Verna Myers: How to overcome our biases? Walk boldly toward them

Prevodilac: Miloš Milosavljević Lektor: Mile Živković

I was on a long road trip this summer,

Bila sam na dugom putovanju ovog leta

and I was having a wonderful time listening

i divno sam se provela slušajući

to the amazing Isabel Wilkerson's "The Warmth of Other Suns."

"Toplotu drugih sunaca" neverovatne Izabel Vilkerson.

It documents six million black folks fleeing the South from 1915 to 1970

Ona dokumentuje 6 miliona crnih ljudi koji su pobegli sa juga od 1915. do 1970.

looking for a respite from all the brutality

u potrazi za predahom od sve te butalnosti

and trying to get to a better opportunity up North,

i u pokušaju da dobiju bolju priliku na severu.

and it was filled with stories of the resilience and the brilliance

Ispunjena je pričama o žilavosti i briljantnosti

of African-Americans,

Afroamerikanaca,

and it was also really hard to hear all the stories of the horrors

i bilo je zaista teško čuti sve te priče o užasima,

poniznosti i poniženjima.

It was especially hard to hear about the beatings and the burnings

Naročito je bilo teško čuti o prebijanjima, spaljivanjima

and the lynchings of black men.

i linčovanjima crnaca.

And I said, "You know, this is a little deep.

Rekla sam: "Ovo je malo teško.

I need a break. I'm going to turn on the radio."

Treba mi pauza. Uključiću radio."

I turned it on, and there it was:

Uključila sam ga i čula:

Ferguson, Missouri,

Ferguson, Misuri,

Michael Brown,

Majkl Braun,

18-year-old black man,

osamnaestogodišnji crnac,

unarmed, shot by a white police officer, laid on the ground dead,

nenaoružan, ubijen od strane belog policajca, ležao je mrtav,

blood running for four hours

krv je curila četiri sata

while his grandmother and little children and his neighbors watched in horror,

dok su njegova baka, mala deca i komšije posmatrali sa užasom,

and I thought,

i pomislila sam,

here it is again.

opet to.

This violence, this brutality against black men

To nasilje, ta brutalnost prema crncima

has been going on for centuries.

se dešava već vekovima.

I mean, it's the same story. It's just different names.

Ista priča. Samo su drugačija imena.

It could have been Amadou Diallo.

To je mogao da bude Amadu Dialo.

It could have been Sean Bell.

Mogao je da bude Šon Bel.

It could have been Oscar Grant.

Mogao je da bude Oskar Grent.

It could have been Trayvon Martin.

Mogao je da bude Trejvon Martin.

This violence, this brutality,

To nasilje, ta brutalnost

is really something that's part of our national psyche.

je nešto što je deo naše nacionalne psihe.

It's part of our collective history.

Deo je naše zajedničke istorije.

What are we going to do about it?

Šta ćemo uraditi povodom toga?

You know that part of us that still crosses the street,

Znate onaj deo nas koji još uvek prelazi ulicu,

locks the doors,

zaključava vrata,

clutches the purses,

pridržava tašne

when we see young black men?

kad vidi mlade crnce?

That part.

Taj deo.

I mean, I know we're not shooting people down in the street,

Mislim, znam da ne pucamo u ljude na ulici,

but I'm saying that the same stereotypes and prejudices

ali kažem da se isti stereotipi i predrasude

that fuel those kinds of tragic incidents

koji pokreću ove tragične incidente

are in us.

nalaze u nama.

We've been schooled in them as well.

Učili smo ih i u školi.

I believe that we can stop these types of incidents,

Verujem da možemo da sprečimo takve incidente,

these Fergusons from happening,

te Fergusone, da se više ne dešavaju

by looking within and being willing to change ourselves.

pomoću gledanja u sebe i voljom da se menjamo.

So I have a call to action for you.

Zato, imam za vas poziv na akciju.

There are three things that I want to offer us today to think about

Želim da ponudim tri stvari za razmišljanje danas

as ways to stop Ferguson from happening again;

kao načine da sprečimo neke nove Fergusone da se dese ponovo;

three things that I think will help us

tri stvari koje će nam, ja mislim, pomoći

reform our images of young black men;

da promenimo našu sliku o mladim crncima;

three things that I'm hoping will not only protect them

tri stvari koje će ih, nadam se, ne samo zaštititi

but will open the world so that they can thrive.

već i otvoriti im svet da bi mogli da napreduju.

Can you imagine that?

Možete li to da zamislite?

Can you imagine our country embracing young black men,

Možete li zamisliti našu zemlju koja prihvata mlade crnce,

seeing them as part of our future, giving them that kind of openness,

koja ih vidi kao deo naše budućnosti, daje im tu vrstu otvorenosti,

that kind of grace we give to people we love?

tu vrstu milosti koju dajemo ljudima koje volimo?

How much better would our lives be? How much better would our country be?

Koliko bi bolji bili naši životi? Koliko bi bila bolja naša zemlja?

Let me just start with number one.

Da počnem od prvog.

We gotta get out of denial.

Moramo da prestanemo da poričemo.

Stop trying to be good people.

Prestanite da budete dobri ljudi.

We need real people.

Trebaju nam stvarni ljudi.

You know, I do a lot of diversity work,

Ja radim mnogo poslova u vezi raznolikosti

and people will come up to me at the beginning of the workshop.

i ljudi mi prilaze pre početka seminara

They're like, "Oh, Ms. Diversity Lady, we're so glad you're here" --

i kažu: "Gospođo Raznolika, drago nam je što ste ovde" -

(Laughter) --

(Smeh) -

"but we don't have a biased bone in our body."

"ali mi nemamo predrasude ni prema kome."

And I'm like, "Really?

A ja kažem: "Stvarno?

Because I do this work every day, and I see all my biases."

Ja radim ovo svaki dan i primećujem sve svoje predrasude."

I mean, not too long ago, I was on a plane

Skoro, dok sam letela avionom,

and I heard the voice of a woman pilot coming over the P.A. system,

čula sam glas žene pilota iz zvučnika,

and I was just so excited, so thrilled.

i bila sam toliko uzbuđena.

I was like, "Yes, women, we are rocking it.

Pomislila sam: "Mi, žene, razbijamo!

We are now in the stratosphere."

Sad smo i na nebu."

It was all good, and then it started getting turbulent and bumpy,

Sve je bilo u redu i onda su počele turbulencije i truckanje,

and I was like,

i pomislila sam:

"I hope she can drive."

"Nadam se da ume da vozi."

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

I know. Right.

Znam. Da.

But it's not even like I knew that was a bias

Ali nisam čak ni znala da je u pitanju predrasuda

until I was coming back on the other leg and there's always a guy driving

dok se nisam setila da uvek muškarac vozi

and it's often turbulent and bumpy,

i često ima turbulencija i truckanja,

and I've never questioned the confidence of the male driver.

ali nikad nisam dovodila u pitanje poverenje u muškog pilota.

The pilot is good.

Pilot je dobar.

Now, here's the problem.

E sad, u ovome je problem.

If you ask me explicitly, I would say, "Female pilot: awesome."

Ako me pitate eksplicitno, rekla bih: "Žena pilot - odlično."

But it appears that when things get funky and a little troublesome, a little risky,

Ali, izgleda, kad postane malo rizično,

I lean on a bias that I didn't even know that I had.

oslanjam se na predrasudu koju nisam ni znala da imam.

You know, fast-moving planes in the sky,

Znate, brzi avioni na nebu,

I want a guy.

hoću muškarca.

That's my default.

To je moj prvi izbor.

Men are my default.

Muškarci su moj prvi izbor.

Who is your default?

Ko je vaš prvi izbor?

Who do you trust?

Kome vi verujete?

Who are you afraid of?

Koga se plašite?

Who do you implicitly feel connected to?

S kim osećate povezanost?

Who do you run away from?

Od koga bežite?

I'm going to tell you what we have learned.

Reći ću vam šta smo saznali.

The implicit association test, which measures unconscious bias,

Test implicitnih asocijacija, koji meri podsvesne predrasude,

you can go online and take it.

možete ga naći na internetu.

Five million people have taken it.

Pet miliona ljudi ga je uradilo.

Turns out, our default is white. We like white people.

Ispostavilo se da je naš prvi izbor belac. Volimo bele ljude.

We prefer white. What do I mean by that?

Više volimo belce. Šta pod time podrazumevam?

When people are shown images of black men and white men,

Kada ljudima pokažu slike belaca i crnaca,

we are more quickly able to associate

brže možemo da povežemo

that picture with a positive word, that white person with a positive word,

tu sliku, tu belu osobu, sa pozitivnom pričom,

than we are when we are trying to associate

nego što to možemo kad pokušamo da povežemo

positive with a black face, and vice versa.

pozitivno sa crnim licem. I obrnuto.

When we see a black face,

Kad vidimo crno lice,

it is easier for us to connect black with negative

lakše nam je da povežemo crno sa negativnim,

than it is white with negative.

nego belo.

Seventy percent of white people taking that test prefer white.

Sedamdeset posto belaca koji rade test bira belce.

Fifty percent of black people taking that test prefer white.

Pedeset posto crnaca koji rade test bira belce.

You see, we were all outside when the contamination came down.

Nismo bili tu kad je došlo do kontaminacije.

What do we do about the fact that our brain automatically associates?

Šta da radimo s činjenicom da naš mozak asocira automatski?

You know, one of the things that you probably are thinking about,

Jedna od stvari koju verovatno pomislite je:

and you're probably like, you know what,

znate šta,

I'm just going to double down on my color blindness.

još više ću biti slep za boju.

Yes, I'm going to recommit to that.

Da, to ću da uradim.

I'm going to suggest to you, no.

Predložiću vam da ne radite to.

We've gone about as far as we can go trying to make a difference

Otišli smo do kraja u pokušaju da promenimo stvari

trying to not see color.

i da ne primećujemo boju.

The problem was never that we saw color. It was what we did when we saw the color.

Problem nikada nije bio u tome što primećujemo boju,

već u tome šta činimo kad primetimo boju.

It's a false ideal.

To je pogrešan ideal.

And while we're busy pretending not to see,

I dok smo se trudili da ne primećujemo,

we are not being aware of the ways in which racial difference

nismo bili svesni na koji način rasne razlike

is changing people's possibilities, that's keeping them from thriving,

menjaju mogućnosti ljudi i sprečavaju ih da napreduju,

and sometimes it's causing them an early death.

a ponekad prouzrokuju i ranu smrt.

So in fact, what the scientists are telling us is, no way.

U stvari, naučnici nam kažu: ni slučajno!

Don't even think about color blindness.

Ni slučajno ne budite slepi za boju.

In fact, what they're suggesting is,

Ono što nam govore je

stare at awesome black people.

da buljimo u fenomenalne crne ljude.

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

Look at them directly in their faces and memorize them,

Gledajte ih pravo u lice i zapamtite ih,

because when we look at awesome folks who are black,

jer kad gledamo u fenomenalne ljude koji su crni,

it helps to dissociate

to nam pomaže da razbijemo

the association that happens automatically in our brain.

asocijaciju koja se dešava automatski u našem mozgu.

Why do you think I'm showing you these beautiful black men behind me?

Šta mislite zašto vam pokazujem ove lepe crne muškarce?

There were so many, I had to cut them.

Bilo ih je mnogo, pa sam morala da izbacim neke.

Okay, so here's the thing:

Stvar je u tome da

I'm trying to reset your automatic associations about who black men are.

pokušavam da promenim vaše automatske asocijacije o crncima.

I'm trying to remind you

Pokušavam da vas podsetim

that young black men grow up to be amazing human beings

da mladi crnci izrastaju u fenomenalne ljude

who have changed our lives and made them better.

koji su promenili naše živote i učinili ih boljim.

So here's the thing.

Stvar je u sledećem.

The other possibility in science,

Druga naučna mogućnost

and it's only temporarily changing our automatic assumptions,

samo privremeno menja naše automatske pretpostavke,

but one thing we know

ali ono što znamo je

is that if you take a white person who is odious that you know,

da ako uzmete belu osobu koja je odvratna

and stick it up next to a person of color,

i stavite je uz obojenu osobu,

a black person, who is fabulous,

crnu osobu, koja je divna,

then that sometimes actually causes us to disassociate too.

onda i to ponekad čini da razbijemo asocijacije.

So think Jeffrey Dahmer and Colin Powell.

Pomislite na Džefrija Damera i Kolina Pauela.

Just stare at them, right? (Laughter)

Samo ih pogledajte. (Smeh)

But these are the things. So go looking for your bias.

Ali tako stoje stvari. Zato potražite svoje predrasude.

Please, please, just get out of denial and go looking for disconfirming data

Molim vas, samo ih ne poričite i potražite podatke

that will prove that in fact your old stereotypes are wrong.

koji će pokazati da su vaši stari stereotipi, u stvari, pogrešni.

Okay, so that's number one: number two,

To je bilo prvo, a drugo:

what I'm going to say is move toward young black men instead of away from them.

idite ka mladim crncima, umesto od njih.

It's not the hardest thing to do,

To nije teško uraditi,

but it's also one of these things

ali je, takođe, jedna od onih stvari

where you have to be conscious and intentional about it.

koje treba da budete svesni i da je radite s namerom.

You know, I was in a Wall Street area one time several years ago

Pre nekoliko godina, bila sam na Vol stritu

when I was with a colleague of mine, and she's really wonderful

sa svojom koleginicom. Ona je stvarno divna.

and she does diversity work with me and she's a woman of color, she's Korean.

Radila je sa mnom na raznolikosti, i ona je obojena, Korejanka.

And we were outside, it was late at night,

Izašle smo, bilo je kasno u noć,

and we were sort of wondering where we were going, we were lost.

i zapitale smo se kuda idemo, izgubile smo se.

And I saw this person across the street, and I was thinking, "Oh great, black guy."

Videla sam neku osobu preko puta i pomislila: "Super, crnac."

I was going toward him without even thinking about it.

Pošla sam ka njemu bez razmišljanja.

And she was like, "Oh, that's interesting."

A ona je rekla: "Zanimljivo."

The guy across the street, he was a black guy.

Tip preko puta je bio crnac.

I think black guys generally know where they're going.

Ja mislim da crnci uglavnom znaju kuda idu.

I don't know why exactly I think that, but that's what I think.

Ne znam baš zašto to mislim, ali tako mislim.

So she was saying, "Oh, you were going, 'Yay, a black guy'?"

Ona je rekla: "Ti si pomislila: super, crnac!

She said, "I was going, 'Ooh, a black guy.'"

a ja: jao, crnac."

Other direction. Same need, same guy, same clothes,

Različit smer. Ista potreba, isti lik, ista odeća,

same time, same street, different reaction.

isto vreme, ista ulica, različita reakcija.

And she said, "I feel so bad. I'm a diversity consultant.

Rekla je: "Osećam se loše. Ja sam savetnik za raznolikost.

I did the black guy thing. I'm a woman of color. Oh my God!"

Imala sam predrasudu prema crncu, a ja sam obojena. O, bože!"

And I said, "You know what? Please. We really need to relax about this."

Rekla sam: "Znaš šta? Opusti se."

I mean, you've got to realize I go way back with black guys.

Ja se dugo znam sa crnim muškarcima.

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

My dad is a black guy. You see what I'm saying?

Moj tata je crnac. Razumete šta hoću da kažem?

I've got a 6'5" black guy son. I was married to a black guy.

Imam sina koji je crnac od 2 metra. Udata sam za crnca.

My black guy thing is so wide and so deep

Moja veza sa crncima je tako duboka

that I can pretty much sort and figure out who that black guy is,

da prilično dobro mogu da ocenim ko je taj crnac,

and he was my black guy.

i bio je moj crnac.

He said, "Yes, ladies, I know where you're going. I'll take you there."

Rekao je: "Da, devojke, znam kuda idete. Odvešću vas tamo."

You know, biases are the stories we make up about people

Predrasude su priče koje izmišljamo o ljudima

before we know who they actually are.

pre nego što ih stvarno upoznamo.

But how are we going to know who they are

Ali kako ćemo da ih upoznamo,

when we've been told to avoid and be afraid of them?

kad su nam rekli da ih izbegavamo i da ih se plašimo?

So I'm going to tell you to walk toward your discomfort.

Tražim od vas da idete ka neprijatnostima.

And I'm not asking you to take any crazy risks.

I ne tražim od vas da preduzimate sulude rizike.

I'm saying, just do an inventory,

Samo kažem da napravite popis,

expand your social and professional circles.

proširite svoje društvene i profesionalne krugove.

Who's in your circle?

Ko je u vašem krugu?

Who's missing?

Ko nedostaje?

How many authentic relationships

Koliko autentičnih odnosa

do you have with young black people, folks, men, women?

imate sa mladim crnim ljudima, muškarcima, ženama,

Or any other major difference from who you are

ili na neki drugi način mnogo različitim osobama od vas,

and how you roll, so to speak?

od onoga što je "vaš stil", da tako kažem?

Because, you know what? Just look around your periphery.

Jer, znate šta? Samo pogledajte oko vas.

There may be somebody at work, in your classroom,

Možda postoji neko na poslu, u vašoj učionici, u vašoj crkvi.

in your house of worship, somewhere, there's some black young guy there.

Postoji neki mladi crnac tamo.

And you're nice. You say hi.

I fini ste. Kažete: "Ćao!"

I'm saying go deeper, closer, further, and build the kinds of relationships,

Ja kažem da idete dublje, bliže, dalje, i napravite takve odnose,

the kinds of friendships that actually cause you to see the holistic person

prijateljstva, koja će učiniti da vidite osobu u celosti

and to really go against the stereotypes.

i da idete protiv stereotipa.

I know some of you are out there,

Znam da vas ima tamo,

znam, jer imam neke bele prijatelje koji će reći:

"You have no idea how awkward I am.

"Nemaš pojma koliko sam ja čudan.

Like, I don't think this is going to work for me.

Mislim da to meni neće da funkcioniše.

I'm sure I'm going to blow this."

Sigurno ću to uprskati."

Okay, maybe, but this thing is not about perfection. It's about connection.

Okej, možda. Ali nije cilj da budete savršeni. Cilj je povezivanje.

And you're not going to get comfortable before you get uncomfortable.

I neće vam biti prijatno, ako vam prethodno ne bude bilo neprijatno.

I mean, you just have to do it.

Samo treba to da uradite.

And young black men, what I'm saying is

A mladi crnci, vama kažem da

if someone comes your way, genuinely and authentically, take the invitation.

ako vam neko prilazi iskreno, prihvatite poziv.

Not everyone is out to get you.

Neće svako da vam pravi probleme.

Go looking for those people who can see your humanity.

Potražite one ljude koji mogu da vide vašu humanost.

You know, it's the empathy and the compassion

Empatija i saosećanje

that comes out of having relationships with people who are different from you.

dolaze od odnosa koje imate s ljudima različitim od vas.

Something really powerful and beautiful happens:

Nešto zaista moćno i lepo se dešava:

you start to realize that they are you,

počinjete da shvatate da su oni vi,

that they are part of you, that they are you in your family,

da su oni deo vas, da su oni u vašoj porodici

and then we cease to be bystanders

i onda prestajemo da budemo posmatrači

and we become actors, we become advocates,

i postajemo činioci, postajemo pristalice,

and we become allies.

i postajemo saveznici.

So go away from your comfort into a bigger, brighter thing,

Zato pobegnite od komfornosti u nešto veće, svetlije,

because that is how we will stop another Ferguson from happening.

jer tako ćemo sprečiti da se desi neki novi Ferguson.

That's how we create a community

Tako stvaramo zajednicu

where everybody, especially young black men, can thrive.

gde svi, a naročito mladi crnci, mogu da napreduju.

So this last thing is going to be harder,

Zato će ova poslednja stvar biti teža,

and I know it, but I'm just going to put it out there anyway.

znam to, ali ću je ipak reći.

When we see something, we have to have the courage to say something,

Kad vidimo nešto, moramo da imamo hrabrosti da kažemo nešto,

even to the people we love.

čak i ljudima koje volimo.

You know, it's holidays and it's going to be a time

Praznici su, i to je vreme

when we're sitting around the table and having a good time.

kad sedimo za stolom i dobro smo raspoloženi.

Many of us, anyways, will be in holidays,

Mnogi od nas će biti na odmoru

and you've got to listen to the conversations around the table.

i morate da slušate razgovore za stolom.

You start to say things like, "Grandma's a bigot."

Krenete da govorite stvari kao što su: "Baba je ekstremista."

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

"Uncle Joe is racist."

"Ujka Džo je rasista."

And you know, we love Grandma and we love Uncle Joe. We do.

Ali mi volimo baku i ujka Džoa.

We know they're good people, but what they're saying is wrong.

Znamo da su oni dobri ljudi, ali ono što govore je pogrešno.

And we need to be able to say something, because you know who else is at the table?

I treba da smo spremni da kažemo nešto, jer znate ko je još za stolom?

The children are at the table.

Deca su za stolom.

And we wonder why these biases don't die, and move from generation to generation?

I pitamo se zašto ove predrasude ne umiru i prenose se s generacije na generaciju?

Because we're not saying anything.

Jer ne govorimo ništa.

We've got to be willing to say, "Grandma, we don't call people that anymore."

Moramo biti spremni da kažemo: "Bako, ne nazivamo ljude više tako."

"Uncle Joe, it isn't true that he deserved that.

"Ujka Džo, nije istina da je on to zaslužio.

No one deserves that."

Niko to ne zaslužuje."

And we've got to be willing

I treba da budemo spremni

to not shelter our children from the ugliness of racism

da ne sklanjamo decu od ružnoće rasizma

when black parents don't have the luxury to do so,

jer crni roditelji nemaju luksuz da to urade,

especially those who have young black sons.

naročito oni koji imaju mlade crne sinove.

We've got to take our lovely darlings, our future,

Moramo našim mezimcima, našoj budućnosti

and we've got to tell them we have an amazing country with incredible ideals,

da kažemo da imamo sjajnu zemlju sa neverovatnim idealima,

we have worked incredibly hard, and we have made some progress,

radili smo naporno i napravili neki napredak,

but we are not done.

ali nismo gotovi.

We still have in us this old stuff

Još uvek imamo u sebi one stare ideje

about superiority and it is causing us

o superiornosti, što prouzrokuje

to embed those further into our institutions

da to ugrađujemo u naše institucije,

and our society and generations,

u naše društvo i generacije,

and it is making for despair

i to prouzrokuje očajanje

and disparities and a devastating devaluing of young black men.

i nejednakosti i obezvređivanje mladih crnaca.

We still struggle, you have to tell them,

Još uvek se borimo, morate da im kažete,

with seeing both the color

tako što primećujemo i boju

and the character of young black men,

i ličnost mladih crnaca,

but that you, and you expect them,

i da očekujete od njih

to be part of the forces of change in this society

da budu deo snaga promene u ovom društvu

that will stand against injustice and is willing, above all other things,

koje će ustati protiv nepravde i koje su, iznad svega, voljne

to make a society where young black men can be seen for all of who they are.

da naprave društvo gde će mladi crnci biti vrednovani u celini.

So many amazing black men,

Toliko je neverovatnih crnih ljudi,

those who are the most amazing statesmen that have ever lived,

najneverovatnijih državnika koji su ikada živeli,

brave soldiers,

hrabrih vojnika,

awesome, hardworking laborers.

sjajnih, vrednih radnika.

These are people who are powerful preachers.

To su ljudi koji su moćni propovednici.

They are incredible scientists and artists and writers.

Oni su neverovatni naučnici, i umetnici, i pisci.

They are dynamic comedians.

Oni su harizmatični komičari.

They are doting grandpas,

To su pažljive deke,

caring sons.

brižni sinovi.

They are strong fathers,

Oni su jaki očevi,

and they are young men with dreams of their own.

i oni su mladi ljudi sa sopstvenim snovima.

Thank you.

Hvala vam.

(Aplauz)

(Applause)