美国国家公共电台 NPR After Half A Century, Inmates Resurrect The Norfolk Prison Debating Society

 

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST: 

Half a century ago, one of the best debate teams in the Northeast didn't come from an Ivy-clad private school - far from it. They were inmates² at a Massachusetts prison. By 1966, the Norfolk Prison Debating Society boasted 144 wins and eight losses against teams like Harvard, Princeton and MIT. But when a more punitive³ approach swept prisons across the U.S., that debate team dissolved - until now. Natasha Haverty takes us there.

NATASHA HAVERTY, BYLINE⁵: For a few minutes, the six men in the empty prison auditorium⁶ had a chance to take it all in.

RONALD LEFTWICH: (Laughter) Yeah, we're going to bring this back, and we're going to do this. This is important to let people know who we are, what we're about.

HAVERTY: For Ronald Leftwich and his teammates, it would all come down to this afternoon. Across the prison, their opponents from Boston College - fresh off a victory against Notre Dame⁷ - were getting ushered⁸ through the metal detectors⁹. Senior Sean McDonald had never set foot in a prison, much less debated one.

SEAN MACDONALD: It's going to be an honor to debate them. We know that they've beaten Oxford¹⁰ and plenty other very, very competitive debate teams, so it should be fun.

HAVERTY: This is the prison stage where in 1951 Oxford University lost its winning streak¹¹, where Malcolm X - then an inmate¹ named Malcolm Little - got his first taste of public speaking, where men at the bottom rung of society's ladder went head to head with college boys who'd grow up to be the likes of Larry Tribe and Leonard Cohen.

(CROSSTALK)

HAVERTY: The doors open. Hundreds of men take their seats. Prison superintendent¹² Sean Medeiros does too.

SEAN MEDEIROS: I'm feeling a little excited. I'm hoping the men do well.

HAVERTY: Only a couple of men have been incarcerated¹³ at Norfolk long enough to remember the last debate here.

UNIDENTIFIED MODERATOR: Until today, we have not hosted a college debate in over 50 years.

HAVERTY: On stage, five Boston College students sit opposite the prison debaters. The moderator introduces the topic - the future of our planet, climate change. Resolved - that the U.S. should impose a tax on greenhouse gas emissions¹⁴. Norfork prison will argue in favor. James Keown speaks first.

JAMES KEOWN: There's a storm coming. When it first hits the Boston area, the ocean will surge into east Boston, the seaport¹⁵ and parts of the downtown waterfront.

HAVERTY: And while the idea of sitting through two hours of environmental policy might sound really boring, every guy in this audience is smiling, head up. The prison team's captain, Dan Throop, adds some spectacle, walking to the lectern in a surgical¹⁶ mask.

DAN THROOP: After listening to our opponent's first two arguments, we may have to check the carbon dioxide levels in this auditorium today.

(LAUGHTER)

HAVERTY: But when Boston College's Sean MacDonald comes out, it starts to feel like these students could win over the judges, maybe even the audience.

MACDONALD: If you want, I can hand you back the surgical mask because, under your plan, you're going to have even dirtier air than we have right now.

HAVERTY: For the last two years, a group of inmates has been fighting to resurrect the Norfork Prison Debating Society. For these next two hours, James Keown says everything is on the line.

KEOWN: This is a humanizing event to me. I mean, this is about, you know, we have a place in this world and we have a voice and we have something to share.

HAVERTY: It's meant hours of training - one day a week together in a classroom, then back to their cells to rehearse alone. Research - while their opponents had the internet, these guys - several of whom didn't finish high school - relied on their sisters and moms to send them articles. And then, Keown says, there was getting a college to come in and make this all real.

KEOWN: It's less about the competition, and it's more about those outside the wall willing to come in and say, we'll meet you where you're at.

HAVERTY: This idea of intellectual exchange between inmates and the outside world was what Norfolk prison was founded on. But pulling it off was never easy. Someone always cried foul¹⁷ at the thought of violent offenders¹⁸ getting an education and brushing shoulders with the public. Those voices have only gotten louder, says Superintendent Sean Medeiros.

MEDEIROS: Corrections has changed, you know? And that's the only thing I can really say is that, you know, we've changed and, you know, I guess it's up to debate whether we've changed for the better or not.

HAVERTY: Which meant for a debate to happen in Norfolk prison in 2016, the Massachusetts Department of Correction kept a tight grip - from what topic the men could debate to who was allowed to speak to the pair of reporters there to cover the event. Despite those obstacles, there's always been a core group of inmates at Norfolk committed to making life more meaningful. Most of them are lifers.

GORDON HAAS: Because we're here and, let's face it, many of us are going to die here.

HAVERTY: Gordon Haas has been at Norfolk almost 40 years serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

HAAS: Just because someone is serving life, it doesn't mean they stop living.

HAVERTY: And Haas says, in the days leading up to the debate, the prison's been abuzz, even the staff. Superintendent Medeiros says debate has transformed these inmates.

MEDEIROS: If you saw these guys when they probably first started their sentence, they're totally different men now.

HAVERTY: George Vicente is up for parole on a second-degree murder charge in a few months.

GEORGE VICENTE: I am 32 years old. And I've been incarcerated since I was 17.

HAVERTY: When the team's captain asked Vicente to come debate some college students, he says he hesitated.

VICENTE: I was a bit nervous, you know, 'cause this is like these are some smart kids.

HAVERTY: But he says he knew the message of victory against those kids could send.

VICENTE: It shows that, you know, there's value and there's intelligence and that it's not just, you know, animals and just good-for-nothings and, you know, people that know nothing behind the wall because I know that's the stereotype²⁰. You know, if we lose, that's what, you know, the world expects, you know? But if we win, the world's not expecting that.

UNIDENTIFIED MODERATOR: Please welcome Mr. George Vicente to the lectern.

(APPLAUSE)

HAVERTY: As sunlight streams through the auditorium windows, Vicente takes the stage.

VICENTE: Regarding the con¹⁹ team's eloquent²¹ and obviously passionate²² position, the pro⁴ team respectfully disagrees.

HAVERTY: He speaks for almost 10 minutes before the timekeeper lifts up a red card, signaling to Vicente he has just a few seconds left. If he goes over, he's disqualified. His team loses. Vicente leans in.

VICENTE: Because the evidence proves, and we agree with The New York Times that, quote, "a carbon tax is indeed the most sensible tax of all," Mr. Moderator.

(APPLAUSE)

HAVERTY: Minutes later, the judges announce the winner. Norfolk prison defeats Boston College by a hair - just .6 points. Some men hold one hand over their heart with the other raised up at the stage. But the standing²³ ovation²⁴ comes when, on behalf of the entire prison, the moderator thanks their young opponents for being willing to brave the journey inside. For NPR News, I'm Natasha Haverty.

1 inmate   

n.被收容者；(房屋等的)居住人；住院人

参考例句：

• I am an inmate of that hospital.我住在那家医院。
• The prisoner is his inmate.那个囚犯和他同住一起。

2 inmates   

n.囚犯( inmate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• One of the inmates has escaped. 被收容的人中有一个逃跑了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The inmates were moved to an undisclosed location. 监狱里的囚犯被转移到一个秘密处所。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 punitive   

adj.惩罚的，刑罚的

参考例句：

• They took punitive measures against the whole gang.他们对整帮人采取惩罚性措施。
• The punitive tariff was imposed to discourage tire imports from China.该惩罚性关税的征收是用以限制中国轮胎进口的措施。

4 pro   

n.赞成，赞成的意见，赞成者

参考例句：

• The two debating teams argued the question pro and con.辩论的两组从赞成与反对两方面辩这一问题。
• Are you pro or con nuclear disarmament?你是赞成还是反对核裁军？

5 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

6 auditorium   

n.观众席，听众席；会堂，礼堂

参考例句：

• The teacher gathered all the pupils in the auditorium.老师把全体同学集合在礼堂内。
• The stage is thrust forward into the auditorium.舞台向前突出，伸入观众席。

7 dame   

n.女士

参考例句：

• The dame tell of her experience as a wife and mother.这位年长妇女讲了她作妻子和母亲的经验。
• If you stick around,you'll have to marry that dame.如果再逗留多一会，你就要跟那个夫人结婚。

8 ushered   

v.引，领，陪同( usher的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The secretary ushered me into his office. 秘书把我领进他的办公室。
• A round of parties ushered in the New Year. 一系列的晚会迎来了新年。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 detectors   

探测器( detector的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The report advocated that all buildings be fitted with smoke detectors. 报告主张所有的建筑物都应安装烟火探测器。
• This is heady wine for experimenters using these neutrino detectors. 对于使用中微子探测器的实验工作者，这是令人兴奋的美酒。 来自英汉非文学 - 科技

10 Oxford   

n.牛津（英国城市）

参考例句：

• At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
• This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。

11 streak   

n.条理，斑纹，倾向，少许，痕迹；v.加条纹，变成条纹，奔驰，快速移动

参考例句：

• The Indians used to streak their faces with paint.印第安人过去常用颜料在脸上涂条纹。
• Why did you streak the tree?你为什么在树上刻条纹？

12 superintendent   

n.监督人，主管，总监；(英国)警务长

参考例句：

• He was soon promoted to the post of superintendent of Foreign Trade.他很快就被擢升为对外贸易总监。
• He decided to call the superintendent of the building.他决定给楼房管理员打电话。

13 incarcerated   

钳闭的

参考例句：

• They were incarcerated for the duration of the war. 战争期间，他们被关在狱中。 来自辞典例句
• I don't want to worry them by being incarcerated. 我不想让他们知道我被拘禁的事情。 来自电影对白

14 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

15 seaport   

n.海港，港口，港市

参考例句：

• Ostend is the most important seaport in Belgium.奥斯坦德是比利时最重要的海港。
• A seaport where ships can take on supplies of coal.轮船能够补充煤炭的海港。

16 surgical   

adj.外科的，外科医生的，手术上的

参考例句：

• He performs the surgical operations at the Red Cross Hospital.他在红十字会医院做外科手术。
• All surgical instruments must be sterilised before use.所有的外科手术器械在使用之前，必须消毒。

17 foul   

adj.污秽的；邪恶的；v.弄脏；妨害；犯规；n.犯规

参考例句：

• Take off those foul clothes and let me wash them.脱下那些脏衣服让我洗一洗。
• What a foul day it is!多么恶劣的天气！

18 offenders   

n.冒犯者( offender的名词复数 )；犯规者；罪犯；妨害…的人（或事物）

参考例句：

• Long prison sentences can be a very effective deterrent for offenders. 判处长期徒刑可对违法者起到强有力的威慑作用。
• Purposeful work is an important part of the regime for young offenders. 使从事有意义的劳动是管理少年犯的重要方法。

19 con   

n.反对的观点，反对者，反对票，肺病；vt.精读，学习，默记；adv.反对地，从反面；adj.欺诈的

参考例句：

• We must be fair and consider the reason pro and con.我们必须公平考虑赞成和反对的理由。
• The motion is adopted non con.因无人投反对票，协议被通过。

20 stereotype   

n.固定的形象，陈规，老套，旧框框

参考例句：

• He's my stereotype of a schoolteacher.他是我心目中的典型教师。
• There's always been a stereotype about successful businessmen.人们对于成功商人一直都有一种固定印象。

21 eloquent   

adj.雄辩的，口才流利的；明白显示出的

参考例句：

• He was so eloquent that he cut down the finest orator.他能言善辩，胜过最好的演说家。
• These ruins are an eloquent reminder of the horrors of war.这些废墟形象地提醒人们不要忘记战争的恐怖。

22 passionate   

adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的

参考例句：

• He is said to be the most passionate man.据说他是最有激情的人。
• He is very passionate about the project.他对那个项目非常热心。

23 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

24 ovation   

n.欢呼，热烈欢迎，热烈鼓掌

参考例句：

• The hero received a great ovation from the crowd. 那位英雄受到人群的热烈欢迎。
• The show won a standing ovation. 这场演出赢得全场起立鼓掌。