How the arts help homeless youth heal and build | Malika Whitley

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: Yanyan Hong

Don't you love a good nap?

難道睡個好午覺不是很棒的事嗎？

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

Just stealing away that small block of time

偷出一點點閑暇時間，

to curl up on your couch for that sweet moment of escape.

蜷曲在你的沙發上， 享受逃脫的甜美時刻。

It's one of my favorite things,

那是我最愛做的事之一，

but something I took for granted

但我將之視為理所當然，

before I began experiencing homelessness as a teenager.

直到我十多歲時， 經歷到了無家可歸。

The ability to take a nap is only reserved for stability and sureness,

能舒舒服服睡個午覺 是建立在穩定和肯定的前提下，

something you can't find

你得不到這些，

when you're carrying everything you own in your book bag

如果你得把所有家當 放在書包中帶著走，

and carefully counting the amount of time you're allowed to sit in any given place

小心翼翼地計算自己 還能在哪個地方待多久

before being asked to leave.

然後就會被趕走。

I grew up in Atlanta, Georgia,

我在喬治亞的亞特蘭大長大，

bouncing from house to house

經常搬家，

with a loving, close-knit family

我的家庭充滿愛且很親密，

as we struggled to find stability

我們辛苦地尋求穩定，

in our finances.

財務穩定。

But when my mom temporarily lost herself to mania

但我媽有時會因躁鬱症發作而發狂，

and when that mania chose me as its primary scapegoat

那躁鬱症把我當作主要的代罪羔羊，

through both emotional and physical abuse,

透過情緒和身體虐待找上我，

I fled for my safety.

我會逃走，去尋求安全。

I had come to the conclusion that homelessness was safer for me

而我得到的結論是 無家可歸對我來說比較安全，

than being at home.

比在家安全。

I was 16.

我當時 16 歲。

During my homelessness, I joined Atlanta's 3,300 homeless youth

我流浪時，和 3300 名亞特蘭大 無家可歸的年輕人一樣，

in feeling uncared for,

感覺沒被照顧到、

left out and invisible each night.

被遺忘、被忽視，每晚都如此。

There wasn't and still is not any place

當時沒有，現在還是沒有任何地方

for a homeless minor to walk off the street

給流浪的未成年人脫離街頭，

to access a bed.

有張床可以睡覺。

I realized that most people thought of homelessness

我發現大多人會把無家可歸

as some kind of lazy, drug-induced squalor and inconvenience,

和懶惰、吸毒造成的邋遢， 以及麻煩聯想在一起，

but that didn't represent my book bag full of clothes and schoolbooks,

但那不代表我書包中 滿滿的衣服和課本，

or my A+ grade point average.

或是平均 A+ 的成績。

I would sit on my favorite bench downtown

我會坐在鬧區中我最愛的長椅上，

and watch as the hours passed by

隨時間過去，就只是看著，

until I could sneak in a few hours of sleep

直到我能小睡幾小時，

on couches, in cars,

在長沙發上、在車上、

in buildings or in storage units.

在建築物內，或在儲藏室中小睡。

I, like thousands of other homeless youth, disappeared into the shadows of the city

就像其他數千名無家可歸的年輕人， 我也消失在城市的影子中，

while the whole world kept spinning

而世界仍然一如往常地轉動，

as if nothing at all had gone terribly wrong.

彷彿沒有什麼大問題發生。

The invisibility alone almost completely broke my spirit.

光是被視若無睹這一點， 就幾乎完全打碎了我的心靈。

But when I had nothing else, I had the arts,

但當我一無所有時，我有藝術，

something that didn't demand

藝術並不需要

material wealth from me in exchange for refuge.

我用實質的財富來交換庇護。

A few hours of singing, writing poetry

花幾小時唱歌、寫詩，

or saving up enough money

或存足夠的錢去

to disappear into another world at a play

看場戲劇，沉浸到另一個世界中，

kept me going and jolting me back to life when I felt at my lowest.

在最低潮時，這些事 讓我能走下去，繼續過日子。

I would go to church services on Wednesday evenings

星期三晚上，我會去教堂的禮拜，

and, desperate for the relief the arts gave me,

渴望能得到藝術給我的那種慰藉，

I would go a few hours early,

我會提早幾小時去，

slip downstairs

溜下樓，

and into a part of the world where the only thing that mattered

進入世界的一個小角落， 在那裡唯一重要的事

was whether or not I could hit the right note in the song

就是我是否能把 那週想練習的歌曲唱到

I was perfecting that week.

每個音符都完美。

I would sing for hours.

我會唱好幾個小時，

It gave me so much strength to give myself permission

我從中得到很強大的力量， 讓我允許自己

to just block it all out and sing.

把一切阻擋在外，盡情唱歌。

Five years later, I started my organization, ChopArt,

5 年後，我成立了我的組織 ChopArt，

which is a multidisciplinary arts organization for homeless minors.

它是個多重領域的藝術組織， 對象是無家可歸的未成年人。

ChopArt uses the arts as a tool for trauma recovery

ChopArt 用藝術當作 從創傷中恢復的工具，

by taking what we know about building community

把我們所知關於建立社區

and restoring dignity

及重獲尊嚴的方式

and applying that to the creative process.

應用到創作過程當中。

ChopArt is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia,

ChopArt 的總部在喬治亞的亞特蘭大，

with additional programs in Hyderabad, India, and Accra, Ghana,

在印度的海德拉巴以及迦納的 阿克拉都有額外的專案計畫，

and since our start in 2010,

從 2010 年我們開始進行之後，

we've served over 40,000 teens worldwide.

已經服務了全球超過 4 萬名青少年。

Our teens take refuge

我們的青少年在具有

in the transformative elements of the arts,

轉變力量的藝術元素中找到庇護，

and they depend on the safe space ChopArt provides for them to do that.

他們依賴 ChopArt 提供給 他們的安全空間來做到這一點。

An often invisible population uses the arts to step into their light,

通常，這些不被看見的人， 用藝術走出黑暗，步入光線底下，

but that journey out of invisibility is not an easy one.

但脫離被忽視的旅程並不容易。

We have a sibling pair, Jeremy and Kelly,

我們有一對兄妹，傑若米和凱莉，

who have been with our program for over three years.

他們參加我們的專案計畫已 3 年。

They come to the ChopArt classes every Wednesday evening.

每個星期三晚上他們 會來上 ChopArt 的課。

But about a year ago,

但大約 1 年前，

Jeremy and Kelly witnessed their mom seize and die right in front of them.

傑若米和凱莉目睹了他們的 母親在他們面前發病死亡。

They watched as the paramedics failed to revive her.

他們看著醫務人員急救失敗。

They cried as their father

他們哭泣看著父親把臨時監護權

signed over temporary custody to their ChopArt mentor, Erin,

簽字轉給 ChopArt 的導師艾琳，

without even allowing them to take an extra pair of clothes on their way out.

他們的父親甚至不讓他們 在離開時多拿一套衣物。

This series of events broke my heart,

這一系列的事件讓我心碎，

but Jeremy and Kelly's faith and resolve in ChopArt

但傑若米和凱莉對 ChopArt 的信念和決心

is what keeps me grounded in this work.

讓我繼續堅定紮實地做這項工作。

Kelly calling Erin in her lowest moment,

凱莉在最低潮時打電話給艾琳，

knowing that Erin would do whatever she could

因為她知道艾琳會盡一切所能

to make them feel loved and cared for,

讓他們感到被愛、被照顧，

is proof to me that by using the arts as the entry point,

對我來說，這點證明了 如果能用藝術當作切入點，

我們能治癒無家可歸的年輕人， 讓他們得到發展。

we can heal and build our homeless youth population.

And we continue to build.

而我們持續在發展。

We build with Devin,

我們協助戴文發展，

who became homeless with his family

他和他的家人變成無家可歸，

when his mom had to choose between medical bills or the rent.

因為他的母親得在 醫療帳單和房租之間擇一。

He discovered his love of painting through ChopArt.

透過 ChopArt， 他發現了他對畫畫的熱愛。

We build with Liz,

我們協助麗茲發展，

who has been on the streets most of her teenage years

她幾乎整個少女時期在街頭度過，

but turns to music to return to herself

但當她的創傷感覺太沉重，

讓她年輕的肩膀無法承受時， 她轉向音樂，找回自我。

when her traumas feel too heavy for her young shoulders.

We build for Maria,

我們協助瑪莉亞發展，

who uses poetry to heal

她用詩來療癒，

after her grandfather died in the van

那是在她的祖父在她和她家人

同住的小貨車中過世之後的事。

she's living in with the rest of her family.

And so to the youth out there experiencing homelessness,

所以我想對外面無家可歸的年輕人說，

let me tell you,

讓我告訴你們，

you have the power to build within you.

你們自己內在就有發展的力量。

You have a voice through the arts

透過藝術，你們能發出聲音，

that doesn't judge what you've been through.

它不會評斷你所經歷的事。

So never stop fighting to stand in your light

所以，永遠不要停止奮鬥， 努力站到光底下，

because even in your darkest times,

因為，即使在你們最黑暗的時刻，

we see you.

我們也會看見你們。

Thank you.

謝謝。

(Applause)

（掌聲）