The symbols of systemic racism — and how to take away their power | Paul Rucker

譯者: Thomas Tam 審譯者: 品妤 劉

[This talk contains graphic images Viewer discretion is advised]

【此演講含有可能會引起不適的圖像】

I collect objects.

我收藏一些物品，

I collect branding irons that were used to mark slaves as property.

有奴隸烙鐵，它打上奴隸身上 作為財產的標誌，

I collect shackles for adults

我收集給當時成年人戴的手銬，

and restraints for adults

及腳鐐，

as well as children.

還有是給孩子戴的。

I collect lynching postcards.

也收集黑人奴隸 受私刑絞死的明信片。

Yes, they depict lynchings.

它們描繪了當時的私刑。

They also depict the massive crowds that attended these lynchings,

同時也描繪了無數圍觀死刑的人們，

and they are postcards

這些是明信片，

that were also used for correspondence.

是被用作通信用的。

I collect proslavery books that portray black people as criminals

我收集的那些支持奴隸制度的書， 把黑人描繪成罪犯，

or as animals without souls.

或者是沒有靈魂的動物。

I brought you something today.

我帶一些給你們看。

This is a ship's branding iron.

這是一個船上的烙鐵。

It was used to mark slaves.

曾被用來為奴隸標記。

他們被標記的時候，還不是奴隸。

Well, they actually were not slaves when they were marked.

They were in Africa.

仍然生活在非洲。

但是他們一旦被標記了 「S」，

But they were marked with an "S"

to designate that they were going to be slaves

就認定為奴隸，

when they were brought to the US

他們會被帶到美國

and when they were brought to Europe.

及歐洲。

Another object or image that captured my imagination when I was younger

年輕時引發了我遐想的 另一個物品或是圖像

was a Klan robe.

是那三 K 黨長袍。

Growing up in South Carolina, I would see Ku Klux Klan rallies occasionally,

我在南卡羅萊納州長大， 偶然會見到三 K 黨的集會。

actually more than occasionally,

事實是，並不僅是偶然。

and the memories of those events never really left my mind.

那些事情烙印在我的記憶裡。

And I didn't really do anything with that imagery until 25 years later.

直到 25 年後， 我才重新注視三 K 黨的圖像。

A few years ago, I started researching the Klan,

幾年前，我開始研究三 K 黨，

the three distinct waves of the Klan,

三次不尋常的三 K 黨運動浪潮，

the second one in particular.

尤以第二次為甚。

The second wave of the Klan had more than five million active members,

第二次的三 K 黨興起， 使它擁有超過五百萬名活躍成員，

which was five percent of the population at the time,

是當時美國人口的百分之五，

which was also the population of New York City at the time.

也等於紐約市的總人口。

The Klan robe factory in the Buckhead neighborhood of Georgia was so busy

位於喬治亞州巴克海特區的 三 K 黨長袍工廠十分忙碌，

it became a 24-hour factory to keep up with orders.

工廠要 24 小時運作 來滿足訂單。

They kept 20,000 robes on hand at all time to keep up with the demand.

它們隨時庫存 2 萬 件長袍， 以應付大量的需求。

As a collector of artifacts and as an artist,

作為一個手工製品的 收集者和藝術家，

I really wanted a Klan robe to be part of my collection,

我很想收藏一件三 K 黨的長袍，

because artifacts and objects tell stories,

因為它們會講故事，

but I really couldn't find one that was really good quality.

但我找不到一件品質好的長袍。

What is a black man to do in America

身為一個美國黑人，不能找到一件 好品質的三 K 黨長袍，該怎麼辦？

when he can't find the quality Klan robe that he's looking for?

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

So I had no other choice.

我沒有其他選擇。

I decided I was going to make the best quality Klan robes in America.

決定自己做 美國最高品質的三 K 黨長袍。

These are not your traditional Klan robes you would see at any KKK rally.

這些不是在黨集會中見得到的 傳統三 K 黨長袍。

I used kente cloth,

我使用肯特布、

I used camouflage,

迷彩的、

spandex, burlap, silks, satins and different patterns.

彈力纖維、粗麻布、絲綢、 緞子以及不同的質料。

I make them for different age groups; I make them for young kids

我做給不同年齡的人 包括年幼的孩子，

as well as toddlers.

及學步的幼兒，

I even made one for an infant.

甚至做給一個嬰兒。

After making so many robes,

在做了那麼多長袍之後，

I realized that the policies the Klan had in place

我意識到三 K 黨的政策 已達到的效果，

or wanted to have in place a hundred years ago

是一百年前想要達到的，

are in place today.

在今天發生了。

We have segregated schools, neighborhoods, workplaces,

我們有著種族隔離的學校、 社區和公共場所，

and it's not the people wearing hoods that are keeping these policies in place.

然而並非三 K 黨人促成這些政策。

My work is about the long-term impact of slavery.

我的工作是關注 奴隸制度的長期影響。

We're not just dealing with the residue of systemic racism.

我們不僅要解決 種族主義系統的殘渣，

It's the basis of every single thing we do.

而是解決處理每件事的基礎。

Again we have intentionally segregated neighborhoods,

再者，存有故意促成的 種族隔離社區、

workplaces and schools.

公共場所和學校；

We have voter suppression.

有非裔的投票者被壓制；

We have disproportionate representation of minorities incarcerated.

被監禁的非裔人數 遠高於其他少數族裔的人口比例。

We have environmental racism. We have police brutality.

我們面臨種族主義當道的環境，

遭到警察的殘暴對待。

我給你們帶來了幾件物件。

I brought you a few things today.

The stealth aspect of racism

種族主義的「隠秘」

is part of its power.

是它力量的一部分。

When you're discriminated against,

當你被歧視的時候，

you can't always prove you're being discriminated against.

你不能證明正在被歧視。

Racism has the power to hide,

種族主義擁有的隱蔽力量，

and when it hides, it's kept safe

是自身可以安全的地藏起來，

because it blends in.

因為它融入其中。

I created this robe to illustrate that.

用我製作的長袍來表明

The basis of capitalism in America is slavery.

美國資本主義的基礎就是奴隸制度。

Slaves were the capital in capitalism.

奴隸是資本主義的資本。

The first Grand Wizard in 1868, Nathan Bedford Forrest,

1868 年三 K 黨第一大巫師 內森‧貝弗‧福雷斯

was a Confederate soldier and a millionaire slave trader.

是一個美利堅聯邦士兵， 也是一個經營奴隸貿易的百萬富翁。

The wealth that was created from chattel slavery --

他的財富是從奴隸貿易創造出來——

that's slaves as property -- would boggle the mind.

視奴隸為財產的觀念—— 是我心中揮之不去的陰影。

1860 年僅棉花貿易一項 就已產生了大約兩億美元的價值。

Cotton sales alone in 1860 equalled 200 million dollars.

That would equal five billion dollars today.

相等於現在的五十億美元。

A lot of that wealth can be seen today through generational wealth.

很多今天的財富都是 代代相傳下來。

Oh, I forgot the other crops as well.

我忘了其他的經濟作物。

You have indigo, rice and tobacco.

還有槐藍（用作染料）、 大米以及煙草。

In 2015, I made one robe a week for the entire year.

在 2015 年內， 我每週製作一件長袍。

After making 75 robes, I had an epiphany.

到製造了 75 件長袍時， 我已經頓悟。

I have a realization that white supremacy is there,

白人至上的主義就在這裡，

but the biggest force of white supremacy is not the KKK,

但最大的力量並不是三 K 黨，

it's the normalization of systemic racism.

而是系統性的種族主義正常化。

There was something else I realized.

還有一件事，

The robes had no more power over me at all.

長袍對我完全沒有威懾作用了。

But if we as a people collectively

但如果我們作為一個集體，

look at these objects --

看著這些東西——

branding irons, shackles, robes --

烙鐵、手銬和長袍，

and realize that they are part of our history,

能夠意識到這是我們歷史的一部分，

we can find a way to where they have no more power over us.

我們就可以找到一種方法， 使它們不再能威懾我們了。

If we look at systemic racism and acknowledge

如果我們能夠面對及確認 系統性的種族主義，

that it's sown into the very fabric of who we are as a country,

並且承認它已經植入 我們國家的根基。

then we can actually do something about the intentional segregation

那麼我們就能採取實際的行動 來應付有種族隔離意圖的事情，

in our schools, neighborhoods and workplaces.

在種族隔離的學校、 社區和工作場所。

But then and only then can we actually address

只有在我們能夠說出

and confront this legacy of slavery

和面對這奴隸制的遺毒時，

and dismantle this ugly legacy of slavery.

才能消除醜陋奴隸制度的遺痕。

Thank you very much.

謝謝。

(Applause)

（掌聲）