中英對照文本
翻譯：Mangosteen
校對：FungChuh
My great-great-grandfather, Silas Burgess, came to America shackled in the belly of a slave ship.
我的高祖父西拉斯·伯吉斯被拴在奴隸船艙裡運到美國。
He was sold on an auction block in Charleston, South Carolina, to the Burgess Plantation.
他在南卡羅來納州查爾斯頓的拍賣臺上被人拍下，送到伯吉斯種植園。
Orphaned by age 8, he was, fortunately, surrounded by elder slaves who, though physically chained, mentally envisioned themselves as free men. They escaped, taking young Silas with them, making their way to West Texas.
八歲就成為孤兒的他很幸運身邊都是年長的奴隸，他們儘管身體受到禁錮，精神上卻幻想自己是自由人。他們帶著年輕的西拉斯一起逃走了，一路來到西德克薩斯。
Silas worked hard and saved his money. Eventually, he became the owner of 102 acres of farmland, which he cultivated and paid off within two years. I proudly carry the name of my first American ancestor—who, like millions of others drawn or brought to our country, struggled past overwhelming obstacles to live the American Dream.
西拉斯勤奮攢錢。最終，他擁有 102 公頃（約 412779m2）農田，他在此耕種，兩年內便償清債務。我自豪地繼承了我第一位美國祖先的名字——他像無數被吸引到或被賣到我們國家的人一樣，千辛萬苦歷盡萬難實現了美國夢。
Silas founded the first black church, the first black elementary school in his town. He was a Republican, a Christian, and a pillar of his community. He was proud and industrious and taught his children to be the same.
西拉斯在他的鎮子成立了第一間黑人教堂，第一所黑人小學。他是個共和黨人，基督徒，社區的支柱。他驕傲並勤奮，並教導他的孩子們也要一樣。
Now, because great-great-grandpa Silas was once a slave, so-called 「progressives」 want to give me money.
如今，因為高祖父西拉斯曾經是奴隸，所謂的「進步主義者」想給我錢。
Never mind that, like him, I am an entrepreneur who received an excellent education, built businesses, raised a remarkable family and, unlike most white Americans, earned a Super Bowl ring.
別介意，像他一樣，我是個受過良好教育的企業家，成立公司，組建了一個了不起的家庭，而且，不同於多數白人，我贏得了一枚超級碗戒指。
Because of work I』ve never done, stripes I』ve never had, under a whip I』ve never known, these progressives want to give me money I』ve never earned. The fact that this money will be forcibly taken from others who also dreamed, worked and sacrificed for it, I’m told is not my concern.
由於一些我從未做過的事，從未受過的鞭打，從未見識過的皮鞭，這些進步主義者想給我一些我不曾爭取的錢。事實上這筆錢將從他人手上強搶過來，這些人也有夢想，也曾努力工作並為此犧牲，他們說這不是我該關心的。
But it is.
但它是。
At the core of the reparations movement is a distorted and demeaning view of blacks and whites.
賠償運動的核心是對黑人與白人的歪曲和貶低。
It grants superiority to the white race, treating them as an oppressive people too powerful for black Americans to overcome. It brands blacks as hapless victims, devoid of the ability which every other culture possesses to assimilate and to progress.
它假定白種人的優越，將他們看作是強大的壓迫者，是黑人無法戰勝的對手。它將黑人標為不幸的受害者，缺乏其他文化都有的能力，無法被同化，也無法取得進步。
The reparations movement conveniently forgets the 150 years of legal, social, and economic progress obtained by millions of American minorities. It also minimizes the sacrifice of hundreds of thousands of white Americans and a Republican president who gave their lives to eradicate slavery.
賠償運動隨隨便便就忽略了 150 年來，美國少數族裔所取得的法律、社會及經濟進步。它同時輕視了為結束奴隸制而犧牲的成千上萬白人及一位共和黨總統。
I think Grandpa Silas would have seen this loss of American lives as payment in full. Every grateful black American, then and now, would feel the same.
我認為西拉斯高祖父會將這些美國人的犧牲當作全額賠款。每一個感恩的黑人，過去的與現在的，都會這麼想。
The reparations movement also reinforces a view of racial relationships that undermines America’s Judeo-Christian foundation. It defies the ideals of forgiveness and second chances and scorns individual accountability.
賠償運動同時強化了一個種族關係觀點，它腐蝕美國的猶太教-基督教基礎。它違背了寬恕、第二次機會的理念，並且蔑視個人責任。
Proponents of reparations believe that black Americans are incapable of carrying their own burdens, while white Americans must bear the sins of those who came before them. Proponents do not take into account the majority of white Americans who never owned slaves, who fought to end slavery, or who came to America long after it was ended.
主張賠償的人認為黑人沒有能力自己承擔責任，而白人必須背負前人犯下的罪。支持者們沒有考慮到多數白人從未擁有過奴隸，他們為結束奴隸制而戰鬥，或是在它結束後才來到美國。
This divisive message marks the black race as forever broken, a people whose healing can only come through the guilt, pity, and benevolence of whites. Tragically, we now see this playing out on our college campuses. As young white Americans acknowledge their skin color as a 「privilege,」 young black Americans—with no apparent shame—accept their skin color as one that automatically confers victim status.
這個分裂性的信息將黑種人看作永遠是破落的，只能靠白人的愧疚、憐憫與仁慈才能治癒。可悲的是，如今我們正看到這幕在大學校園裡上演。美國年輕白人承認他們的膚色是一種「特權」，美國年輕黑人——毫無羞恥之心——接受他們膚色自動賦予的受害者地位。
In doing so, they seem unaware that this perception of blacks was shared by the 1960s Southern white supremacists of my youth. Those who seek reparations have accepted the theory that skin color alone is capable of making one race superior to the other—that with no additional effort, values, or personal initiative, white Americans will succeed, while black Americans will fail. At its very core, this represents the condescending evil of racism.
他們這麼做，似乎沒意識到對黑人的這種看法正是我年輕時 1960 年代南方白人至上主義者的共識。那些爭取賠償的人已然接受這一理論，即單單膚色便能讓一個種族優於其他種族——無需額外的努力、價值觀或進取心，美國白人就會成功，而美國黑人則會失敗。它本質上代表著種族主義傲慢的邪惡。
It certainly does not represent black America’s potential.
它當然不代表美國黑人的潛力。
40% of black households today live the middle-class American Dream. There are thousands of black Americans among our nation’s top 1% of income earners—doctors, lawyers, engineers and professors; not to mention music, TV, film and sports stars. Many of our society’s most revered and celebrated citizens are black.
如今 40% 的黑人家庭過著中產階級的美國夢。我們國家前 1% 的高收入者中，有成千上萬的美國黑人——醫生、律師、工程師與教授；更不必提音樂、電視、電影與運動明星。許多我們社會最受尊敬的名人是黑人。
The journeys of these Americans to wealth and prominence vary, like those of their white counterparts, but many benefited from having ancestors like Grandpa Silas, who embraced the opportunities their country provided and who left behind a legacy of proud, productive, patriotic, and successful families. Why should white Americans—my neighbors, friends, and fellow citizens—owe me anything?
美國黑人獲得財富名聲的經歷不盡相同，就像他們的許多同輩白人一樣，但許多人受益於如高祖父西拉斯這樣的祖先，他擁抱他們國家提供的機會，留下一個驕傲、豐饒、愛國且成功的家庭。為什麼美國白人——我的鄰居、朋友與同胞們——要欠我們任何東西？
If Grandpa Silas were here, I’m certain his message to everyone, whether black or white, would simply be this:
假如高祖父西拉斯還在，我肯定他給所有人的信息，不管是黑人還是白人，只會是：
Good character cannot be bought by bribery.
良好品格是賄賂不來的。
I’m Burgess Owens for Prager University.
我是伯吉斯·歐文斯，為 PragerU 製作。
轉自PragerU字幕組 翻譯：Mangosteen 校對：FungChuh