Laura and I are anguished by the brutal suffocation of George Floyd and disturbed by the injustice and fear that suffocate our country. Yet we have resisted the urge to speak out, because this is not the time for us to lecture. It is time for us to listen. It is time for America to examine our tragic failures – and as we do, we will also see some of our redeeming strengths.

對於George Floyd的殘暴窒息事件，蘿拉跟我感到十分憤怒，也對讓我國窒息的不公不義和恐懼感到不安。但我們一直壓下公開發聲的衝動，因為現在不是讓我們來說教的時候。現在該讓我們來側耳傾聽。該讓美國來檢視我們的悲劇性失敗，而在此同時，我們也會找到救贖的力量。

It remains a shocking failure that many African Americans, especially young African American men, are harassed and threatened in their own country. It is a strength when protesters, protected by responsible law enforcement, march for a better future. This tragedy — in a long series of similar tragedies — raises a long overdue question: How do we end systemic racism in our society? The only way to see ourselves in a true light is to listen to the voices of so many who are hurting and grieving. Those who

當許多非裔美人，尤其是年輕的非裔美人，還會在自己的國家遭到騷擾和威脅，這是一項令人震驚的失敗。當抗爭者在負責任的警方所保護之下，為了更好的未來而走上街頭，這實在是一大力量。這起悲劇，在一連串類似的悲劇之下，拋出了一個早該被回答的問題：我們該如何終結在這個社會中的系統性種族歧視呢？唯一真正檢視自己的方式，就是去傾聽那些正在受苦和哀悼的人們之聲音。那些想打壓這種聲音的人們，並不了解美國的真意，而它又要如何變得更好。

America's greatest challenge has long been to unite people of very different backgrounds into a single nation of justice and opportunity. The doctrine and habits of racial superiority, which once nearly split our country, still threaten our Union. The answers to American problems are found by living up to American ideals — to the fundamental truth that all human beings are created equal and endowed by God with certain rights. We have often underestimated how radical that quest really is, and how our

cherished principles challenge systems of intended or assumed injustice. The heroes of America — from Frederick Douglass, to Harriet Tubman, to Abraham Lincoln, to Martin Luther King, Jr. — are heroes of unity. Their calling has never been for the fainthearted. They often revealed the nation's disturbing bigotry and exploitation — stains on our character sometimes difficult for the American majority to examine. We can only see the reality of America's need by seeing it through the eyes of the

美國最大的挑戰，就是如何將來自不同背景的人們，統合成一個正義與機遇的國度。種族優越性曾經差點分裂這個國家，而其教條和習慣仍然在威脅我們的合盟。要解決美國的問題，就得實現美國的理想，那就是所有人類都生而平等，並由上帝賦予特定權利，這個基本事實。我們常常低估了這項任務有多麼激進，而我們寶貴的原則又挑戰到了不公不義的體制。美國的英雄們，從道格拉斯、塔布曼、林肯到馬丁路德金博士，都是團結的英雄。他們的使命不適合懦夫。他們常常揭露了這個國家令人不安的偏執和剝削，這些在我們身上的污點，往往很難讓美國大眾直視。唯有透過

That is exactly where we now stand. Many doubt the justice of our country, and with good reason. Black people see the repeated violation of their rights without an urgent and adequate response from American institutions. We know that lasting justice will only come by peaceful means. Looting is not liberation, and destruction is not progress. But we also know that lasting peace in our communities requires truly equal justice. The rule of law ultimately depends on the fairness and legitimacy of the legal

而這正是我們現在的處境。許多人都質疑我國的正義，而他們的理由也很充分。黑人看到自己的權利再三遭到侵犯，美國政府卻沒有做出立即和足夠的回應。我們知道持續性的正義只會來自和平手段。打劫並非解放，而破壞也不是進步。但我們也深知，要在社群裡得到長久的和平，需要真正平等的正義。法律仰賴執法體系的公正和合法性。而為所有人維護正義，也是每個人的責任。

This will require a consistent, courageous, and creative effort. We serve our neighbors best when we try to understand their experience. We love our neighbors as ourselves when we treat them as equals, in both protection and compassion. There is a better way — the way of empathy, and shared commitment, and bold action, and a peace rooted in justice. I am confident that together, Americans will choose the better way.

這需要持續性、勇敢並創意十足的努力。當我們試著去了解鄰人的經驗時，我們才能好好對待他們。當我們平等對待鄰人時，我們才能透過保護和同情心而愛彼如己。世上有一種更好的方式，透過同理心、彼此承諾、大膽行動，以及紥根於正義的和平。我相信，美國人會一同選擇這種更好的方式。