返回首页

IsmaelNazario_2014X-_作为一个少年犯我学到了什么_
We need to change the culture in our jails and prisons, especially for young inmates . 我们需要改变我们的监狱文化, 特别要为了少年犯们。
jails:n.监狱;监牢;拘留所;vt.监禁;下狱; especially:adv.尤其;特别;格外;十分; inmates:n.被收容者;居民(inmate的名词复数);
New York state is one of only two in the U.S. 纽约是美国仅有的两个
that automatically arrests and tries 16- to 17-year-olds as adults. 自动地将16到17岁的少年犯当作成人对待的州之一。
automatically:adv.自动地;机械地;无意识地;adj.不经思索的;
This culture of violence takes these young people and puts them in a hostile environment, and the correctional officers pretty much allow any and everything to go on. 监狱中的这种暴力文化会侵蚀这些年轻人, 并将他们置于一个敌对的环境中, 而监狱中的看守几乎是任由这些事情发生。
violence:n.暴力;侵犯;激烈;歪曲; hostile:adj.敌意的; n.敌对分子; correctional:adj.矫正的;修正的;
There's not really much for these young people to do to actually enhance their talent and actually rehabilitate them. 事实上这些年轻人并没有多少事情可以做, 来提升自己的才能,并得到改造。
enhance:v.提高;增强;增进; rehabilitate:v.使康复;使恢复正常;恢复…的名誉;恢复原状;
Until we can raise the age of criminal responsibility to 18, we need to focus on changing the daily lives of these young people. 除非我们能将需要负刑事责任的年龄提高到18岁, 否则我们就需要集中精力去改变这些少年犯的日常生活。
I know firsthand . 我有亲身体会。
firsthand:adj.直接的;直接采购的;直接得来的;adv.直接地;
Before I ever turned 18, 18岁之前,
I spent approximately 400 days on Rikers Island, and to add to that 我在雷克岛监狱待了大约400天, 补充说明一下,
approximately:adv.大约,近似地;近于;
I spent almost 300 days in solitary confinement , and let me tell you this: 这其中有差不多300天我是被单独监禁的。 让我告诉你们我每天都是怎么度过的:
solitary confinement:n.单独监禁;单独禁闭;
Screaming at the top of your lungs all day on your cell door or screaming at the top of your lungs out the window, it gets tiring. 整天在门边大声尖叫, 或者对着窗外大声尖叫, 你会感到疲倦。
Since there's not much for you to do while you're in there, you start pacing back and forth in your cell, you start talking to yourself, your thoughts start running wild, and then your thoughts become your own worst enemy. 因为在里面你没有什么事情可做, 你开始在监室里来回踱步, 你开始自言自语, 你的思想开始狂奔, 然后你的思想变成你最大的敌人。
back and forth:前后移动的,来回的,反复的;
Jails are actually supposed to rehabilitate a person, not cause him or her to become more angry, frustrated , and feel more hopeless. 监狱本来应该是改造一个人的地方, 而不是让人变得更愤怒、 泄气和感到更绝望的地方。
supposed:adj.误信的;所谓的;v.认为;假设;设想;(suppose的过去分词和过去式) frustrated:adj.失意的,挫败的;泄气的;v.挫败;阻挠;(frustrate的过去式和过去分词)
Since there's not a discharge plan put in place for these young people, they pretty much reenter society with nothing. 因为我们没有一个针对这些年轻人的出狱计划, 所以当他们重返社会时几乎还是跟以前一个样。
discharge:v.履行;释放;排出;流出;n.出院;执行;退伍;排出(物); reenter:v.重返;重新存入;[律]收回(贷出物);再进入;
And there's not really much for them to do to keep them from recidivating. 而事实上他们也学不到什么东西能够防止他们再犯错误。
But it all starts with the C.O.s. 但是一切都要从狱警说起。
It's very easy for some people to look at these correctional officers as the good guys and the inmates as the bad guys, or vice versa for some, but it's a little more than that. 对一些人来说, 很容易就会将狱警视为好人, 将犯人视为坏人, 或者对另一些人来说则相反, 但是事实却不止于此。
vice versa:反之亦然;
See, these C.O.s are normal, everyday people. 其实这些狱警也不过是普通的市井小民。
They come from the same neighborhoods as the population they "serve." 他们跟那些他们所“服务”的人来自相同的社区。
They're just normal people. 他们只是普通人。
They're not robots, and there's nothing special about them. 他们不是机器人,他们也没什么特别的。
They do pretty much everything anybody else in society does. 他们也会做社会上其他人做的事情。
The male C.O.s want to talk and flirt with the female C.O.s. 男狱警会想跟女狱警聊天和调情。
flirt:vi.调情:n.与多人调情的人: female:adj.女性的;雌性的;柔弱的,柔和的;n.女人;[动]雌性动物;
They play the little high school kid games with each other. 他们互相玩着高中的孩子们玩的游戏。
They politic with one another. 他们也会彼此算计。
politic:adj.精明的;有策略的;狡猾的;审慎的;vi.拉选票;
And the female C.O.s gossip to each other. 而女狱警之间也会八卦。
gossip:n.流言蜚语;闲聊;喜欢传播流言蜚语的人;v.传播流言蜚语;说三道四;
So I spent numerous amounts of time with numerous amounts of C.O.s, and let me tell you about this one in particular named Monroe. 所以我花了大量的时间跟大数不清的狱警在一起, 我尤其要给大家讲一讲一位叫Monroe的狱警。
numerous:adj.许多的,很多的; in particular:尤其,特别;
One day he pulled me in between the A and B doors which separate the north and south sides of our housing unit. 一天他把我拉到两扇门之间, 这两扇门分隔着南北的单间牢房。
He pulled me there because I had a physical altercation with another young man in my housing unit, and he felt, since there was a female officer working on the floor, that I violated his shift . 他把我拉到那边,是因为我与另一个年轻人 在我住的单间里发生了肢体冲突, 因为有一个女狱警在这层工作, 他感觉我妨碍了他轮班。
physical:adj.[物]物理的;身体的;物质的;符合自然法则的;n.体格检查; altercation:n.争执; violated:v.违反,违背(法律、协议等); (violate的过去分词和过去式) shift:n.移动;变化;手段;轮班;v.移动;转变;转换;
So he punched me in my chest. 所以他一拳打在我胸部。
punched:v.拳打;以拳痛击;给…打孔;按(键);(punch的过去分词和过去式)
He kind of knocked the wind out of me. 他把我打得都有点眩晕了。
I wasn't impulsive , I didn't react right away , because I know this is their house. 我没有冲动,也没有立刻还击, 因为我知道这是他们的地盘。
impulsive:adj.冲动的;受感情驱使的;任性的; react:v.起反应;回应;(对食物等)有不良反应,过敏;起化学反应; right away:立刻;
I have no wins. 我没有胜算。
All he has to do is pull his pin and backup will come immediately. 他只要拉响警报,后援就会立刻出现。
pin:n.大头针;饰针;旗杆;胸针;v.别上;使不能动弹;按住;钳住; backup:n.后援;增援;(文件等的)备份;adj.后补的;支持性的;伴奏的;
So I just gave him a look in his eyes and I guess he saw the anger and frustration just burning, and he said to me, "Your eyes are going to get you in a lot of trouble, because you're looking like you want to fight." 所以我只是盯着他的眼睛, 我想他看到了怒火和沮丧正在燃烧, 他对我说, “你的目光会让你惹不少麻烦, 因为你看上去想要打架。”
frustration:n.挫折;
So he commenced to taking off his utility belt , he took off his shirt and his badge , and he said, "We could fight." 然后他开始脱下他的执勤腰带, 还有衣服和徽章, 他说:“我们来打一架吧。”
commenced:v.开始(commence的过去分词); utility:n.公用事业;实用;实用程序;adj.多用途的;多效用的; belt:n.皮带;腰带;传动带;传送带;v.猛击;狠打;飞奔;飞驰; badge:n.徽章;证章;标记;v.授给…徽章;
So I asked him, "You gonna hold it down?" 我问他:“你会保密？”
Now, that's a term that's commonly used on Rikers Island meaning that you're not going to say anything to anybody, and you're not going to report it. 那是在雷克岛监狱经常用到的一个短语, 意思是,你不会和任何人讲, 也不会上报。
He said, "Yeah, I'm gonna hold it down. You gonna hold it down?" 他说,“是的,我保密。你也要保密？”
I didn't even respond . 我还没回话,
respond:vi.回答;作出反应;承担责任;n.应答;唱和;
I just punched him right in his face, and we began fighting right then and there. 便直接一拳打他脸上, 然后我们开始打得天翻地覆。
Towards the end of the fight, he slammed me up against the wall, so while we were tussled up, he said to me, "You good?" 在打架快结束的时候,他把我猛撞到墙上, 我们已经扭打成了一团,他跟我说,“你还好吗？”
slammed:v.(使…)砰地关上;使劲一推;猛烈抨击;(slam的过去分词和过去式) tussled:vi.打斗;扭打;剧烈的斗争;n.争斗,扭打;
as if he got the best of me, but in my mind, I know I got the best of him, so I replied very cocky , "Oh, I'm good, you good?" 仿佛他战胜了我, 但我对此心知肚明,是我占了上风, 所以我非常屌的回复, “啊,我好着呢,你还好吧？”
cocky:adj.自大的;骄傲的;过于自信的;
He said, "Yeah, I'm good, I'm good." 他说,“是的,我很好,我很好。”
We let go, he shook my hand, said he gave me my respect, gave me a cigarette and sent me on my way. 我们停战了,他和我握手,说他尊重我, 给了我一支烟,并把我送回去了。
Believe it or not, you come across some C.O.s on Rikers Island that'll fight you one-on-one . 不管你们信不信,在雷克岛监狱,你会遇到一些狱警, 他们会跟你单挑。
come across:偶然遇见;给人以…的印象; one-on-one:adj.一对一的;直接对立的;adv.一对一;面对面;n.一对一的比赛;
They feel that they understand how it is, and they feel that I'm going to meet you where you're at. 他们觉得他们懂规则, 他们觉得他们应该在你的地盘和你会面,
Since this is how you commonly handle your disputes , we can handle it in that manner. 因为这是你通常处理争议的方式, 我们也可以用这种方式处理。
handle:n.[建]把手;柄;手感;口实;v.处理;操作;运用;买卖;触摸; disputes:n.争论(dispute的复数);v.争论(dispute的单数第三人称);
I walk away from it like a man, you walk away from it like a man, and that's it. 我像个男人一样的离开,你也像个男人一样的离开, 就这么简单。
Some C.O.s feel that they're jailing with you. 一些狱警认为他们是在跟你一起蹲班房。
jailing:n.监狱;监牢;拘留所;vt.监禁;下狱;
This is why they have that mentality and that attitude and they go by that concept. 于是他们就会有那样的心态和态度, 也会用那样的原则处事。
mentality:n.心态;[心理]智力;精神力;头脑作用; attitude:n.态度;看法;意见;姿势;
In some instances , we're in it together with the C.O.s. 某些情况下,我们的确是喝狱警一起同吃同住的。
instances:n.相依物体,例子; v.举例说明(instance的第三人称单数形式);
However, institutions need to give these correctional officers proper trainings on how to properly deal with the adolescent population, and they also need to give them proper trainings on how to deal with the mental health population as well. 但是,监狱要给这些狱警 适当的训练,如何与未成年人合理的打交道, 他们也需要给予狱警一些 关于如何和有心理问题的人相处的训练。
institutions:n.机构;慈善机构;风俗习惯,制度;(institution的复数) trainings:n.培训(training的复数); adolescent:adj.青春期的;未成熟的;n.青少年;
These C.O.s play a big factor in these young people's lives for x amount of time until a disposition is reached on their case. 这些狱警对这些少年犯人影响巨大, 而且会持续很长时间,直到他们被释放。
factor:n.因素;要素;[物]因数;代理人;v.做代理商;v.把…作为因素计入; disposition:n.处置;[心理]性情;[军]部署;倾向;
So why not try to mentor these young people while they're there? 那么为什么不在这些年轻人坐牢的时候为他们提供一些指导？
mentor:n.指导者,良师益友;vt.指导;
Why not try to give them some type of insight to make a change, so once they reenter back into society, they're doing something positive ? 为什么不让他们学着去领悟,学着去改变, 这样一旦他们重返社会, 他们就会做一些正面的事？
insight:n.洞察力;洞悉; positive:adj.积极的;[数]正的,[医][化学]阳性的;确定的;n.正数;[摄]正片;
A second big thing to help our teens in jails is better programming. 第二件能够改变少年犯的事情是更好的教育项目。
teens:n.十多岁,十几岁;青少年;
When I was on Rikers Island, the huge thing was solitary confinement. 当我在雷克岛监狱,主要的事情就是单独拘禁。
Solitary confinement was originally designed to break a person mentally , physically and emotionally . 单独拘禁原本是为了 从心理,生理以及情绪上去击垮一个人。
originally:adv.原来;起初; mentally:adv.精神上,智力上;心理上; emotionally:adv.感情上;情绪上;令人激动地;情绪冲动地;
That's what it was designed for. 这就是设计它的初衷。
The U.S. Attorney General recently released a report stating that they're going to ban solitary confinement in New York state for teens. 美国司法部最近发布了一个报告 声称他们将要禁止纽约州 少年犯的单独拘禁。
Attorney General:n.司法部长;总检察长;首席检察官; recently:adv.最近;新近; released:v.释放;使免除;已发布;(release的过去分词和过去式) ban:v.下令禁止;查禁;n.禁令;
One thing that kept me sane while I was in solitary confinement was reading. 当我在单独拘禁的时候,唯一使我保持心智健全的事就是读书。
sane:adj.健全的;理智的;[临床]神志正常的;
I tried to educate myself as much as possible. 我尽量使我自己多受教育。
I read any and everything I could get my hands on. 我读了我能得到的所有东西。
And aside from that, I wrote music and short stories. 除了那些,我还会写歌和短故事。
Some programs that I feel would benefit our young people are art therapy programs for the kids that like to draw and have that talent, and what about the young individuals that are musically inclined ? 我认为有一些项目能使我们的年轻人受益, 比如艺术治疗项目, 专为喜欢画画并且拥有才能的孩子们设计, 那么,对于喜欢音乐的年轻人呢？
art therapy:n.艺术治疗(通过艺术形式表达自我以达到治疗效果的心理疗法); individuals:n.[经]个人;[生物]个体(individual的复数); musically:adv.音乐上地;声音好听地; inclined:adj.有…倾向; v.(使)倾向于,有…的趋势; (incline的过去分词和过去式)
How about a music program for them that actually teaches them how to write and make music? 一个教育他们如何创作音乐的 音乐项目怎么样？
Just a thought. 这只是一个想法。
When adolescents come to Rikers Island, 当未成年人来到雷克岛监狱,
adolescents:n.[人类]青少年(adolescent复数);
C74, RNDC is the building that they're housed in. C74,RNDC就是他们住的地方。
That's nicknamed " gladiator school," 这地方有个别名,“格斗者学校”,
nicknamed:给…取绰号(nicknamed的过去式,过去分词); gladiator:n.斗剑者;古罗马公开表演的格斗者;争论者;
because you have a young individual coming in from the street thinking that they're tough, being surrounded by a bunch of other young individuals from all of the five boroughs , and everybody feels that they're tough. 因为有个混迹街头的年轻人进来了, 通常会自认为很不好惹, 被一群其他的年轻人围绕着, 他们来自所有5个区,大家都觉得他们很难对付。
a bunch of:一群;一束;一堆; boroughs:n.区;自治的市镇;
So now you have a bunch of young gentlemen poking their chests out feeling that I have to prove I'm equally as tough as you or I'm tougher than you, you and you. 于是就有一群年轻人挺身而出, 觉得需要证明我跟你们一样不好对付, 或者我比你,你还有你更不好对付。
poking:v.捅;推;戳;探;露出;伸出;探出;(poke的现在分词)
But let's be honest: 但是,老实讲:
That culture is very dangerous and damaging to our young people. 这种文化非常危险,会伤害我们的年轻人。
We need to help institutions and these teens realize that they don't have to lead the previous lifestyle that they led when they were on the street, that they can actually make a change. 我们要让监狱和年轻人们发觉 他们不必再过以前 在街上混的那种生活,他们可以改变。
previous:adj.以前的;早先的;过早的;adv.在先;在…以前;
It's sad to report that while I was in prison, 不过遗憾的是,在我坐牢的时候,
I used to hear dudes talking about when they get released from prison, what type of crimes they're going to commit when they get back in the street. 我常常听到弟兄们讲,当他们被释放, 回到街上混的时候, 他们要犯个什么案子。
dudes:花花公子;纨绔子弟;哥们(dude的名词复数); commit:v.犯(罪等);干(坏事等);[法]提(审);判处;
The conversations used to sound something like this: "Oh, when I hit the street, my brother got this connection for this, that and the third," 对话通常听上去是这样的: “当我一回到街上,我兄弟们搞到这个关系, 这个,那个,还有第三个。”
or, "My man over here got this connection for the low price. 或者,”我的人在那边搞到这个关系价格很低的,
Let's exchange information," 我们可以交换一下信息。”
exchange:n.交换;交流;交易所;兑换;v.交换;交易;兑换;
and, "When we hit the town, we're going to do it real big." 或者,”当我们一回到市里,我们要做单大的。“
I used to hear these conversations and think to myself, "Wow, these dudes are really talking about going back in the street and committing future crimes." 我过去常常听这些对话,对自己说,”哇哦, 这些家伙真的在谈回到街上, 继续犯案。
committing:v.做出;犯罪或错等;自杀;承诺,保证;(commit的现在分词)
So I came up with a name for that: 因此我想到一个称呼:
I called it a go-back-to-jail-quick scheme because really, how long is that going to last? 我称之为“快速再次蹲牢计划”, 因为真的,这种行当到底能持续多久？
scheme:n.计划;方案;体系;体制;阴谋;v.密谋;图谋;想;认为;
You get a retirement plan with that? 会提供给你一个“退休方案”吗？
retirement plan:un.退休金计划;
Nice little pension ? 401(k)? 403(b)? 合理的退休金？401(K)?403(b)?(美国退休福利计划)
pension:n.养老金;退休金;抚恤金;adj.有关退休金的;v.给…养老金[恤金,津贴等];
You get health insurance ? Dental ? 你能得到健康保险吗？包括牙科？
insurance:n.保险;保险业;保险费;保费;adj.胜券在握的; Dental:n.牙医;[语]齿音;;adj.牙齿的;牙科的;齿音的;
(Laughter) （笑声）
But I will tell you this: 但是我要告诉你们:
Being in jail and being in prison, 在坐牢期间,
I came across some of the most intelligent , brilliant, and talented people that I would ever meet. 我遇到了一些我曾见过的最聪明, 最有才能的人。
intelligent:adj.有才智的;悟性强的;聪明的;有智力的
I've seen individuals take a potato chip bag and turn it into the most beautiful picture frame . 我看到一些人把薯片袋 变成最漂亮的画框。
potato chip:n.[食]薯片; frame:n.框架; v.设计; adj.有木架的;
I've seen individuals take the state soap that's provided for free and turn them into the most beautiful sculptures that would make Michelangelo look like a kindergartner made it. 我看到过一些人把免费的肥皂 变成最美的雕刻作品, 这让米开朗基罗的作品看上去都像涂鸦。
provided:conj.假如; v.提供; (provide的过去分词和过去式) sculptures:n.[建]雕塑(sculpture的复数); v.雕刻; Michelangelo:n.米开朗基罗(意大利文艺复兴时期成就卓著的科学家,艺术家); kindergartner:n.幼儿园教师;幼儿园里的小孩;
At the age of 21, I was in a maximum-security prison called Elmira Correctional Facility . 21岁的时候,我在一个安全级别最高的监狱, 叫做埃尔迈拉监狱。
Facility:n.设施;设备;特别装置;特色;场所;天资;
I just came out of the weight shack from working out, and I saw an older gentleman that I knew standing in the middle of the yard just looking up at the sky. 我刚结束了户外义务劳动, 看到我认识的一个老人站在院子的中间, 一直在仰望天空。
shack:n.棚屋;小室;vi.居住;
Mind you, this older gentlemen was serving a 33-and-a-third-to-life sentence in which he already had served 20 years of that sentence. 跟你们说,这个老人的刑期长达33年,相当于三分之一的寿命, 他已经服了20年的刑。
So I walk up to him and I said, "O.G., what's going on, man, you good?" 我走到他跟前,说, “哦天啊,怎么了,你还好吧？”
He looked at me, and he said, "Yeah, I'm good, young blood ." 他看着我,说,”是的,我很好,年轻人。“
young blood:(集合词)青年;
I'm like, "So what are you looking up at the sky for, man? 我说,”那你老盯着天空干什么呢？
What's so fascinating up there?"
fascinating:adj.极有吸引力的;迷人的;v.深深吸引;迷住;(fascinate的现在分词)
He said, "You look up and you tell me what you see." 他说,“你向上看,你告诉我看到了什么。”
'"Clouds." (Laughter)
He said, "All right. What else do you see?" 他说,“好吧。还看到什么？”
At that time, it was a plane passing by. 那时,有架飞机飞过。
I said, "All right, I see an airplane ." 我说,“好吧,我看到一架飞机。”
airplane:n.飞机;
He said, "Exactly, and what's on that airplane?" "People." 他说,“确实,飞机上有什么？”“人。”
'"Exactly. Now where's that plane and those people going?" “对的。那架飞机和那些人要去哪里？”
'"I don't know. You know? “我不知道。你知道？
Please let me know if you do. Then let me get some lottery numbers." 如果知道请告诉我。我好去买彩票。”
lottery:n.彩票;碰运气的事,难算计的事;抽彩给奖法;
He said, "You're missing the big picture, young blood. 他说,”年轻人,你错过了一幅大图景。
That plane with those people is going somewhere, while we're here stuck. 飞机上的人们飞向某个地方, 然而我们却困在这里。
The big picture is this: 大图景是这样的:
That plane with those people going somewhere, that's life passing us by while we behind these walls, stuck." 飞机上的人们飞向了什么地方, 生活从我们头顶飞过去了,而我们却困在了这些墙里面。”
Ever since that day, that sparked something in my mind and made me know I had to make a change. 从那天以后, 我脑海里突然有东西闪现,让我知道我要做出改变。
sparked:v.点燃,发动(spark的过去式,过去分词);鼓舞;
Growing up, I was always a good, smart kid. 长大后,我一直是聪明的好孩子。
Some people would say I was a little too smart for my own good. 有些人说我有点太自作聪明了。
I had dreams of becoming an architect or an archaeologist . 我梦想成为建筑师或者考古学家。
architect:n.建筑师;设计师;创造者; archaeologist:n.考古学家;
Currently , I'm working at the Fortune Society, which is a reentry program, and I work with people as a case manager that are at high risk for recidivism . 目前,我正在“财富社区”工作, 这是个重返社会的项目, 我作为项目经理跟那些有很高再犯风险的人一起工作。
Currently:adv.当前;一般地; Fortune:n.财富;命运;运气;v.给予财富,偶然发生 reentry:n.[航]再入;再进; recidivism:n.再犯,累犯;
So I connect them with the services that they need once they're released from jail and prison so they can make a positive transition back into society. 所以我把他们与那些他们需要的服务相联系, 一旦他们从监狱释放, 他们就可以做出正面的改变,重返社会。
transition:n.过渡;转变;变革;变迁;v.经历转变过程;过渡;
If I was to see my 15-year-old self today, 如果我今天可以看见15岁的自己,
I would sit down and talk to him and try to educate him and I would let him know, "Listen, this is me. I'm you. 我会坐下来跟他说话,尝试教育他, 我会让他知道,“听着,这是你,我就是你。
This is us. We are one. 这是我们,我们是一体。
Everything that you're about to do, I know what you're gonna do before you do it because I already did it, and I would encourage him not to hang out with x, y and z people. 你将要做的每件事,在你做之前, 我都知道,因为我都做过了, 我会鼓励他,不要跟张三,李四,或者王五这些人出去。
hang out with:与…出去玩;与…闲逛;
I would tell him not to be in such-and-such place. 我会告诉他不要去这样或者那样的地方。
I would tell him, keep your behind in school, man, because that's where you need to be, because that's what's going to get you somewhere in life. 我会告诉他,待在学校, 那是才你该待的地方, 因为那才会给你的生活带来前程。
This is the message that we should be sharing with our young men and young women. 这就是我们应该要与 少年男女们分享的信息,
We shouldn't be treating them as adults and putting them in cultures of violence that are nearly impossible for them to escape. 我们不该把他们当做成年人,把他们置于 几乎不可能逃避的暴力文化中。
treating:v.以…态度对待;把…看作;处理;讨论;(treat的现在分词)
Thank you. 谢谢。
(Applause) （掌声）