from drug dealers

私は最も大切な人生の教訓を

and gang members

麻薬ディーラーや

and prostitutes,

チンピラや

and I've had some of my most profound theological conversations

売春婦から学びました

not in the hallowed halls of a seminary

そして最も深遠なる神学的な会話を

but on a street corner

神聖な神学校のホールではなく

on a Friday night, at 1 a.m.

金曜 深夜１時の

That's a little unusual, since I am a Baptist minister, seminary-trained,

街角で行ってきました

and pastored a church for over 20 years,

私は神学校を卒業した バプテスト派の牧師で

but it's true.

教会を任されて20年以上ですから 少し変わっていると思うでしょうが

It came as a part of my participation

本当の話です

in a public safety crime reduction strategy

私は治安維持や犯罪削減に携わり

that saw a 79 percent reduction in violent crime

私は治安維持や犯罪削減に携わり

over an eight-year period in a major city.

大都市で８年間で 凶悪犯罪が

But I didn't start out wanting to be

79％減少するのを見てきました

a part of somebody's crime reduction strategy.

でも私は誰かのやり方で

I was 25, had my first church.

犯罪削減に携わりたいわけでは なかったのです

If you would have asked me what my ambition was,

私は25才で 最初の教会を任されました

I would have told you I wanted to be a megachurch pastor.

当時の私に夢を聞くなら

I wanted a 15-, 20,000-member church.

大きな教会の牧師になりたいと 答えたでしょう

I wanted my own television ministry.

信者数が１万５千人とか２万人の 教会が欲しかった

I wanted my own clothing line.

テレビ中継される 牧師になりたかった

(Laughter)

礼拝用の服もたくさん欲しかった

I wanted to be your long distance carrier.

(笑)

You know, the whole nine yards.

遠距離の信者も集めたかった

(Laughter)

何もかも欲しかったのです

After about a year of pastoring,

(笑)

my membership went up about 20 members.

牧師になって１年が過ぎた頃

So megachurchdom was way down the road.

会員は20人くらいに増えましたが

But seriously, if you'd have said, "What is your ambition?"

大教会は遥か彼方でした

I would have said just to be a good pastor,

でも もし真摯な夢を聞かれたなら

to be able to be with people through all the passages of life,

立派な牧師になることでした

to preach messages that would have an everyday meaning for folks,

人々のあらゆる人生の局面に寄り添い

and in the African-American tradition,

日常生活の意味を説き

to be able to represent the community that I serve.

アフリカ系アメリカ人の伝統に則って

But there was something else that was happening in my city

私の管轄区の代表に なりたかったのです

and in the entire metro area,

一方 私の街や大都市圏 そして

and in most metro areas in the United States,

アメリカの大半の主要都市で

and that was the homicide rate started to rise precipitously.

ある事態が起こりつつありました

And there were young people who were killing each other

殺人率が急激に上昇し始めたのです

for reasons that I thought were very trivial,

些細としか思えないことで

like bumping into someone in a high school hallway,

若者同士が殺し合うのです

and then after school, shooting the person.

例えば 高校の廊下で ぶつかった生徒を

Someone with the wrong color shirt on,

放課後撃つのです

on the wrong street corner at the wrong time.

最悪のタイミングで 危険な街角に

And something needed to be done about that.

着てはいけない色のシャツを着て 立っていたといって撃つのです

It got to the point where it started to change the character of the city.

なんとかする必要がありました

You could go to any housing project,

都市の雰囲気が 変わり始めていたのです

for example, like the one that was down the street from my church,

公営住宅に行ってみると ―

and you would walk in, and it would be like a ghost town,

私の教会から 少し行ったところにもありますが ―

because the parents wouldn't allow their kids to come out and play,

足を踏み入れると ゴーストタウンのようなのです

even in the summertime, because of the violence.

暴力がはびこっているせいで 夏であっても

You would listen in the neighborhoods on any given night,

親が子供を外で 遊ばせないからです

and to the untrained ear, it sounded like fireworks,

夜近所の音に耳を澄ませば

but it was gunfire.

慣れていないと 花火の音に聞こえるかもしれませんが

You'd hear it almost every night, when you were cooking dinner,

銃声がするのです

telling your child a bedtime story, or just watching TV.

ほぼ毎晩のように銃声がします 夕食を作っている時

And you can go to any emergency room at any hospital,

寝る前に子供に本を読んであげる時 テレビを見ている時に聞こえてくるのです

and you would see lying on gurneys

そして病院の緊急治療室に行けば

young black and Latino men shot and dying.

若い黒人やラテン系の男性が 撃たれて瀕死の状態で

And I was doing funerals,

担架に横たわっている光景を 目にします

but not of the venerated matriarchs and patriarchs who'd lived a long life

私は多くの葬儀を行いましたが

and there's a lot to say.

弔辞にも困らないような

I was doing funerals of 18-year-olds,

長寿を全うした 年配の方の葬儀ではないのです

17-year-olds,

執り行ったのは 18歳や

and 16-year-olds,

17歳 ―

and I was standing in a church or at a funeral home

16歳の子供たちの葬儀で

struggling to say something

教会や葬儀場に立って

that would make some meaningful impact.

心に響くことを言うには

And so while my colleagues were building these cathedrals great and tall

大変苦労しました

and buying property outside of the city

私の同僚が 高くて立派な大聖堂を建てたり

and moving their congregations out

郊外に不動産を買ったり

so that they could create or recreate their cities of God,

集会の場所を変えたりして

the social structures in the inner cities

「神の都市」を作ろうとしていた頃

were sagging under the weight of all of this violence.

市街地の社会構造は

And so I stayed, because somebody needed to do something,

この暴力の重圧に 押しつぶされていました

and so I had looked at what I had and moved on that.

だから私は留まりました 誰かがやらねばと思ったからです

I started to preach decrying the violence in the community.

自分が行ってきた使命を 考えてみました

And I started to look at the programming in my church,

私は地域社会の暴力を非難する 説教を始めました

and I started to build programs that would catch the at-risk youth,

自分の教会で礼拝を 企画することから始めました

those who were on the fence to the violence.

暴力を ただ傍観し 非行に走る恐れのある子供を

I even tried to be innovative in my preaching.

惹きつけようとしたのです

You all have heard of rap music, right?

自分の説教のスタイルを 変えてもみました

Rap music?

皆さん ラップをご存じですよね？

I even tried to rap sermon one time.

ラップですよ？

It didn't work, but at least I tried it.

一度ラップで説教をやりました

I'll never forget the young person who came to me after that sermon.

失敗でしたが とにかくやったのです

He waited until everybody was gone,

説教後に若者が私の所にやってきたのが 忘れられません

and he said, "Rev, rap sermon, huh?" And I was like, "Yeah, what do you think?"

彼は皆が居なくなるまで 待って言いました

And he said, "Don't do that again, Rev."

「牧師さん ラップで説教かよ？」 「どうだった？」と聞くと

(Laughter)

「二度とするな」と言われました

But I preached and I built these programs,

(笑)

and I thought maybe if my colleagues did the same

それでも私は説教をし これらの企画を作り

that it would make a difference.

もし同僚が同じことをしたのなら

But the violence just careened out of control,

結果は違っていたかと悩みました

and people who were not involved in the violence were getting shot and killed:

手に負えないほど 暴力の勢いが強く

somebody going to buy a pack of cigarettes at a convenience store,

暴力とは直接関わりのない人々が 撃たれたり殺されたりしました

or someone who was sitting at a bus stop just waiting for a bus,

コンビニでタバコを 一箱買おうとする人や

or kids who were playing in the park,

バスを待つため 停留所に座っている人

oblivious to the violence on the other side of the park,

公園の片隅で起こった暴力に

but it coming and visiting them.

気付かずに遊んでいた子供たちです

Things were out of control,

でも暴力が彼らの世界に入り込んでくるのです

and I didn't know what to do,

事態は制御不能で

and then something happened that changed everything for me.

自分のすべきことが 分かりませんでしたが

It was a kid by the name of Jesse McKie,

私の全てを変えるようなことが 起こりました

walking home with his friend Rigoberto Carrion

ジェシー・ミッキーという子どもが

to the housing project down the street from my church.

友達のリゴベルト・キャリーオンと一緒に

They met up with a group of youth who were from a gang in Dorchester,

私の教会の先にある 公営住宅に歩いて帰る途中

and they were killed.

ドーチェスターの チンピラのグループと出会い

But as Jesse was running from the scene mortally wounded,

殺されたのです

he was running in the direction of my church,

ジェシーは致命傷を負った現場から

and he died some 100, 150 yards away.

私の教会の方向へ逃げましたが

If he would have gotten to the church, it wouldn't have made a difference,

あと100mか150mの所で 息絶えました

because the lights were out; nobody was home.

教会に逃げ込んでいても 何も変わらなかったでしょう

And I took that as a sign.

明かりが消え 誰もいなかったからです

When they caught some of the youth that had done this deed,

私はそれを神の啓示と捉えました

to my surprise, they were around my age,

犯人のチンピラを捕まえてみると

but the gulf that was between us was vast.

なんと 私と同世代だったのです

It was like we were in two completely different worlds.

しかし 私たちの隔たりは大きく

And so as I contemplated all of this

あたかも全く違う二つの世界で 暮らしているかのようでした

and looked at what was happening,

私はこのことを深く考え

I suddenly realized that there was a paradox that was emerging inside of me,

何が起こったのか調べました

and the paradox was this: in all of those sermons

そして突然 私の内なる矛盾に 気付いたのです

that I preached decrying the violence,

その矛盾とは 説教では

I was also talking about building community,

暴力を非難し

but I suddenly realized

地域社会の再建を話してきたのに

that there was a certain segment of the population

私の地域社会の定義には

that I was not including in my definition of community.

含まれていない階層の人々がいることに

And so the paradox was this:

突然 気付いたのです

If I really wanted the community that I was preaching for,

つまり こういうことです

I needed to reach out

本当に私が 自分の管轄区が欲しいなら

and embrace this group that I had cut out of my definition.

私の定義から外れた人々に

Which meant not about building programs

手を差し伸べ 受け入れる必要があったのです

to catch those who were on the fences of violence,

暴力を傍観している人たちを

but to reach out and to embrace those who were committing the acts of violence,

惹きつける企画を作るだけでなく

the gang bangers, the drug dealers.

暴力に関わっている人たち ― 暴力団員や麻薬ディーラーに

As soon as I came to that realization, a quick question came to my mind.

手を差し伸べ 受け入れるのです

Why me?

それに気付いて すぐに疑問が頭をもたげました

I mean, isn't this a law enforcement issue?

「どうして私が？」

This is why we have the police, right?

警察の問題ではないかと 思ったのです

As soon as the question, "Why me?" came, the answer came just as quickly:

そのために警察がいるのですよね？

Why me? Because I'm the one who can't sleep at night thinking about it.

でも 疑問がわいた直後に 答えも見つかりました

Because I'm the one looking around saying somebody needs to do something about this,

暴力のことを考えだすと 夜も眠れないのは 私だからです

and I'm starting to realize that that someone is me.

誰かが何とかする必要があると 思っているのは 私だからです

I mean, isn't that how movements start anyway?

そして その誰かこそ 自分だと気付きました

They don't start with a grand convention and people coming together

運動とは こうして始まるものでしょう？

and then walking in lockstep with a statement.

初めから大きな集会に沢山 人が集まって

But it starts with just a few, or maybe just one.

横断幕を掲げて 行進するわけではないのです

It started with me that way,

最初は ほんの数人 一人だけかも知れません

and so I decided to figure out the culture of violence

始めの頃はそんな具合でした

in which these young people who were committing them existed,

私は若者が関与する暴力文化を

and I started to volunteer at the high school.

解明することにし

After about two weeks of volunteering at the high school,

高校でボランティアを始めました

I realized that the youth that I was trying to reach,

ボランティアを始めて ２週間が過ぎた頃

they weren't going to high school.

探している若者は

I started to walk in the community,

高校に行っていないことに 気付きました

and it didn't take a rocket scientist to realize that they weren't out

私は地域を歩くようになりました

during the day.

彼らが昼間に外出しないことは

So I started to walk the streets at night, late at night,

天才じゃなくてもわかります

going into the parks where they were,

だから 私は深夜の路上を 歩き始めました

building the relationship that was necessary.

彼らのいる公園へ行き

A tragedy happened in Boston that brought a number of clergy together,

必要な関係を築きました

and there was a small cadre of us who came to the realization

ボストンで起こった悲劇は 聖職者を団結させました

that we had to come out of the four walls of our sanctuary

私を含め数人が悟ったのは 四方を壁に囲まれた教会から出て

and meet the youth where they were,

若者たちに会いに行く必要が

and not try to figure out how to bring them in.

あるということでした

And so we decided to walk together,

教会に連れて来るのではないのです

and we would get together

そこで私たちは

in one of the most dangerous neighborhoods in the city

一緒に歩くことにしました

on a Friday night and on a Saturday night

その町で最も危険な場所の一つで

at 10 p.m.,

金曜日と土曜日の

and we would walk until 2 or 3 in the morning.

夜10時に集まって

I imagine we were quite the anomaly when we first started walking.

深夜２時とか３時まで 歩き回りました

I mean, we weren't drug dealers.

歩き始めた最初の頃 自分たちを例外だと思っていました

We weren't drug customers.

麻薬ディーラーでも

We weren't the police. Some of us would have collars on.

麻薬の顧客でも

It was probably a really odd thing.

警察でもないからです 牧師の印の白い襟を付けた人もいました

But they started speaking to us after a while,

多分とても変だったでしょう

and what we found out is that

しばらくすると 若者たちと会話するようになりました

while we were walking, they were watching us,

そして気付いたことは

and they wanted to make sure of a couple of things:

私たちが歩いている間 彼らは 私たちを見て

that number one, we were going to be consistent in our behavior,

２つのことを確かめていたのです

that we would keep coming out there;

その１：そこに来た私たちの態度に

and then secondly, they had wanted to make sure

一貫性があるのか

that we weren't out there to exploit them.

その２：若者を利用するために

Because there was always somebody who would say,

来たわけではないこと

"We're going to take back the streets,"

というのも 「安全な通りを取り戻す」と

but they would always seem to have a television camera with them,

主張する人間はいつでも

or a reporter,

テレビカメラやレポーターと

and they would enhance their own reputation

一緒にいるようだったからです

to the detriment of those on the streets.

自分の名声を高めるために

So when they saw that we had none of that,

路上の若者を利用しているのです

they decided to talk to us.

だから私たちが 誰も連れていないのを見て

And then we did an amazing thing for preachers.

話しかけてきたのです

We decided to listen and not preach.

そして私たちは 牧師としては驚くべき態度に出ました

Come on, give it up for me.

説教はせず 聞くことにしたのです

(Laughter) (Applause)

さあ 拍手してくださいよ

All right, come on, you're cutting into my time now, okay? (Laughter)

(笑) (拍手)

But it was amazing.

私の時間に 食い込んでますよ (笑)

We said to them, "We don't know our own communities after 9 p.m. at night,

でも 素晴らしかった

between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m.,

彼らに こう話しかけました 「私たちは夜９時以降の地域の様子 ―

but you do.

夜９時から朝５時までの様子を知らないが

You are the subject matter experts, if you will, of that period of time.

君たちは知っている

So talk to us. Teach us.

君たちは夜の時間帯の エキスパートなんだ

Help us to see what we're not seeing.

だから私たちに教えてほしい

Help us to understand what we're not understanding."

私たちに見えないことが見えるように

And they were all too happy to do that,

理解していないことを 理解できるように手伝ってほしい」

and we got an idea of what life on the streets was all about,

若者は喜んでやってくれました

very different than what you see on the 11 o'clock news,

私たちはストリートでの暮らしが 分かってきました

very different than what is portrayed in popular media and even social media.

11時のニュース報道とは全然違うのです

And as we were talking with them,

人気メディアやソーシャルメディアの報道とも 全然違うのです

a number of myths were dispelled about them with us.

若者たちと話しているうちに

And one of the biggest myths was that these kids were cold and heartless

彼らに対する偏見が 消えて行きました

and uncharacteristically bold in their violence.

ひどい偏見の一つは この子たちは冷たく残酷で

What we found out was the exact opposite.

暴力を好むというものです

Most of the young people who were out there on the streets

私たちが見たのは その真逆の姿です

are just trying to make it on the streets.

路上にいる若者の大半は

And we also found out

そこでうまく生活しようとしています

that some of the most intelligent and creative

さらに分かったことは

and magnificent and wise

ストリートには 私たちが今まで会った中で

people that we've ever met

最も知的で クリエイティブで 堂々として

were on the street, engaged in a struggle.

賢い若者たちがいて

And I know some of them call it survival, but I call them overcomers,

そこで闘っていたのです

because when you're in the conditions that they're in,

それをサバイバルと呼ぶ若者もいますが 私は克服だと思います

to be able to live every day is an accomplishment of overcoming.

彼らのような状況に置かれると

And as a result of that, we said to them,