In 1989, an artist by the name of Dread Scott, who has also graced the TED stage, created a piece of art in Chicago,
在1989年，德拉得·斯科特，一位也曾在TED舞台上亮相过的艺术家，在芝加哥创造了一件艺术作品，
where he simply placed an American flag on the ground and then invited you the viewer to go and stand on that flag and record how it felt in a journal.
他只是简单地把美国国旗铺在地上，随后邀请人们前往参观，站在那面旗帜上，并在一本日记本上记录下自己的感受。
And to me, one of the most powerful things written in that journal, in essence, says,
对我来说，那本日记中最强有力的一段文字是：“
"Why are we so OK with homeless people, with human beings laying on the ground, but not flags?"
为什么我们可以接受无家可归的人，那些有生命的人躺在地上，而非旗帜？”
And to some of you, this piece of art is quite disturbing.
这幅作品可能会让你们有些人感到不舒服。
And that's kind of the point of this talk -- not to upset you or to make you mad but to prove to you that flags have an incredible power,
不过这似乎是我此次演讲的意义--不是为了让你感到不爽或生气，而是向你证明旗帜有着令人难以置信的力量，
and that even if you think you don't care about flags, you do. You know you do. Alright.
即使你认为自己不在乎它，但其实你是在乎的，而且你知道这一点。好了。
By the end of it, I hope that you're inspired to go out and harness this power of flags and fight for a better world.
在演讲的最后，我希望你能受到些许启发，走出去，驾驭旗帜的力量，并为更美好的世界而奋斗。
But before we get there, we're going to start on the opposite end of the spectrum.
但在那之前，我们需要从其对立面开启这一话题。
And before I show you the next stuff, I need to say that anything I show here is not an endorsement, it's usually quite the opposite.
在我展示下一张幻灯片前，我需要说明：我在这儿展示的任何东西，都不代表个人的支持或认可，通常是相反的情况。
But more than anything, what I want to do is create a space here where we can look at these flags, these designs, and examine how they make us feel.
但最重要的是，我想要在这儿创建一个空间，我们可以看看那些旗帜、它们的设计，并且研究它们到底给予了我们什么样的感受。
We're going to talk about our emotions. Is that OK with everybody? OK.
我们将要谈论自己的情绪。大家没问题吧？好。
Are you ready for your first flag? Cool, we'll start with an easy one. That was a joke.
准备好面对你的第一面旗了吗？很好，我们先从轻松的开始。开个玩笑。
So, some of you may be a little bit uneasy sitting in a room with this.
在座有些人和这面旗共处一室，或许会产生一些不安的情绪。
I'm certainly feeling uneasy standing in front of it. Some of you may be feeling a little bit of pride.
我站在它前面绝对感到了不安。而你们有些人可能会感到骄傲自豪。
And that's understandable. This is Texas. This is not a rare sight, is it?
这是可以理解的。这是德克萨斯州。这并不罕见，对吧？
But let's start with the facts. So this is not the Confederate flag. OK?
不过让我们先明确一些事实。首先，这不是联邦旗。
This is the battle flag of the Army of Northern Virginia led by General Robert E. Lee.
这是由罗伯特·李将军领导的北弗吉尼亚军队的战旗。
So next time someone tells you that this is their heritage, unless their family fought for that very specific militia, they're wrong, alright?
所以下次有人告诉你这是他们的文化遗产，除非他们的家族有人曾加入那只军队，参与过战争，不然他们的说辞是错误的。
And you have a flag expert's permission to tell them so.
你可以这样告诉他们，因为旗帜专家是这么说的。
This flag rose into prominence during the mid-1950s and '60s as a response to the growing Civil Rights Movement.
在20世纪50年代和60年代中期，随着民权运动不断发展，作为一种回应，该旗帜的重要性日渐突显。
And then of course today, it has come to represent the Confederacy to most of us.
当然，到了今天，这面旗在我们大多数人眼里代表的是南方联盟。
But I shouldn't have to remind you what the Confederacy is.
但我应该不用提醒你什么是联盟。
It was a rogue nation that rose up against the United States, waged war on the US,
那是一个流氓般的国度，反对美利坚合众国，首先发起了战争，
and at one point in time, this was one of the most un-American things you could have.
曾在历史的某个时刻，这是一件绝非美国的人会做的事。
But yet, this flag is protected by the same laws that protect the United States flag in the states of Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Mississippi and Louisiana.
不过，这面旗帜受到了在佛罗里达、佐治亚州、南卡罗来纳州、密西西比州和路易斯安那州保护美国国旗的相同法律的保护。
But let's pick on Georgia for a second, shall we?
让我们看看佐治亚州，怎么样？
So in 1956, a few years after desegregation was mandated in public schools, Georgia changed their state flag to this.
在1956年，在公立学校要求取消种族隔离的几年后，佐治亚州的州旗被换成了这个。
I think everyone watching can agree that this was not meant to be a flag that every Georgian was proud to fly outside of their home, was it? No.
我想你们每个看着这面旗的人都会同意，这不是一面每个佐治亚州人会自豪的挂在在门外的旗帜，对吧？是的。
Just like all of the Confederate statues erected in the mid-1950s and '60s, this was meant to be a symbol of who was in charge and who was not.
这就像在1950至1960年代中期竖立起的联盟雕像一般，这象征着谁手握权力，而谁手中无权。
This remained the flag of Georgia until the year 2001, and in that year, they changed their flag to this.
这面旗帜作为佐治亚州的州旗一直保留到了2001年，在那一年，他们将旗帜换成了这个。
Now, as a flag expert, I can tell you: this is officially ugly. OK? It's OK to laugh at this flag.
现在，作为一个旗帜专家，我能告诉你：这面旗奇丑无比。是吧？你想笑也没关系。
It's ugly, and because it's so ugly, that's one of the reasons they changed it just two years later.
这面旗很丑，因为它太丑了，所以仅在两年后，这成为了更改旗帜设计的原因之一。
They had a referendum where they got to choose between that thing and then what is now the current flag of Georgia.
他们进行了一次公投，要人们从这两面旗帜中选一个，于是这面旗成了现在佐治亚州的州旗。
Now some of you might be wondering, "Wait a second, Michael -- if that before wasn't the Confederate flag, what was the Confederate flag?"
在座的有些人可能会想：“等等，迈克尔--如果之前的那个不是联盟旗，那什么是联盟旗？”
Georgia flies the first flag of the Confederate States of America to this day. They just slapped their state seal on it.
乔治亚州直至今日依旧悬挂着美利坚联盟国的第一面旗帜。他们只是在那上面盖了个代表乔治亚州的章。
Well, let's go back to our emotions for a second.
让我们平复一下情绪。
That didn't punch you in the gut as much as the other one did, did it? Right? And that's why I love flags.
这并没有像另一面旗帜一样那么令人厌烦，不是吗？对吧？这就是我喜欢旗帜的原因。
They are the simplest pieces of design, usually just two or three colors, just some bars or stripes.
它们有着最简单的设计，通常只是两三种颜色，外加一些条纹。
But yet, they can invoke the deepest emotions within us.
但它们仍然能唤起我们内心最深处的情感。
They'll make us swell with pride or burn with hatred. We will die for a flag or even kill for one.
它们会让我们变得骄傲自满，或是激发仇恨。我们会为了一面旗帜而亡，甚至是残杀他人。
One of my favorite designers, his name is Wally Olins, they call him the father of nation branding,
我最爱的设计师之一名为沃利·奧林斯，人们称他为国家品牌之父。
and he's quoted as saying that "Everyone wants to belong, and then they want to display symbols of belonging."
他曾说过：“每个人都想要有归属感，于是他们就会想要展示归属的标志。”
And it's crazy that these pieces of cloth that are just sewn together or dyed come to be such a sacred item,
这些被缝到一起或是被染上颜色的布料变成了如此神圣的东西，这真的很疯狂，
and that's because they become parts of our identity.
而这是因为这些经过处理的布料成为了代表我们身份的一部分。
They are powerful tools to unify but equally powerful tools to divide.
它们是强大的工具，可以团结个体，也可以分裂众人。
You ready for the next flag? Right. Take a moment. Really examine how you felt when this hit the screen.
你们准备好看下一面旗了吗？好，花点时间。切实体会一下你在屏幕上看到这面旗时的感受。
I'm going to change the slide pretty quickly so you don't take pictures of me in front of this one.
我会快速地切换这张幻灯片，防止你们把这面旗当做背景给我拍照。
Alright? So Germany after World War I, it was in a pretty bad state,
好吗？那么，一战后的德国处在一个相当糟糕的状态，
and a young Adolf Hitler had a lot of -- let's call them -- "ideas," of how Germany got to where they'd gotten and how to get them out.
一位名叫阿道夫·希特勒的年轻人有很多所谓的“想法”，即德国是如何沦落到这个地步的，以及如何摆脱这个困境。
He spent entire chapters in his book "Mein Kampf," which I don't recommend reading,
他在自传《我的奋斗》中，我不是很推荐大家去阅读，
about how Germany lost World War I partially because the British had better graphic design and better propaganda.
用了整个章节详述了德国为何在一战中失利，部分原因是英国人更善于图形设计以及政治宣传。
So, as the Nazi Party rose, Hitler created one of the thickest brand guides I've ever seen.
所以当纳粹党崛起时，希特勒创作了我所见过的最厚的一本品牌指南。
It's thicker than most company brand guides today, and in it, he details titles and uniforms and lots and lots of flags.
它比如今绝大多数公司的品牌指南都要厚，而且在其中，他详细描述了头衔、制服，以及很多很多旗帜的使用。
Hitler knew the power of flags. He says in "Mein Kampf," "The new flag should prove effective as a large poster,
希特勒知道旗帜的力量。他在《我的奋斗》中写道：“新的旗帜，应该和大尺寸宣传海报一样有效，
in hundreds of thousands of cases a really striking emblem may be the first cause of awakening interest in a movement."
因为在成百上千的情况下，一个真正醒目的标志可能是人们对一项运动产生兴趣的首要原因。”
He was an artist, after all. He knew the power of visual identity and uniforms could reignite the German identity.
他到底是一名艺术家。非常了解视觉识别和制服的力量能够重新激发德国人的身份认同。
And to millions of Germans, this was a welcome sign. But of course, this was also a mark of death to others.
对于上百万德国人来说，这曾是一个备受欢迎的标志。但当然，对于其他人来说，这也曾是一个死亡的标志。
We don't often think of flags as weapons, but like the Confederate battle flag,
我们通常不认为旗帜是一种武器，但是就像联盟国的战旗，
the Germans used their flag to make an out-group feel unwelcome and less than.
德国人也用他们的旗帜来使外族感到自己不受欢迎，而且低等。
You see, when you create a flag, you immediately do two things:
要知道，当你设计了一面旗，同时也做了两件事：
you create an in-group, a group that's meant to be represented by the symbol, but then, inevitably, you create an out-group.
你创造了圈内群体，一个被旗帜所代表的群体，但不可避免的是，你也创造了一个圈外群体。
And usually, that's subtle. It's a byproduct. It's usually not the intent.
而且通常，这难以发现。这是一个副产物，也不是旗帜诞生的意图。
But the Germans were very clear as to who was represented by the swastika and who was not.
但是德国人非常明确卐代表了哪些人，谁又被排除在其外。
In 1935, Jewish people were banned from flying German flags.
在1935年，犹太人被禁止悬挂德国国旗。
And in this way, the Germans, maybe more than any other time in history, used the dual power of flags to unite but also to divide.
如此一来，德国人可能比历史上的任何时候都更能使用旗帜的双重力量来制造团结，同时也制造了分裂。
Flags were used as identity weapons.
旗帜被用作了身份武器。

And now, in 2019, the Nazi flag is banned from being flown by anyone in Germany and anyone in Austria, in Hungary, in Russia and in Ukraine.
如今，在2019年，在德国、奥地利、匈牙利、俄罗斯和乌克兰的任何人都被禁止悬挂纳粹旗帜。
Think about that. It's a piece of cloth, but it's banned. On its face, that sounds crazy.
想想看，这只是一块布，却被下了禁令。表面上，这听起来很夸张。
But I don't think anyone in this room would disagree that it's probably good. Sounds a lot like a weapon.
但我认为我们在座的所有人都会认同说：这可能是件好事。听起来真的很像一种武器。
As a vexillologist, sometimes the most interesting thing about a flag is not so much its design, but it's those laws around the flag.
作为一名旗帜研究人员，有时候一面旗最有意思的地方并非是其设计，而是与这面旗相关的法律。
For instance, in India, to create an Indian flag, you must use a hand-spun cloth named "khadi."
比如，在印度，为了制造一面印度国旗，你必须使用一种名为khadi的手纺布。
If you make a flag out of anything else, you could go to jail for up to three years. It's crazy.
如果你用其它布料制造国旗，可能会被判入狱多达三年。这太疯狂了。
Here in Texas, we've all heard that the Texas flag is the only state flag that can fly at the same height as the US, flag, right?
在这里，德克萨斯州，我们都听说过只有德克萨斯的州旗才能上升至同美国国旗一样的高度，对吧？
Because we were a nation before we were a state. Who here has heard that? Yeah.
因为在我们成为一个州之前是一个国家。在座谁听到过这个说法？对吧。
Well, I'm here to tell you that is completely false. OK?
而我在这里要说的是，这个说法完全是错的。
First of all, we were not the only state that was a nation before joining up.
首先，我们并非是唯一一个有着国家历史身份的州。
And secondly, all state flags can fly at the same height as the US flag according to the US flag code.
其次，根据美国的国旗法规，所有州旗都能上升至同美国国旗一样的高度。
And I don't have to ask you how you feel about this one, right?
我不需要问你你的感受如何，对吧？
Most of us grew up pledging allegiance to this every morning, knowing we should never let it touch the ground, etc.
我们大多数人成长的过程中，每日清晨都效忠国旗，并且知道我们不能让国旗掉到地上，等等。
We take our flag code very seriously here in the United States.
在美国，我们真的非常重视国旗法规。
You remember, recently some NFL players kneeling during the national anthem. It was a big controversy.
最近一些职业橄榄球大联盟（NFL）运动员在播放国歌时跪下。这引发了一场巨大争议。
They were breaking the flag code. It states during the national anthem, stand at attention, hand at the heart, etc.
因为他们违反了国旗法规。国旗法规定在国歌播放期间，人们需要立正，并将手放在心脏上，等等。
But what was fascinating to me as a vexillologist is that I didn't see anyone getting upset when something like this happens.
但对我来说，作为一名旗帜专家，最令我着迷的是，我没有看到任何人因运动员此举的发生而不安和生气。
The flag code says, "The flag should never be carried flat or horizontally, but always aloft and free."
国旗法规同样规定：国旗永不应该被水平放置，而始终应该自由悬挂。
So sometimes during the exact same national anthem, this was being done, and no one's upset.
但有时候，在播放同一首国歌的时候，你会看到这样的场景，然而没有人为此不满。
Or this. This happens all the time. The flag code is clear: "No part of the flag should ever be used as a costume or on an athletic uniform."
或是这样，这时常发生。国旗法规明确规定：国旗不可被用于服装设计或是运动员制服。
This is Texas A&M baseball, not to get them in trouble, but this happens all the time, especially in November.
这是德克萨斯州M&A棒球队，我不是想给他们招惹麻烦，但这样的事时常发生，尤其在11月。
I'm sure, I can almost guarantee when you leave here tonight,
我几乎可以保证，你今晚在离开这里的时候，
you will see on the back of someone's car or truck a black and white American flag with a blue stripe, a thin blue line, right?
会在某人的私家车，或货车背后看到黑白色的美国国旗，上面有着一根蓝条，一根细蓝条。
Blue Lives Matter. That breaks the flag code in multiple ways.
警察的命也是命。这行为在各种程度上都违反了国旗法规。
But all of these things are done with the best intent. No one's here to argue that.
但是所有这些事情的发生，都源于人们最美好的初衷。我们没有人会反对这点。
But of course they break a section of the flag code titled "Respect for the Flag,"
但当然，他们违反了国旗法中“尊重国旗”这一章节，
so by putting this on your uniform, you are legally disrespecting the flag.
所以如果你把国旗放在了你的制服上，在法律上你就是不尊重国旗。
And what I find interesting is that those NFL players kneeling during the anthem
而我发现，很有意思的是，那些NFL运动员在播放国歌时下跪，
and the people who would put Blue Lives Matters stickers on their car are both on the opposite end of a very big issue,
以及那些会把Blue Lives Matter贴纸贴在车上的人，两者在一个很大的问题上意见相左。
but they're both breaking the exact same law, a law that is 100 percent unenforceable.
不过他们同时在违反同样的法律，一个零执行率的法律。
In fact, it was Dread Scott's piece of art in 1989 that led the Supreme Court to rule that the flag code is just a guideline.
实际上，正是德拉得·斯科特于1989年创造那个艺术作品，导致最高法院裁定国旗法只是一个准则。
You cannot be prosecuted for breaking the flag code. You cannot be forced to be patriotic.
如果违反国旗法，你是不能被起诉的。你也不能被强行爱国。
So why, then, have all of these little laws around how we use our flag if you can't enforce them?
不过如果你无法执行这些关于国旗的各种法律，那你为什么要制定它们？
And that's because a nation is a fragile collective idea. It only exists in our minds.
这是因为，国家是一个脆弱的集体概念，仅存在于我们的思想中。
Can I see this? Thank you. Sometimes a flag is the only tangible symbol of that idea. Right?
我能看看这个吗？谢谢。有时，一面旗帜是那个概念唯一的可见标志。对吧？
Our unity is sometimes only held together by literal threads. And that's powerful.
我们的团结有时候真的只是靠旗帜来维系。那是十分强大的。
The flag code is meant to preserve and protect that fragile idea, while also protecting your right to break it.
国旗法规存在的意义是为了保留并保护那个脆弱的概念，同时也在保护你违反国旗法规的权力。
And that's what's special about the United States, right?
这就是我们美国的特别之处，对吧？
And that's what's unique about our flag. Our flag is amazing. It has changed more than any other flag in the world.
而且这也是我们国旗的独特之处。我们的国旗真的很棒。在世界范围内，其设计外观的变化次数是最多的。
It's the flag code that says when a new state is created, a star shall be added to the union of the flag,
这也是国旗法规的规定：当有一个新州诞生，应当在国旗的合众群星中，加入一颗星，
and such addition shall take place on the fourth day of July.
而且这一添星流程应当在七月的第四天进行。
Our flag is unique because it is meant to grow as we grow.
我们的国旗是独一无二的，因为随着我们的壮大，它也注定会成长。
By design and by law, it is meant to change with us.
不论依据设计，还是法律，我们的国旗注定跟随我们的国家命运而改变。
It's a living symbol of our individuality, our diversity in the stars and our unity.
这是代表了众多星星中蕴含的个性、多样性，还有团结的一个鲜活标志。
We have a gift in the United States to have a flag that is inclusive.
这是一份礼物——我们美国有着这样一面具有包容性的国旗。
If the Nazi flag was an identity weapon, the United States flag, by design alone, stands in direct contrast.
如果纳粹旗帜曾是身份武器，美国国旗，仅就设计而言，就已经站在前者的对立面了。
And I have to say, as a vexillologist in 2019, using this flag as an identity weapon against anyone disrespects it
我不得不说，作为一名旗帜专家，在2019年，使用这面旗作为一种身份武器来对抗任何人都是对这面国旗的不尊重，
far more than letting it touch the ground or any one of the other little laws that we break every day. Right?
这远比让国旗触地，或是每天都在发生的任何一种违反法规的情况都要严重。对吧？
This flag is a symbol of our unity. We should never use this as a weapon against someone else.
这面国旗是我们团结的象征。我们永远不应该利用这面旗帜作为武器，来对抗他人。
I resonate so deeply with the person who wrote in Dread Scott's journal,
我与在德拉得·斯科特的日记本上写下这段话的人产生了深刻的共鸣：
"We should never value the symbol over the thing that it symbolizes. We should never value a piece of cloth over a human life."
“我们永远不应该视符号的价值高于该符号所象征事物的价值。我们永远不应该认为一面旗帜比一个人的生命更重要。”
And if you're ever going to use a piece of cloth as a weapon, you should never use this one, not when it has always had room for more stars.
如果你要将旗帜变成武器，你永远不应该使用这面国旗，更何况这面旗上一直为更多的星星留有空间。
Hopefully by now, you've felt the power of flags, and you can see what they can do.
希望现在你已经感受到了旗帜的力量，也看到了那些旗帜的可能性。
So what if we harnessed that power, and we used it to fight for something greater?
要是我们能驾驭这股力量，并为更伟大的共同事业而奋斗会怎样？
This is the flag of Earth, designed by Oskar Pernefeldt of Sweden.
这是地球的旗帜，由瑞典人奥斯卡·佩内费尔特设计。
Just imagine with me for a second: What if we celebrated our humanity as much if not more than we celebrate our nationalities?
和我一起想象一下：如果我们高歌人类的程度与呼喊我们国家的程度一致，甚至更多呢？
As we become a spacefaring civilization and we go off into the stars,
当我们变为一种太空文明，潜入星空，
what do our nations mean anyway when you're standing on the surface of Mars or any other planet?
当你站在火星或其它星球的表面，我们的国家还代表什么？
And then of course, back here on Earth, as our planet is facing a climate crisis,
当然，回到地球，当我们的星球面临气候危机，
as our climate could be unlivable in our children or grandchildren's lifetime,
当我们赖以生存的气候环境在我们的子孙年代变得不宜居住时，
I believe we need a strong symbol, a flag, to unite us to fight, not just as nations, but as a species. Thank you.
我相信我们需要一个强有力的标志，一面旗帜，团结人类共同奋斗，不仅作为国家，而是作为一个物种。谢谢。