[Script Info] Title: [Events] Format: Layer, Start, End, Style, Name, MarginL, MarginR, MarginV, Effect, Text Dialogue: 0,0:00:00.87,0:00:03.51,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,As a student of adversity, Dialogue: 0,0:00:04.31,0:00:09.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I've been struck over the years\Nby how some people with major challenges Dialogue: 0,0:00:09.64,0:00:11.98,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,seem to draw strength from them. Dialogue: 0,0:00:12.65,0:00:16.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I've heard the popular wisdom\Nthat that has to do with finding meaning. Dialogue: 0,0:00:16.94,0:00:18.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And for a long time, Dialogue: 0,0:00:18.42,0:00:20.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I thought the meaning was out there, Dialogue: 0,0:00:20.82,0:00:23.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,some great truth waiting to be found. Dialogue: 0,0:00:23.98,0:00:25.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But over time, Dialogue: 0,0:00:25.64,0:00:28.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I've come to feel\Nthat the truth is irrelevant. Dialogue: 0,0:00:28.59,0:00:30.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We call it "finding meaning," Dialogue: 0,0:00:30.80,0:00:34.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but we might better call\Nit "forging meaning." Dialogue: 0,0:00:34.98,0:00:37.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,My last book was about\Nhow families manage to deal Dialogue: 0,0:00:37.95,0:00:41.66,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,with various kinds of challenging\Nor unusual offspring. Dialogue: 0,0:00:42.30,0:00:44.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And one of the mothers I interviewed, Dialogue: 0,0:00:44.49,0:00:47.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who had two children\Nwith multiple severe disabilities, Dialogue: 0,0:00:47.48,0:00:52.18,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,said to me, "People always give us\Nthese little sayings like, Dialogue: 0,0:00:52.20,0:00:55.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,'God doesn't give you\Nany more than you can handle.' Dialogue: 0,0:00:55.79,0:01:00.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But children like ours\Nare not preordained as a gift. Dialogue: 0,0:01:01.14,0:01:02.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They're a gift Dialogue: 0,0:01:02.32,0:01:05.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because that's what we have chosen." Dialogue: 0,0:01:06.68,0:01:10.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We make those choices all our lives. Dialogue: 0,0:01:11.35,0:01:13.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,When I was in second grade, Dialogue: 0,0:01:13.42,0:01:16.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Bobby Finkel had a birthday party Dialogue: 0,0:01:16.30,0:01:19.57,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and invited everyone in our class but me. Dialogue: 0,0:01:20.64,0:01:23.13,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,My mother assumed\Nthere had been some sort of error, Dialogue: 0,0:01:23.16,0:01:24.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and she called Mrs. Finkel, Dialogue: 0,0:01:24.82,0:01:29.43,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who said that Bobby didn't like me\Nand didn't want me at his party. Dialogue: 0,0:01:30.02,0:01:33.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And that day, my mom took me to the zoo Dialogue: 0,0:01:33.24,0:01:35.15,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and out for a hot fudge sundae. Dialogue: 0,0:01:36.05,0:01:37.95,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,When I was in seventh grade, Dialogue: 0,0:01:37.98,0:01:42.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,one of the kids on my school bus\Nnicknamed me "Percy," Dialogue: 0,0:01:42.32,0:01:44.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as a shorthand for my demeanor. Dialogue: 0,0:01:45.01,0:01:50.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And sometimes, he and his cohort\Nwould chant that provocation Dialogue: 0,0:01:50.08,0:01:52.11,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the entire school bus ride, Dialogue: 0,0:01:52.14,0:01:55.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,45 minutes up, 45 minutes back: Dialogue: 0,0:01:55.77,0:01:59.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Percy! Percy! Percy! Percy!" Dialogue: 0,0:02:00.57,0:02:04.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,When I was in eighth grade,\Nour science teacher told us Dialogue: 0,0:02:04.78,0:02:08.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that all male homosexuals\Ndevelop fecal incontinence Dialogue: 0,0:02:08.82,0:02:11.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because of the trauma\Nto their anal sphincter. Dialogue: 0,0:02:13.29,0:02:17.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I graduated high school\Nwithout ever going to the cafeteria, Dialogue: 0,0:02:17.94,0:02:21.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where I would have sat with the girls\Nand been laughed at for doing so, Dialogue: 0,0:02:21.86,0:02:23.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or sat with the boys, Dialogue: 0,0:02:23.62,0:02:27.45,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and been laughed at for being a boy\Nwho should be sitting with the girls. Dialogue: 0,0:02:28.03,0:02:33.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I survived that childhood\Nthrough a mix of avoidance and endurance. Dialogue: 0,0:02:33.80,0:02:35.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What I didn't know then Dialogue: 0,0:02:35.58,0:02:37.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and do know now, Dialogue: 0,0:02:37.08,0:02:42.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is that avoidance and endurance\Ncan be the entryway to forging meaning. Dialogue: 0,0:02:44.37,0:02:46.51,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,After you've forged meaning, Dialogue: 0,0:02:46.53,0:02:50.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,you need to incorporate that meaning\Ninto a new identity. Dialogue: 0,0:02:50.92,0:02:52.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You need to take the traumas Dialogue: 0,0:02:52.80,0:02:56.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and make them part\Nof who you've come to be, Dialogue: 0,0:02:56.10,0:02:59.09,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and you need to fold\Nthe worst events of your life Dialogue: 0,0:02:59.11,0:03:01.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,into a narrative of triumph, Dialogue: 0,0:03:01.32,0:03:05.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,evincing a better self\Nin response to things that hurt. Dialogue: 0,0:03:06.49,0:03:10.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,One of the other mothers I interviewed\Nwhen I was working on my book Dialogue: 0,0:03:10.82,0:03:13.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,had been raped as an adolescent, Dialogue: 0,0:03:13.17,0:03:16.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and had a child following that rape, Dialogue: 0,0:03:16.18,0:03:19.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which had thrown away her career plans Dialogue: 0,0:03:19.09,0:03:22.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and damaged all\Nof her emotional relationships. Dialogue: 0,0:03:23.07,0:03:26.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But when I met her, she was 50, Dialogue: 0,0:03:26.06,0:03:27.44,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I said to her, Dialogue: 0,0:03:27.46,0:03:30.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Do you often think\Nabout the man who raped you?" Dialogue: 0,0:03:30.23,0:03:34.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And she said, "I used to think\Nabout him with anger, Dialogue: 0,0:03:34.91,0:03:36.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but now only with pity." Dialogue: 0,0:03:37.39,0:03:40.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I thought she meant pity\Nbecause he was so unevolved Dialogue: 0,0:03:40.04,0:03:42.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as to have done this terrible thing. Dialogue: 0,0:03:42.58,0:03:43.87,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I said, "Pity?" Dialogue: 0,0:03:44.34,0:03:45.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And she said, "Yes, Dialogue: 0,0:03:46.03,0:03:51.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because he has a beautiful daughter\Nand two beautiful grandchildren, Dialogue: 0,0:03:51.09,0:03:52.57,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and he doesn't know that, Dialogue: 0,0:03:53.06,0:03:54.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I do. Dialogue: 0,0:03:54.82,0:03:56.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So as it turns out, Dialogue: 0,0:03:56.67,0:03:58.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I'm the lucky one." Dialogue: 0,0:04:00.33,0:04:03.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Some of our struggles\Nare things we're born to: Dialogue: 0,0:04:03.89,0:04:08.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,our gender, our sexuality,\Nour race, our disability. Dialogue: 0,0:04:09.51,0:04:11.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And some are things that happen to us: Dialogue: 0,0:04:11.78,0:04:15.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,being a political prisoner,\Nbeing a rape victim, Dialogue: 0,0:04:15.38,0:04:17.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,being a Katrina survivor. Dialogue: 0,0:04:17.90,0:04:20.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Identity involves entering a community Dialogue: 0,0:04:20.81,0:04:22.95,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to draw strength from that community, Dialogue: 0,0:04:23.37,0:04:25.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and to give strength there, too. Dialogue: 0,0:04:25.98,0:04:29.69,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It involves substituting\N"and" for "but" -- Dialogue: 0,0:04:30.21,0:04:33.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,not "I am here but I have cancer," Dialogue: 0,0:04:34.28,0:04:39.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but rather, "I have cancer and I am here." Dialogue: 0,0:04:39.95,0:04:42.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,When we're ashamed,\Nwe can't tell our stories, Dialogue: 0,0:04:43.48,0:04:46.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and stories are the foundation Dialogue: 0,0:04:46.10,0:04:47.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of identity. Dialogue: 0,0:04:48.54,0:04:50.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Forge meaning, Dialogue: 0,0:04:50.21,0:04:51.61,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,build identity. Dialogue: 0,0:04:52.48,0:04:55.44,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Forge meaning and build identity. Dialogue: 0,0:04:56.06,0:04:57.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,That became my mantra. Dialogue: 0,0:04:58.21,0:05:01.18,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Forging meaning\Nis about changing yourself. Dialogue: 0,0:05:01.80,0:05:04.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Building identity\Nis about changing the world. Dialogue: 0,0:05:05.62,0:05:09.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,All of us with stigmatized identities\Nface this question daily: Dialogue: 0,0:05:10.10,0:05:14.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,How much to accommodate society\Nby constraining ourselves, Dialogue: 0,0:05:14.66,0:05:17.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and how much to break the limits Dialogue: 0,0:05:17.10,0:05:19.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of what constitutes a valid life? Dialogue: 0,0:05:20.41,0:05:23.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Forging meaning and building identity Dialogue: 0,0:05:23.51,0:05:25.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,does not make what was wrong right. Dialogue: 0,0:05:26.50,0:05:29.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It only makes what was wrong precious. Dialogue: 0,0:05:31.09,0:05:33.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In January of this year, Dialogue: 0,0:05:33.22,0:05:37.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I went to Myanmar\Nto interview political prisoners, Dialogue: 0,0:05:37.38,0:05:41.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I was surprised to find them\Nless bitter than I'd anticipated. Dialogue: 0,0:05:41.86,0:05:44.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Most of them had knowingly\Ncommitted the offenses Dialogue: 0,0:05:44.43,0:05:46.24,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that landed them in prison, Dialogue: 0,0:05:46.27,0:05:49.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and they had walked in\Nwith their heads held high, Dialogue: 0,0:05:49.75,0:05:53.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and they walked out\Nwith their heads still held high, Dialogue: 0,0:05:53.81,0:05:55.35,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,many years later. Dialogue: 0,0:05:55.90,0:05:59.31,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Dr. Ma Thida, a leading\Nhuman rights activist Dialogue: 0,0:05:59.33,0:06:00.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who had nearly died in prison Dialogue: 0,0:06:00.76,0:06:03.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and had spent many years\Nin solitary confinement, Dialogue: 0,0:06:03.82,0:06:09.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,told me she was grateful to her jailers\Nfor the time she had had to think, Dialogue: 0,0:06:09.80,0:06:11.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,for the wisdom she had gained, Dialogue: 0,0:06:11.92,0:06:15.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,for the chance to hone\Nher meditation skills. Dialogue: 0,0:06:15.86,0:06:17.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She had sought meaning Dialogue: 0,0:06:17.43,0:06:20.65,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and made her travail\Ninto a crucial identity. Dialogue: 0,0:06:21.46,0:06:25.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But if the people I met\Nwere less bitter than I'd anticipated Dialogue: 0,0:06:25.32,0:06:26.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about being in prison, Dialogue: 0,0:06:26.88,0:06:29.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,they were also less thrilled\Nthan I'd expected Dialogue: 0,0:06:29.75,0:06:32.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about the reform process\Ngoing on in their country. Dialogue: 0,0:06:33.34,0:06:34.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Ma Thida said, Dialogue: 0,0:06:34.96,0:06:39.91,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"We Burmese are noted\Nfor our tremendous grace under pressure, Dialogue: 0,0:06:39.94,0:06:43.85,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but we also have grievance under glamour." Dialogue: 0,0:06:44.59,0:06:48.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She said, "And the fact that there\Nhave been these shifts and changes Dialogue: 0,0:06:48.33,0:06:52.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,doesn't erase the continuing\Nproblems in our society Dialogue: 0,0:06:52.19,0:06:55.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that we learned to see so well\Nwhile we were in prison." Dialogue: 0,0:06:56.38,0:06:58.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I understood her to be saying Dialogue: 0,0:06:58.54,0:07:02.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that concessions confer\Nonly a little humanity Dialogue: 0,0:07:02.10,0:07:03.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where full humanity is due; Dialogue: 0,0:07:04.36,0:07:08.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that crumbs are not the same\Nas a place at the table. Dialogue: 0,0:07:08.60,0:07:09.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Which is to say, Dialogue: 0,0:07:09.94,0:07:13.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,you can forge meaning and build identity Dialogue: 0,0:07:13.10,0:07:15.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and still be mad as hell. Dialogue: 0,0:07:17.54,0:07:19.18,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I've never been raped, Dialogue: 0,0:07:19.20,0:07:23.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I've never been in anything\Nremotely approaching a Burmese prison. Dialogue: 0,0:07:24.21,0:07:26.05,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But as a gay American, Dialogue: 0,0:07:26.07,0:07:29.61,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I've experienced prejudice\Nand even hatred, Dialogue: 0,0:07:30.28,0:07:31.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I've forged meaning Dialogue: 0,0:07:32.42,0:07:34.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I've built identity, Dialogue: 0,0:07:34.65,0:07:36.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which is a move I learned from people Dialogue: 0,0:07:36.100,0:07:40.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who had experienced far worse privation\Nthan I've ever known. Dialogue: 0,0:07:42.08,0:07:43.91,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In my own adolescence, Dialogue: 0,0:07:43.93,0:07:46.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I went to extreme lengths\Nto try to be straight. Dialogue: 0,0:07:47.24,0:07:51.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I enrolled myself in something called\N"sexual surrogacy therapy," Dialogue: 0,0:07:51.48,0:07:55.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in which people\NI was encouraged to call doctors Dialogue: 0,0:07:55.17,0:07:59.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,prescribed what I was encouraged\Nto call exercises Dialogue: 0,0:07:59.12,0:08:02.13,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,with women I was encouraged\Nto call surrogates, Dialogue: 0,0:08:02.68,0:08:05.23,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who were not exactly prostitutes Dialogue: 0,0:08:05.25,0:08:08.15,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but who were also\Nnot exactly anything else. Dialogue: 0,0:08:08.18,0:08:11.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter) Dialogue: 0,0:08:12.44,0:08:16.66,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,My particular favorite\Nwas a blonde woman from the Deep South Dialogue: 0,0:08:16.68,0:08:20.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who eventually admitted to me\Nthat she was really a necrophiliac, Dialogue: 0,0:08:20.73,0:08:23.51,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and had taken this job\Nafter she got in trouble Dialogue: 0,0:08:23.53,0:08:24.98,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,down at the morgue. Dialogue: 0,0:08:25.01,0:08:28.85,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter) Dialogue: 0,0:08:31.70,0:08:34.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,These experiences eventually\Nallowed me to have Dialogue: 0,0:08:34.71,0:08:37.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,some happy physical\Nrelationships with women, Dialogue: 0,0:08:37.55,0:08:38.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,for which I'm grateful. Dialogue: 0,0:08:39.18,0:08:41.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But I was at war with myself, Dialogue: 0,0:08:41.66,0:08:45.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I dug terrible wounds\Ninto my own psyche. Dialogue: 0,0:08:46.54,0:08:49.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We don't seek the painful experiences Dialogue: 0,0:08:49.76,0:08:51.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that hew our identities, Dialogue: 0,0:08:52.07,0:08:54.15,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but we seek our identities Dialogue: 0,0:08:54.17,0:08:57.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the wake of painful experiences. Dialogue: 0,0:08:57.64,0:09:00.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We cannot bear a pointless torment, Dialogue: 0,0:09:00.53,0:09:03.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but we can endure great pain Dialogue: 0,0:09:03.03,0:09:05.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,if we believe that it's purposeful. Dialogue: 0,0:09:05.97,0:09:08.44,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Ease makes less of an impression on us Dialogue: 0,0:09:08.46,0:09:09.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,than struggle. Dialogue: 0,0:09:09.86,0:09:12.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We could have been ourselves\Nwithout our delights, Dialogue: 0,0:09:12.69,0:09:16.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but not without the misfortunes\Nthat drive our search for meaning. Dialogue: 0,0:09:17.73,0:09:21.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Therefore, I take\Npleasure in infirmities," Dialogue: 0,0:09:21.19,0:09:23.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,St. Paul wrote in Second Corinthians, Dialogue: 0,0:09:23.86,0:09:27.11,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"for when I am weak, then I am strong." Dialogue: 0,0:09:28.09,0:09:32.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In 1988, I went to Moscow\Nto interview artists Dialogue: 0,0:09:32.38,0:09:34.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of the Soviet underground. Dialogue: 0,0:09:34.05,0:09:37.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I expected their work\Nto be dissident and political. Dialogue: 0,0:09:38.37,0:09:40.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But the radicalism in their work Dialogue: 0,0:09:40.50,0:09:44.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,actually lay in reinserting\Nhumanity into a society Dialogue: 0,0:09:44.36,0:09:46.95,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that was annihilating humanity itself, Dialogue: 0,0:09:46.97,0:09:50.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as, in some senses,\NRussian society is now doing again. Dialogue: 0,0:09:51.23,0:09:53.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,One of the artists I met said to me, Dialogue: 0,0:09:53.82,0:09:57.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"We were in training to be\Nnot artists but angels." Dialogue: 0,0:09:58.13,0:10:02.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In 1991, I went back to see\Nthe artists I'd been writing about, Dialogue: 0,0:10:02.76,0:10:06.65,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I was with them during the putsch\Nthat ended the Soviet Union. Dialogue: 0,0:10:07.09,0:10:11.35,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And they were among the chief organizers\Nof the resistance to that putsch. Dialogue: 0,0:10:11.98,0:10:15.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And on the third day of the putsch, Dialogue: 0,0:10:15.40,0:10:18.24,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,one of them suggested\Nwe walk up to Smolenskaya. Dialogue: 0,0:10:18.61,0:10:20.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And we went there, Dialogue: 0,0:10:20.04,0:10:23.24,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and we arranged ourselves\Nin front of one of the barricades, Dialogue: 0,0:10:23.26,0:10:24.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and a little while later, Dialogue: 0,0:10:24.74,0:10:26.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a column of tanks rolled up. Dialogue: 0,0:10:26.90,0:10:29.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And the soldier on the front tank said, Dialogue: 0,0:10:29.21,0:10:33.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"We have unconditional orders\Nto destroy this barricade. Dialogue: 0,0:10:33.38,0:10:36.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,If you get out of the way,\Nwe don't need to hurt you. Dialogue: 0,0:10:36.04,0:10:39.43,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But if you won't move, we'll have\Nno choice but to run you down." Dialogue: 0,0:10:39.83,0:10:42.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The artist I was with said,\N"Give us just a minute. Dialogue: 0,0:10:43.33,0:10:46.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Give us just a minute\Nto tell you why we're here." Dialogue: 0,0:10:47.38,0:10:49.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And the soldier folded his arms, Dialogue: 0,0:10:49.50,0:10:54.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the artist launched into\Na Jeffersonian panegyric to democracy Dialogue: 0,0:10:54.09,0:10:57.85,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,such as those of us who live\Nin a Jeffersonian democracy Dialogue: 0,0:10:57.87,0:11:00.35,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,would be hard-pressed to present. Dialogue: 0,0:11:00.90,0:11:02.82,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And they went on and on, Dialogue: 0,0:11:02.84,0:11:04.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the soldier watched. Dialogue: 0,0:11:04.81,0:11:08.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And then he sat there for a full minute\Nafter they were finished Dialogue: 0,0:11:08.10,0:11:10.69,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and looked at us,\Nso bedraggled in the rain, Dialogue: 0,0:11:10.72,0:11:14.82,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and said, "What you have said is true, Dialogue: 0,0:11:14.84,0:11:17.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and we must bow to the will of the people. Dialogue: 0,0:11:18.24,0:11:20.85,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,If you'll clear enough space\Nfor us to turn around, Dialogue: 0,0:11:20.87,0:11:22.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we'll go back the way we came." Dialogue: 0,0:11:23.27,0:11:24.63,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And that's what they did. Dialogue: 0,0:11:25.10,0:11:30.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Sometimes, forging meaning\Ncan give you the vocabulary you need Dialogue: 0,0:11:30.10,0:11:32.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to fight for your ultimate freedom. Dialogue: 0,0:11:33.25,0:11:36.09,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Russia awakened me to the lemonade notion Dialogue: 0,0:11:36.11,0:11:38.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that oppression breeds\Nthe power to oppose it. Dialogue: 0,0:11:38.100,0:11:43.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I gradually understood that\Nas the cornerstone of identity. Dialogue: 0,0:11:44.50,0:11:48.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It took identity\Nto rescue me from sadness. Dialogue: 0,0:11:48.58,0:11:50.85,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The gay rights movement posits a world Dialogue: 0,0:11:50.88,0:11:53.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in which my aberrances are a victory. Dialogue: 0,0:11:53.92,0:11:56.82,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Identity politics\Nalways works on two fronts: Dialogue: 0,0:11:57.35,0:12:01.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to give pride to people who have\Na given condition or characteristic, Dialogue: 0,0:12:01.96,0:12:04.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and to cause the outside world\Nto treat such people Dialogue: 0,0:12:04.82,0:12:06.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,more gently and more kindly. Dialogue: 0,0:12:07.20,0:12:10.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Those are two totally\Nseparate enterprises, Dialogue: 0,0:12:10.48,0:12:13.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but progress in each sphere\Nreverberates in the other. Dialogue: 0,0:12:14.61,0:12:17.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Identity politics can be narcissistic. Dialogue: 0,0:12:18.29,0:12:21.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,People extol a difference\Nonly because it's theirs. Dialogue: 0,0:12:21.85,0:12:25.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,People narrow the world\Nand function in discrete groups Dialogue: 0,0:12:25.17,0:12:26.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,without empathy for one another. Dialogue: 0,0:12:27.55,0:12:31.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But properly understood\Nand wisely practiced, Dialogue: 0,0:12:31.52,0:12:35.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,identity politics should expand\Nour idea of what it is to be human. Dialogue: 0,0:12:36.22,0:12:42.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Identity itself should be\Nnot a smug label or a gold medal, Dialogue: 0,0:12:42.62,0:12:43.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but a revolution. Dialogue: 0,0:12:44.85,0:12:47.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I would have had an easier life\Nif I were straight, Dialogue: 0,0:12:48.47,0:12:49.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but I would not be me. Dialogue: 0,0:12:50.18,0:12:52.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I now like being myself better Dialogue: 0,0:12:52.88,0:12:54.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,than the idea of being someone else, Dialogue: 0,0:12:55.02,0:12:56.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,someone who, to be honest, Dialogue: 0,0:12:56.67,0:13:00.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I have neither the option of being\Nnor the ability fully to imagine. Dialogue: 0,0:13:01.26,0:13:05.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But if you banish the dragons,\Nyou banish the heroes, Dialogue: 0,0:13:05.88,0:13:09.66,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and we become attached\Nto the heroic strain in our own lives. Dialogue: 0,0:13:10.43,0:13:11.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I've sometimes wondered Dialogue: 0,0:13:11.83,0:13:14.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,whether I could have ceased\Nto hate that part of myself Dialogue: 0,0:13:14.61,0:13:17.44,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,without gay pride's technicolor fiesta, Dialogue: 0,0:13:17.47,0:13:20.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of which this speech is one manifestation. Dialogue: 0,0:13:20.14,0:13:21.73,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter) Dialogue: 0,0:13:21.76,0:13:24.69,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I used to think I would know\Nmyself to be mature Dialogue: 0,0:13:24.71,0:13:27.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,when I could simply be gay\Nwithout emphasis. Dialogue: 0,0:13:27.83,0:13:31.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But the self-loathing\Nof that period left a void, Dialogue: 0,0:13:31.66,0:13:34.91,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and celebration needs\Nto fill and overflow it, Dialogue: 0,0:13:34.94,0:13:38.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and even if I repay\Nmy private debt of melancholy, Dialogue: 0,0:13:38.80,0:13:41.69,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,there's still an outer world of homophobia Dialogue: 0,0:13:41.71,0:13:43.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that it will take decades to address. Dialogue: 0,0:13:44.53,0:13:47.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Someday, being gay will be a simple fact, Dialogue: 0,0:13:47.82,0:13:50.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,free of party hats and blame. Dialogue: 0,0:13:50.68,0:13:51.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But not yet. Dialogue: 0,0:13:52.60,0:13:56.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,A friend of mine who thought gay pride\Nwas getting very carried away with itself, Dialogue: 0,0:13:56.80,0:14:00.05,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,once suggested that we organize\NGay Humility Week. Dialogue: 0,0:14:00.08,0:14:01.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter) Dialogue: 0,0:14:01.49,0:14:05.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Applause) Dialogue: 0,0:14:06.75,0:14:07.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's a great idea. Dialogue: 0,0:14:07.97,0:14:09.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter) Dialogue: 0,0:14:09.36,0:14:11.18,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But its time has not yet come. Dialogue: 0,0:14:11.21,0:14:13.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter) Dialogue: 0,0:14:13.55,0:14:18.57,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And neutrality, which seems to lie\Nhalfway between despair and celebration, Dialogue: 0,0:14:18.59,0:14:20.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is actually the endgame. Dialogue: 0,0:14:21.39,0:14:23.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In 29 states in the US, Dialogue: 0,0:14:24.21,0:14:27.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I could legally be fired or denied housing Dialogue: 0,0:14:27.38,0:14:28.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,for being gay. Dialogue: 0,0:14:29.35,0:14:32.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In Russia, the anti-propaganda law Dialogue: 0,0:14:32.12,0:14:34.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,has led to people being beaten\Nin the streets. Dialogue: 0,0:14:35.32,0:14:40.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Twenty-seven African countries\Nhave passed laws against sodomy. Dialogue: 0,0:14:40.19,0:14:43.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And in Nigeria, gay people\Ncan legally be stoned to death, Dialogue: 0,0:14:43.95,0:14:45.89,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and lynchings have become common. Dialogue: 0,0:14:46.58,0:14:48.65,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In Saudi Arabia recently, Dialogue: 0,0:14:48.68,0:14:51.55,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,two men who had been caught in carnal acts Dialogue: 0,0:14:51.57,0:14:56.09,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,were sentenced to 7,000 lashes each, Dialogue: 0,0:14:56.11,0:14:58.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and are now permanently\Ndisabled as a result. Dialogue: 0,0:14:59.34,0:15:01.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So who can forge meaning Dialogue: 0,0:15:01.58,0:15:03.09,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and build identity? Dialogue: 0,0:15:04.12,0:15:07.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Gay rights are not primarily\Nmarriage rights, Dialogue: 0,0:15:07.62,0:15:10.69,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and for the millions who live\Nin unaccepting places Dialogue: 0,0:15:10.71,0:15:12.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,with no resources, Dialogue: 0,0:15:12.58,0:15:14.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,dignity remains elusive. Dialogue: 0,0:15:15.11,0:15:17.69,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I am lucky to have forged meaning Dialogue: 0,0:15:18.26,0:15:19.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and built identity, Dialogue: 0,0:15:20.44,0:15:22.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but that's still a rare privilege. Dialogue: 0,0:15:22.82,0:15:25.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And gay people deserve more, collectively, Dialogue: 0,0:15:25.55,0:15:27.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,than the crumbs of justice. Dialogue: 0,0:15:28.71,0:15:30.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And yet, Dialogue: 0,0:15:30.14,0:15:32.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,every step forward is so sweet. Dialogue: 0,0:15:33.82,0:15:37.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In 2007, six years after we met, Dialogue: 0,0:15:37.71,0:15:40.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,my partner and I decided to get married. Dialogue: 0,0:15:41.31,0:15:45.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Meeting John had been the discovery\Nof great happiness Dialogue: 0,0:15:45.34,0:15:48.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and also the elimination\Nof great unhappiness. Dialogue: 0,0:15:48.71,0:15:53.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And sometimes, I was so occupied\Nwith the disappearance of all that pain, Dialogue: 0,0:15:53.80,0:15:55.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that I forgot about the joy, Dialogue: 0,0:15:56.15,0:15:58.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which was at first\Nthe less remarkable part of it to me. Dialogue: 0,0:15:59.76,0:16:02.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Marrying was a way to declare our love Dialogue: 0,0:16:02.40,0:16:05.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as more a presence than an absence. Dialogue: 0,0:16:06.45,0:16:08.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Marriage soon led us to children, Dialogue: 0,0:16:08.84,0:16:10.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and that meant new meanings Dialogue: 0,0:16:10.78,0:16:13.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and new identities -- ours and theirs. Dialogue: 0,0:16:14.85,0:16:17.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I want my children to be happy, Dialogue: 0,0:16:17.69,0:16:20.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I love them most achingly\Nwhen they are sad. Dialogue: 0,0:16:21.39,0:16:26.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,As a gay father, I can teach them\Nto own what is wrong in their lives, Dialogue: 0,0:16:26.83,0:16:30.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but I believe that if I succeed\Nin sheltering them from adversity, Dialogue: 0,0:16:30.94,0:16:32.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I will have failed as a parent. Dialogue: 0,0:16:33.83,0:16:36.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,A Buddhist scholar I know\Nonce explained to me Dialogue: 0,0:16:36.81,0:16:38.98,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that Westerners mistakenly think Dialogue: 0,0:16:39.01,0:16:43.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that nirvana is what arrives\Nwhen all your woe is behind you, Dialogue: 0,0:16:43.91,0:16:46.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and you have only bliss\Nto look forward to. Dialogue: 0,0:16:47.02,0:16:49.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But he said that would not be nirvana, Dialogue: 0,0:16:49.19,0:16:51.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because your bliss in the present Dialogue: 0,0:16:51.21,0:16:54.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,would always be shadowed\Nby the joy from the past. Dialogue: 0,0:16:54.60,0:16:57.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Nirvana, he said, is what you arrive at Dialogue: 0,0:16:57.43,0:17:00.03,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,when you have only bliss\Nto look forward to Dialogue: 0,0:17:00.05,0:17:04.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and find in what looked like sorrows\Nthe seedlings of your joy. Dialogue: 0,0:17:05.43,0:17:07.18,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I sometimes wonder Dialogue: 0,0:17:07.20,0:17:10.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,whether I could have found\Nsuch fulfillment in marriage and children Dialogue: 0,0:17:10.92,0:17:12.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,if they'd come more readily, Dialogue: 0,0:17:13.12,0:17:17.05,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,if I'd been straight in my youth\Nor were young now, Dialogue: 0,0:17:17.07,0:17:19.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in either of which cases\Nthis might be easier. Dialogue: 0,0:17:20.58,0:17:22.05,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Perhaps I could. Dialogue: 0,0:17:22.07,0:17:24.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Perhaps all the complex\Nimagining I've done Dialogue: 0,0:17:24.30,0:17:26.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,could have been applied to other topics. Dialogue: 0,0:17:26.60,0:17:30.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But if seeking meaning\Nmatters more than finding meaning, Dialogue: 0,0:17:30.28,0:17:34.85,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the question is not whether\NI'd be happier for having been bullied, Dialogue: 0,0:17:34.88,0:17:38.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but whether assigning meaning\Nto those experiences Dialogue: 0,0:17:38.28,0:17:39.98,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,has made me a better father. Dialogue: 0,0:17:40.88,0:17:44.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I tend to find the ecstasy\Nhidden in ordinary joys, Dialogue: 0,0:17:44.74,0:17:48.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because I did not expect those joys\Nto be ordinary to me. Dialogue: 0,0:17:49.26,0:17:53.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I know many heterosexuals who have\Nequally happy marriages and families, Dialogue: 0,0:17:53.35,0:17:56.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but gay marriage\Nis so breathtakingly fresh, Dialogue: 0,0:17:56.32,0:17:59.63,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and gay families so exhilaratingly new, Dialogue: 0,0:17:59.66,0:18:02.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I found meaning in that surprise. Dialogue: 0,0:18:03.77,0:18:07.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In October, it was my 50th birthday, Dialogue: 0,0:18:07.29,0:18:09.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and my family organized a party for me. Dialogue: 0,0:18:10.42,0:18:13.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And in the middle of it,\Nmy son said to my husband Dialogue: 0,0:18:13.23,0:18:14.98,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that he wanted to make a speech. Dialogue: 0,0:18:15.00,0:18:16.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And John said, Dialogue: 0,0:18:16.18,0:18:20.24,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"George, you can't make\Na speech. You're four." Dialogue: 0,0:18:20.26,0:18:21.95,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter) Dialogue: 0,0:18:21.97,0:18:26.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Only Grandpa and Uncle David and I\Nare going to make speeches tonight." Dialogue: 0,0:18:26.52,0:18:29.11,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But George insisted and insisted, Dialogue: 0,0:18:29.13,0:18:32.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and finally, John took him\Nup to the microphone, Dialogue: 0,0:18:32.61,0:18:35.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and George said very loudly, Dialogue: 0,0:18:35.48,0:18:37.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Ladies and gentlemen! Dialogue: 0,0:18:37.92,0:18:40.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,May I have your attention, please?" Dialogue: 0,0:18:40.42,0:18:42.51,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And everyone turned around, startled. Dialogue: 0,0:18:43.14,0:18:44.45,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And George said, Dialogue: 0,0:18:45.33,0:18:47.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"I'm glad it's daddy's birthday. Dialogue: 0,0:18:47.98,0:18:49.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I'm glad we all get cake. Dialogue: 0,0:18:51.28,0:18:53.73,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And Daddy, if you were little, Dialogue: 0,0:18:54.31,0:18:55.69,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I'd be your friend." Dialogue: 0,0:18:55.93,0:18:57.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Gasp) Dialogue: 0,0:18:57.96,0:18:59.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I thought -- (Applause) Dialogue: 0,0:18:59.99,0:19:01.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Thank you. Dialogue: 0,0:19:01.16,0:19:04.85,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I thought that I was indebted\Neven to Bobby Finkel, Dialogue: 0,0:19:04.88,0:19:07.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because all those earlier experiences Dialogue: 0,0:19:07.54,0:19:09.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,were what had propelled me to this moment, Dialogue: 0,0:19:09.98,0:19:12.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I was finally unconditionally grateful Dialogue: 0,0:19:12.51,0:19:15.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,for a life I'd once have done\Nanything to change. Dialogue: 0,0:19:16.72,0:19:20.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The gay activist Harvey Milk\Nwas once asked by a younger gay man Dialogue: 0,0:19:20.98,0:19:23.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,what he could do to help the movement, Dialogue: 0,0:19:23.08,0:19:24.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and Harvey Milk said, Dialogue: 0,0:19:24.70,0:19:26.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Go out and tell someone." Dialogue: 0,0:19:27.14,0:19:30.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,There's always somebody\Nwho wants to confiscate our humanity. Dialogue: 0,0:19:31.01,0:19:33.27,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And there are always\Nstories that restore it. Dialogue: 0,0:19:33.82,0:19:35.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,If we live out loud, Dialogue: 0,0:19:35.40,0:19:37.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we can trounce the hatred, Dialogue: 0,0:19:37.42,0:19:39.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and expand everyone's lives. Dialogue: 0,0:19:40.57,0:19:41.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Forge meaning. Dialogue: 0,0:19:42.22,0:19:43.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Build identity. Dialogue: 0,0:19:44.17,0:19:45.73,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Forge meaning. Dialogue: 0,0:19:46.39,0:19:48.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Build identity. Dialogue: 0,0:19:49.23,0:19:52.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And then invite the world\Nto share your joy. Dialogue: 0,0:19:52.68,0:19:53.87,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Thank you. Dialogue: 0,0:19:53.90,0:19:56.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Applause) Dialogue: 0,0:19:56.94,0:19:58.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Thank you. Dialogue: 0,0:19:58.18,0:20:00.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Applause) Dialogue: 0,0:20:00.22,0:20:01.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Thank you. Dialogue: 0,0:20:01.43,0:20:04.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Applause) Dialogue: 0,0:20:04.15,0:20:05.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Thank you. Dialogue: 0,0:20:05.33,0:20:10.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Applause)