我相信的东西

在多灾多难2020年， 哈佛大学校长Bacow夫妇均不幸感染上了Covid-19，但均痊愈。哈佛大学也首先宣布今年秋季课程改为“上电大” （网课）；在明尼苏达州黑人 George Floyd 被警察暴力执法致死后， 在Covid-19大流行期间要求保持社交距离时，又在多城市开始了大规模的游行示威要求消除种族主义，司法公正。当然有组织的打砸抢烧趁势而入。在这复杂关健的时刻，哈佛大学校长Bacow 给哈佛社区发表了这封信：

 

 

我相信的东西

 

2020年5月30日

 

尊敬的哈佛社区成员，

 

最近几个月来让我们所有人都会感到迷茫。COVID-19已给全世界人们的生活造成了巨大的破坏， 它已在全球造成了超过36.5万人死亡，仅在美国就造成了10万多人死亡。因之有四千万美国人失去了工作，还有无数人生活在对这种病毒及其经济后果的恐惧之中。

 

就在这种无法言喻的损失中，我们的国家再次为无辜的被杀害的黑人乔治·弗洛伊德（George Floyd）这一事件所震惊-又是一名黑人，而杀人者却是一个应该是负责保护我们的警察。

 

许多城市正在爆发，我们的国家深陷分裂。应该让我们团结起来的领导们对此似乎无能为力。

 

我不禁回想起1968年，那是我读高三时的春天。首先，小马丁·路德·金博士被暗杀，然后是鲍比·肯尼迪（被暗杀）。像在全国各地一样，在底特律附近爆发了骚乱。那时，就像现在一样，我们的国家两极分化了，我们拼命地努力寻找可以团结我们的共同点。

 

当时，人们几乎没有希望，似乎很难想象我们将如何前进，但是我们做到了。当我思考我们今天面临的挑战时，我一次又一次回想到我的信念：

 

我相信这个国家人民的善良以及他们的韧性。

 

我相信，我们所有的人，无论什么种族，无论是自由主义者或保守主义者，无论是民主党人和或共和党人，都希望我们的孩子们未来的生活会更好。

 

我认为，美国应该是世界各地的灯塔。

 

我认为，我们作为一个国家的力量在很大程度上要归功于我们的传统，即欢迎那些来到我们的海岸寻求自由和机会的人们，这些人通过他们的辛勤工作，创造力和对自己的奉献精神多次地回报这个新的家园。

 

我相信美国梦。

 

我相信宪法，三权分立，《第一修正案》，尤其是享有自由和独立的新闻界的权利，这些新闻监督着当权者，并享有自由和独立的司法机构。

 

我相信第14条修正案保证对所有人的法律平等保护，而不仅仅是对像我这样的人。

 

我认为，无论担任何种职务或穿什么制服，任何人都不应违反法律。违法者必须承担责任。

 

我认为，衡量社会正义的一种方法是如何对待最脆弱的成员。

 

我认为，我们必须为那些可能不会独自遇到机会的人提供机会，以便他们能够发挥全部潜力。

 

我相信知识和思想能够改变世界，科学和医学可以战胜疾病，艺术和人文科学可以阐明人类的处境。

 

这只是我所相信的一部分。我希望您在这些困难时期能够停下来，问您相信什么。更重要的是，我希望您会发现有力量和决心按照自己的信念行事-修复和完善这个不完美的世界。我们有幸在这个地方工作或学习的理应承担些特殊的责任。正如路加（圣经里Luke）所教导我们的那样，从有很多奉献的人那里，可以期待很多。

 

真诚的，

 

Lawrence S. Bacow

President

Harvard University

哈佛大学校长

 

风城黑鹰译

 

原文网址：

 

https://www.harvard.edu/president/news/2020/what-i-believe?from=timeline&isappinstalled=0

 

What I believe

May 30, 2020

 

Dear Members of the Harvard Community,

The last several months have been disorienting for all of us. COVID-19 has profoundly disrupted the lives of people worldwide. It has caused more than 365,000 deaths around the globe and more than 100,000 in the United States alone. Forty million Americans have lost their jobs, and countless others live in fear of both the virus and its economic consequences.

In the midst of this incomprehensible loss, our nation has once again been shocked by the senseless killing of yet another black person—George Floyd—at the hands of those charged with protecting us. Cities are erupting. Our nation is deeply divided. Leaders who should be bringing us together seem incapable of doing so.

I cannot help but think back to 1968, the spring of my junior year in high school. First, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated, then Bobby Kennedy. Riots broke out in nearby Detroit, as they did across the country. Then, like now, our nation was hugely polarized, and we desperately struggled to find common ground that might unite us. 

At the time, hope was in short supply. It seemed difficult to imagine how we would move forward, but we did. As I think about the challenges that we face today, I return again and again to what I believe:

I believe in the goodness of the people of this country—and in their resilience.

I believe that all of us, liberal and conservative, Democrat and Republican, whatever our race or ethnicity, want a better life for our children.

I believe that America should be a beacon of light to the rest of the world.

I believe that our strength as a nation is due in no small measure to our tradition of welcoming those who come to our shores in search of freedom and opportunity, individuals who repay us multiple times over through their hard work, creativity, and devotion to their new home. 

I believe in the American Dream.

I believe in the Constitution, the separation of powers, the First Amendment—especially the right to a free and independent press that holds those in power accountable, and to a free and independent judiciary.

I believe in the 14th Amendment’s guarantee of equal protection of the laws—for everyone, not just for those who look like me.

I believe that no person is above the law regardless of the office they hold or the uniform they wear. Those who break the law must be held accountable.

I believe that one measure of the justness of a society is how it treats its most vulnerable members.

I believe we must provide opportunity to those who may not encounter it on their own so that they may achieve their full potential.

I believe in the power of knowledge and ideas to change the world, of science and medicine to defeat disease, of the arts and humanities to illuminate the human condition.

This is just some of what I believe. I hope you will pause during these troubled times to ask what you believe. Even more importantly, I hope you will find the strength and determination to act on your beliefs—to repair and perfect this imperfect world. Those of us privileged to work or study at a place like this bear special responsibilities. As Luke teaches us, from those to whom much is given, much is expected.

Sincerely,

Larry

____________________

Lawrence S. Bacow
President
Harvard University