自由思想與心靈的作用

At the beginning of the World Series of 1947, I experienced a completely new emotion, when the National Anthem was played. This time, I thought, it is being played for me, as much as for anyone else. This is organized major league baseball, and I am standing here with all the others; and everything that takes place includes me.
1947年的世界職業(yè)棒球大賽開(kāi)賽那天，當(dāng)美國(guó)國(guó)歌奏響的那一刻，我產(chǎn)生了一種全新的情感。這一次，國(guó)歌是為我而奏，就像為其他人奏一樣。我終于能和其他人一樣，站在職業(yè)棒球大聯(lián)盟球賽的賽場(chǎng)上，成為這一切的一部分。

About a year later, I went to Atlanta, Georgia, to play in an exhibition game. On the field, for the first time in Atlanta, there were Negroes and whites. Other Negroes, besides me. And I thought: What I have always believed has come to be.
大約一年以后，我參加了在喬治亞州首府亞特蘭大舉辦的一次棒球表演賽。這是亞特蘭大的賽場(chǎng)上第一次同時(shí)出現(xiàn)白人和黑人運(yùn)動(dòng)員。除我之外，還有其他黑人選手。那一刻，我一直堅(jiān)守的信念終于實(shí)現(xiàn)了。

And what is it that I have always believed? First, that imperfections are human. But that wherever human beings were given room to breathe and time to think, those imperfections would disappear, no matter how slowly. I do not believe that we have found or even approached perfection. That is not necessarily in the scheme of human events. Handicaps, stumbling blocks, prejudices — all of these are imperfect. Yet, they have to be reckoned with because they are in the scheme of human events.
我一直堅(jiān)守的信念是什么呢？首先，我知道人類(lèi)不可避免會(huì)有缺陷。但只要人類(lèi)有一息尚存，只要人類(lèi)還能思考，這些缺陷一定會(huì)逐漸消失，無(wú)論過(guò)程會(huì)多么漫長(zhǎng)。我并不認(rèn)為我們已經(jīng)到達(dá)或正在接近完美無(wú)缺的境界。完美無(wú)缺的境界并非人類(lèi)社會(huì)不可或缺的一部分。有些缺陷，例如殘疾、障礙和偏見(jiàn)，在人類(lèi)社會(huì)中都存在，也就需要我們勇敢地去面對(duì)。

Whatever obstacles I found made me fight all the harder. But it would have been impossible for me to fight at all, except that I was sustained by the personal and deep-rooted belief that my fight had a chance. It had a chance because it took place in a free society. Not once was I forced to face and fight an immovable object. Not once was the situation so cast-iron rigid that I had no chance at all. Free minds and human hearts were at work all around me; and so there was the probability of improvement. I look at my children now, and know that I must still prepare them to meet obstacles and prejudices.
我一路上遇到的阻礙都促使我更加努力地去抗?fàn)?、去奮斗。然而，如果不是我內(nèi)心深處堅(jiān)信我的奮斗有希望，我就根本無(wú)法堅(jiān)持。我的奮斗有希望，因?yàn)檫@是一個(gè)自由的社會(huì)。在這里，我不止一次遇到過(guò)無(wú)法逾越的障礙，也不止一次經(jīng)歷過(guò)令人絕望的境況。但那時(shí)，思想與心靈的自由便能起作用，讓我擺脫困境。如今我看著自己的孩子們，我知道我仍需要他們準(zhǔn)備面對(duì)困難與歧視。

But I can tell them, too, that they will never face some of these prejudices because other people have gone before them. And to myself I can say that, because progress is unalterable, many of today's dogmas will have vanished by the time they grow into adults. I can say to my children: There is a chance for you. No guarantee, but a chance. And this chance has come to be, because there is nothing static with free people. There is no Middle Ages logic so strong that it can stop the human tide from flowing forward. I do not believe that every person, in every walk of life, can succeed in spite of any handicap. That would be perfection. But I do believe — and with every fiber in me — that what I was able to attain came to be because we put behind us (no matter how slowly) the dogmas of the past: to discover the truth of today; and perhaps find the greatness of tomorrow.
然而，我可以告訴他們，正因?yàn)榍叭说呐^斗，他們今后不必再經(jīng)受我們現(xiàn)在承受的某些偏見(jiàn)。我也告訴自己，社會(huì)進(jìn)步是必然的，當(dāng)我的孩子們長(zhǎng)大成人時(shí)，現(xiàn)在社會(huì)上的許多教條一定會(huì)消失。因此，我可以告訴我的孩子們：你們有希望——我不敢保證什么，但肯定有希望。有自由思想的人決不會(huì)停滯不前，所以你們有希望。再也沒(méi)有中世紀(jì)強(qiáng)大荒謬的邏輯能阻擋人類(lèi)歷史的潮流滾滾向前。我并不認(rèn)為從事任何職業(yè)的任何人都能排除一切障礙獲得成功——這樣的完美不現(xiàn)實(shí)。但我的確有一條堅(jiān)定不疑的信念——我現(xiàn)在所做到的一切是因?yàn)槲覀兡軌驋侀_(kāi)從前的教條（無(wú)論多么緩慢），能探尋當(dāng)下的真理，也許還能發(fā)現(xiàn)未來(lái)的美好。

I believe in the human race. I believe in the warm heart. I believe in man's integrity. I believe in the goodness of a free society. And I believe that the society can remain good only as long as we are willing to fight for it — and to fight against whatever imperfections may exist.
我相信人類(lèi)。我相信熱誠(chéng)的心。我相信人們的正直與誠(chéng)實(shí)。我相信自由社會(huì)中的美德。我相信只要我們?cè)敢鉃橹畩^斗，愿意與所存在的缺陷抗?fàn)幍降祝@個(gè)社會(huì)就能永遠(yuǎn)美好。

My fight was against the barriers that kept Negroes out of baseball. This was the area where I found imperfection, and where I was best able to fight. And I fought because I knew it was not doomed to be a losing fight. It couldn't be a losing fight-not when it took place in a free society.
棒球比賽將黑人拒之門(mén)外就是人類(lèi)社會(huì)的一種缺陷。既然我有這個(gè)能力，我就要和這種現(xiàn)象抗?fàn)幍降?。我抗?fàn)?，因?yàn)槲抑肋@場(chǎng)戰(zhàn)斗并非注定以失敗告終。這場(chǎng)戰(zhàn)斗不會(huì)失敗——在一個(gè)自由社會(huì)中這場(chǎng)戰(zhàn)斗不可能失敗。

And in the largest sense, I believe that what I did was done for me — that it was my faith in God that sustained me in my fight. And that what was done for me must and will be done for others.
大而言之，我所做到的一切都市上蒼的眷顧——正是我對(duì)上帝的信仰支撐著我，給我抗?fàn)幍挠職?。我相信被眷顧的不僅僅是我一個(gè)人，而應(yīng)是、也將是我們所有人。