od 2012. godine,

conservative state legislatures across the US have ramped up attempts

konzervativna državna zakonodavna tela širom SAD pojačala su nastojanja

to roll back African-American voting rights

da unazade afroamerička prava na glasanje

by passing restrictive voter ID laws

donošenjem restriktivnih zakona o glasačkoj identifikaciji

and curtailing early voting opportunities.

i ograničavanjem mogućnosti ranog glasanja.

This past July, a federal court struck down North Carolina's voter ID law

Prošlog jula je savezni sud poništio zakon o identifikaciji glasača Severne Karoline

saying it "... targeted African-Americans with surgical precision."

navodeći da je „hirurški precizno bio usmeren na Afroamerikance“.

Restricting African-American inclusion in the body politic

Ograničavanje inkluzije Afroamerikanaca u političkom telu

is a primary way that we attempt to manage and control people

je primarni način na koji pokušavamo da upravljamo ljudima i kontrolišemo ih

by managing and controlling time.

time što vršimo upravljanje i kontrolisanje vremena.

But another place that we see these time-space clashes

Još jedno mesto na kome vidimo ove sukobe vremena i prostora

is in gentrifying cities like Atlanta, Brooklyn,

je u gradovima ubrzanog razvoja

kao što su Atlanta, Bruklin, Filadelfija, Nju Orleans i Vašington -

Philadelphia, New Orleans and Washington, DC --

places that have had black populations for generations.

mestima koje su generacijama imale crnačko stanovništvo.

But now, in the name of urban renewal and progress,

Međutim, sada, u ime urbane obnove i napretka,

these communities are pushed out,

te zajednice su istisnute,

in service of bringing them into the 21st century.

zarad uvođenja u 21. vek.

Professor Sharon Holland asked:

Profesorka Šeron Holand je postavila pitanje

What happens when a person who exists in time

šta se dešava kada osoba koja postoji u vremenu

meets someone who only occupies space?

sretne nekog ko samo zauzima prostor?

These racial struggles

Ove rasne borbe

are battles over those who are perceived to be space-takers

su bitke između onih na koje se gleda kao na zauzimače prostora

and those who are perceived to be world-makers.

i onih koji se doživljavaju kao stvaraoci u svetu.

Those who control the flow and thrust of history

Oni koji kontrolišu proticanje i pritisak istorije

are considered world-makers who own and master time.

smatraju se stvaraocima u svetu koji poseduju vreme i vladaju njime.

In other words: white people.

Drugim rečima, belci.

But when Hegel famously said that Africa was no historical part of the world,

Kada je Hegel izneo poznatu izjavu da Afrika nije istorijski deo sveta,

he implied that it was merely a voluminous land mass

podrazumevao je da predstavlja samo obimnu masu zemlje

taking up space at the bottom of the globe.

koja zauzima prostor na dnu Zemljine kugle.

Africans were space-takers.

Afrikanci su zauzimali prostor.

So today, white people continue to control the flow and thrust of history,

Danas belci nastavljaju da kontrolišu proticanje i pritisak istorije,

while too often treating black people as though we are merely taking up space

pri čemu prečesto tretiraju crnce kao da samo zauzimamo prostor

to which we are not entitled.

na koji nemamo pravo.

Time and the march of progress is used to justify

Vreme i stupanje napretka se koristi da bi se opravdao

a stunning degree of violence towards our most vulnerable populations,

zapanjujući stepen nasilja prema našem najugroženijem stanovništvu,

who, being perceived as space-takers rather than world-makers,

koje, pošto se sagledava kao da zauzima prostor

umesto kao da su to stvaraoci u svetu,

are moved out of the places where they live,

premešta se iz mesta u kojima živi,

in service of bringing them into the 21st century.

kako bi se uvelo u 21. vek.

Shortened life span according to zip code is just one example of the ways

Skraćeni životni vek s obzirom na poštanski broj

je samo jedan primer kako se vreme i prostor povezuju

that time and space cohere in an unjust manner

na nepravedan način u životu crnaca.

in the lives of black people.

Children who are born in New Orleans zip code 70124,

Deca koja su rođena u Nju Orleansu, na poštanskom broju 70124,

which is 93 percent white,

gde su 93 procenta belci,

can expect to live a full 25 years longer

mogu očekivati da žive čitavih 25 godina duže

than children born in New Orleans zip code 70112,

od dece koja su rođena na poštanskom broju 70112 u Nju Orleansu,

which is 60 percent black.

gde su 60 posto crnci.

Children born in Washington, DC's wealthy Maryland suburbs

Deca rođena u Vašingtonu, u bogatim predgrađima Merilenda,

can expect to live a full 20 years longer

mogu očekivati čitavih 20 godina duži život

than children born in its downtown neighborhoods.

od dece rođene u naseljima u centru grada.

Ta-Nehisi Coates argues

Tanahasi Kouts smatra

that, "The defining feature of being drafted into the Black race

da „karakteristika koja određuje izdvojenost u crnu rasu

is the inescapable robbery of time."

je neizbežna pljačka vremena.“

We experience time discrimination,

Doživljavamo vremensku diskriminaciju,

he tells us,

poručuje on,

not just as structural,

ne samo kao strukturalnu,

but as personal:

već kao ličnu,

in lost moments of joy,

kroz izgubljene trenutke radosti,

lost moments of connection,

izgubljene trenutke povezanosti,

lost quality of time with loved ones

izgubljen kvalitet vremena sa voljenim osobama

and lost years of healthy quality of life.

i izgubljene godine zdravog kvaliteta života.

In the future, do you see black people?

Da li vidite crnce u budućnosti?

Do black people have a future?

Da li crnci imaju budućnost?

What if you belong to the very race of people

Šta ako pripadate upravo rasi ljudi

who have always been pitted against time?

koja je uvek bila sučeljena sa vremenom?

What if your group is the group for whom a future was never imagined?

Šta ako je vaša grupa ona za koju budućnost

nikada nije bila predviđena?

These time-space clashes --

Ovi sukobi prostora i vremena -

between protesters and police,

između demonstranata i policije,

between gentrifiers and residents --

između bogatih doseljenika i meštana -

don't paint a very pretty picture

ne daje naročito lepu sliku

of what America hopes for black people's future.

o nadama Amerike za budućnost crnaca.

If the present is any indicator,

Ako je sadašnjost neki pokazatelj,

our children will be under-educated,

naša deca će biti nedovoljno obrazovana,

health maladies will take their toll

zdravstveni problemi će uzeti svoj danak,

and housing will continue to be unaffordable.

a stambeni prostori će nastaviti da budu finansijski nepristupačni.

So if we're really ready to talk about the future,

Stoga, ako smo zaista spremni da razgovaramo o budućnosti,

perhaps we should begin by admitting that we're out of time.

možda bi trebalo da započnemo priznanjem da smo izvan vremena.

We black people have always been out of time.

Mi crnci smo uvek bili izvan vremena.

Time does not belong to us.

Vreme nam ne pripada.

Our lives are lives of perpetual urgency.

Naš je život večite hitnosti.

Time is used to displace us,

Vreme je korišćeno da nas razmeste,

or conversely, we are urged into complacency

ili obrnuto, podstaknuti smo na samoprihvatanje

through endless calls to just be patient.

kroz beskrajne pozive samo da budemo strpljivi.

But if past is prologue,

No, ako je prošlost prolog,

let us seize upon the ways in which we're always out of time anyway

hajde da iskoristimo načine na koje smo ionako uvek van vremena

to demand with urgency

da hitno zahtevamo slobodu sada.

freedom now.

I believe the future is what we make it.

Verujem da je budućnost onakva kakvom je stvorimo.

But first, we have to decide that time belongs to all of us.

Ali najpre moramo da odlučimo da vreme pripada svima nama.

No, we don't all get equal time,

Ne, ne dobijamo svi podjednako vreme,

but we can decide that the time we do get is just and free.

ali možemo da rešimo da vreme koje dobijemo

bude pravedno i slobodno.

We can stop making your zip code the primary determinant

Možemo da zaustavimo pretvaranje poštanskog broja

u glavnu odrednicu dužine životnog veka.

of your lifespan.

We can stop stealing learning time from black children

Možemo da zaustavimo krađu vremena za učenje od crnačke dece

through excessive use of suspensions and expulsions.

kroz preterano korišćenje suspendovanja i isključivanja.

We can stop stealing time from black people

Možemo da zaustavimo krađu vremena od crnaca

through long periods of incarceration for nonviolent crimes.

kroz duge periode smeštanja u zatvor zbog nenasilnih krivičnih dela.

The police can stop stealing time and black lives

Policija može da prestane da krade vreme i živote crnaca

through use of excessive force.

kroz preterano korišćenje sile.

I believe the future is what we make it.

Verujem da je budućnost onakva kakvom je stvorimo.

But we can't get there on colored people's time

Ali tamo ne možemo stići u vreme obojenih ljudi,

or white time

niti vreme belaca,

or your time

niti vaše vreme,

pa čak ni moje vreme.

or even my time.

It's our time.

To je naše vreme.

Ours.

Naše.

Thank you.

Hvala.

(Applause)

(Aplauz)