邁克爾·傑克遜和人性

作者：Sandra Sasvari日期：2010年6月16日
 來源：MJJCN.com / thecommentfactory.com   編譯：shell88 

6月13日是邁克爾·傑克遜10項孌童罪名宣告無罪的5周年紀念日。除了他的家庭和粉絲，一般公眾不會有太多關注。對大多數人來說，這只是平常的一天。

然而，對我們中的一些人來說，每年的這一天讓我們想起許多事情：沉思、救贖、公正……也包括人性，及它有時帶來的傷害。

少有人能理解媒體對審判的報道多麼有偏見，自始至終多麼算計和追求轟動效應。每個人都知道，負面新聞最好賣，但在2005年針對世界上最著名的人的孌童指控中，似乎有更深層的東西。即使以小報標準來衡量，那也格外的惡意和殘忍。這帶來一個很有意思的問題：什麼使得上千人群起攻擊一個人？是怎樣的本能，怎樣的恐懼，使得我們，作為一個種族，變成拿著武器的暴民，在對一個人處以私刑並毀滅他的想法中垂涎及得到快感。

1993年，歐洲議會批準了有關新聞道德的1003號提案，其中建議新聞記者尊重“無罪推定”，簡單來說，除非被證明有罪，否則你是清白的。然而在針對邁克爾·傑克遜的案件中，這一點顯然未體現。雖然與小報相關的“新聞”的準確定義還存在爭議，職業新聞學會的道德準則提到：好的新聞實踐要求記者做到以下幾點：

*同情那些新聞報道會對其造成不良影響的人，當與兒童和無經驗的新聞提供人打交道時要格外注意
*對那些受悲劇或悲傷影響的人，尋求或使用訪談或照片需要慎重。
*發掘或收集、報道資訊可能帶來損害或不適。追逐新聞不可傲慢自大。
*要認識到：比起那些公共官員和其他尋求權力、影響力或關注的人，想要保有隱私的人對其個人資訊有更高的控制權。除非有特別重要的公共需要，否則侵犯個人隱私是不正當的。
*要顯示好的品味，避免迎合庸俗的好奇心。
*暴露未成年疑犯或性犯罪的受害者的身份需要慎重。
*在正式的起訴之前，慎稱犯罪嫌疑人。
*犯罪嫌疑人的公平審判及公眾知情權之間需要平衡。

在傑克遜的案件——通常在小報新聞中——這些原則沒有遵守。脫離背景的陳述，事實被扭曲，焦點放在邁克爾·傑克遜的外表，而不是審判的過程。

這一切體現的問題，不是人們更關注虛構而不是真相，問題在於：為什麼？為什麼有些人顯然已經決定邁克爾·傑克遜不值得被當作人來看待？什麼使得人們如此被他刺激，什麼時候人們決定了他不配擁有隱私、尊重或同情？是當他的臉開始變化的時候嗎？是他變得中性的時候，以至於我們無法對他套用固有的性別角色準則的時候嗎？那準則是我們如此虔誠地崇拜和遵從著。是當他成為史上銷量最大的藝術家的時候嗎？或當他獲得財富和財政自由，而我們還作著所憎恨的日常工作？是當他躲避公眾的視線，因為他一出門就會遇到醜陋的喧囂？是因為他的創造力，他的熱情和在舞臺上強烈爆發？或簡單地說，他映射了我們自身的錯誤？

我們中的大多數人，在生命此時或彼刻，會遇到立即感覺不喜歡的人。更常見的是，這種不喜歡來自他們的存在帶來的我們對自己的感覺。邁克爾·傑克遜是兒童權利的積極發言人，他的慈善工作跨越全球，每年捐贈幾百萬。作為我們破碎星球的治癒者，他時常說起愛和尊重——最重要的是，他堅信這些。他指出這個星球上的苦難和醜惡，這醜惡的存在主要是因為我們的冷漠。如果有人照出我們的錯誤並轉回我們自身則是可怕的，看到他的慷慨和孩子般的品質，使我們想起自己已經失去了這些品質。

有一些東西尤其刺激人，當人們受激和感覺不安全時，我們便有意拒絕。拒絕使我們感覺不舒適的事物，我們希望它產生的感覺消失。於是邁克爾·傑克遜被拒絕，一次又一次，他被拒絕、嘲笑，人們把他釘上十字架，因為害怕接受任何卓爾不群的人、不能契合模子的人。
邁克爾·傑克遜帶著受傷的背舞蹈，他巡演直至暈厥，他整晚在那裏為了一個原因，只為一個原因：希望我們最終愛他和接受他，他絕望地渴求著。但我們沒有接受他，我們不斷把他推開。

傑克遜生來具有非凡的音樂感，凱瑟琳·傑克遜在她的書《我的家庭》中寫道：
“1960年的某天我發現邁克爾不是一個普通小孩。那時我正站在洗衣機前，檢查衣物，偶然回頭發現我那一歲半、還沒有我的裙尾高的兒子，他正抱著一個瓶子在跳舞…··隨著洗衣機有節奏的吱吱聲。”

雖然樂感可以訓練到某種程度，但不能教授。要麼有，要麼沒有。在邁克爾·傑克遜兩歲的頭腦和身體裏……樂感已經存在很多，他的父母很快就注意到了。

傑克遜時常說他的歌曲不能歸功於他自己，因為它們“降臨於他”，他所做的只是把它們寫下來。他引證上帝，感覺音樂來自更高的力量只不過通過他展現。任何人只要見到他在舞臺上，他的表現不可否定。在許多方面，他可被認為是創作和音樂天才，那是相當少有的，然而我們被激怒，而不是著迷或敬畏。我們不能理解，不能理解他生動的行為方式或他孩子般的特質，我們不理解他的視角或他對簡單事物的喜愛……於是我們拒絕他。恐懼來自於無知，世界是無知的。因為他對我們中的大多數來說如此與眾不同——天才是鳳毛麟角的——於是人們相信他很可能就象小報描繪的那樣“奇怪”。他是一個喜歡水球大戰的30幾歲男人，一個喜歡爬樹的40幾歲男人，那說他睡在高壓氧艙裏和試圖漂白自己的皮膚看起來也蠻象那麼回事？

作為一個社會，我們對社會標準如此尊崇，任何偏離它的就被定義為錯誤和不良的。邁克爾·傑克遜不適用於這個社會設定的任何一個模子。他生來是黑皮膚，隨時間而變白；他生來是大而寬的鼻子，他把它變成小而窄。他留長發、高調的嗓音，溫柔而富有同情心。他與社會定義和預期的“男性”定義相對立。

我們的兒子伴隨玩具槍、擦傷的膝蓋、男孩不哭的觀念長大。邁克爾·傑克遜不懼于展現他生活每個方面的情感，他不是我們所愛的男性文化的形象。在小的時候，他的害羞和柔軟的一面是挺可愛的，在10幾歲時可能也是如此，但在50歲的男人呢？不，那肯定不對的，電視告訴我們男人不是這樣作的，拒絕。

雖然孌童審判是對邁克爾·傑克遜心靈的最後一擊，關於他的私生活的亂七八糟的東西已經寫了幾十年，寫得一個比一個變態。在他20幾歲時，邁克爾·傑克遜就被媒體困擾，沒人會停下來質疑自己所讀到的東西的可能性。我們放棄邏輯和批判性思維，決定既然是印出來的東西，就必定是真實的。一定是真實的，因為誰會說謊呢？人們應該問他們自己，為什麼人不會說謊呢？媒體是盈利的產業，如果認為我們生活在沒有腐敗和貪婪的世界上那就太天真了，媒體直接反映真實的年代已經一去不復返。留給我們的，是含沙射影和精心編造的故事，迎合我們內心裏病態的愛好和馱獸的本性，那是基本的，不需要反思。

回顧性地看，關於傑克遜的大部分報道是可笑和奇怪的。據媒體所說，真有人生來是黑種男人而想作白種女人？睡在高壓氧艙裏以活到200歲，午夜時孤獨地在後院乘雲霄飛車，購買約瑟夫·默里克（又叫“象人”）的遺骨，服用女性荷爾蒙以保持高音？但是沒人懷疑過，沒人有一刻想到：“等等，這不可能是真的。”原因？他們希望這些是真的，他們需要這些是真的，這使他們感覺是共同團體中的一員。現在詢問你的同事和朋友是否聽說邁克爾·傑克遜做了什麼，會使你成為注意力的中心，使你感覺是團體的一員。我們都是馱獸，我們走別人的路而不走自己的，我們想要歸屬、想要被接受，想要被欣賞。這也是邁克爾·傑克遜想要的，唯一的不同是他從不走尋常路。

那麼，為什麼，這個星球認為將一個人扔入狼群中並享受看他被毀滅的過程是可以接受的？作為人類，我們不是完美的，我們可以是懷恨的、操縱的、貪婪的、自私的，當處於生死境地所有人都會先考慮自己。我們想要有不同的信念，邁克爾·傑克遜，有著不同的信念。有意思的是，這個人多年以來經受了其他人絕對最壞的對待，也是這個人，與我們其他人不同，從未疲倦。一個受到如此多的仇恨、偏見、貪婪和惡意的人，從未失去對人類的信念，這真令人驚訝。如果受傷害時便從世界退卻，變得懷恨和冷酷，這對他來說是多麼容易啊，就象我們也會這麼作。事實是，他不僅沒有退卻，仍愛著世界和每個人，而且給予更多的愛。這一切，說明瞭他是什麼樣的人。謊言，評判、追獵和迫害他，或是當他受苦時袖手旁觀，也說明瞭我們是什麼樣的人。

馬丁·路德金說過：
“歷史將記取的社會轉變的最大悲劇不是壞人的喧囂，而是好人的沉默。”
我們絕不要沉默。盲目的順從和怯懦的精神是惡霸存在的原因，極端的說，是屠殺發生的原因，也是邁克爾·傑克遜逝去的原因。我們都有掠食者的本性，我們都可能為了自我欲望而促成獵殺弱小——只有一些人努力去控制它。就象邁克爾·傑克遜的著名的歌中唱道：“如果他們問為什麼，為什麼？/告訴他們這就是人性。”
永遠不要沉默。

Michael Jackson and Human Nature

June 13th marked five years since Michael Jackson was acquitted on ten accounts of child molestation. Apart from family and fans, not many from the general public will pay much attention to this date. For most, it is just another day.
For some of us, though, it is our yearly reminder of a lot of things: of reflection, of redemption, of justice…but also of human nature, and the damage it can sometimes do when unleashed .

Few understand just how biased the media was in their reporting of the trial, and just how calculated and sensationalist they were throughout it. That negativity sells is something everyone already knows, but in the 2005 child molestation charges against the the world’s most famous person, there seemed to be something that ran far deeper. There was a malice and a bloodthirst there that seemed out of the ordinary even by tabloid measurements. And it brings up the very interesting question of what it is that can make thousands of people gang up so completely on one individual. What primal instinct, what fear…can cause us, as a race, to turn into a pitch-fork mob, salivating and orgasming at the thought of lynching someone and literally destroying them?

In 1993, the European Counsil approved Resolution 1003 on the Ethics of Journalism; which recommends journalists to respect the”presumption of innocence”: in other words; you are innocent until proven guilty. In the case against Michael Jackson, however, this, apparently, was no longer relevant. Although the accuracy of the term ”journalism” in association with tabloids can be debated, The Society of Professional Journalists’ code of ethics mentions that good journalistic practice includes for a journalist to do the following:

* Show compassion for those who may be affected adversely by news coverage. Use special sensitivity when dealing with children and inexperienced sources or subjects.
* Be sensitive when seeking or using interviews or photographs of those affected by tragedy or grief.
* Recognize that gathering and reporting information may cause harm or discomfort. Pursuit of the news is not a license for arrogance.
* Recognize that private people have a greater right to control information about themselves than do public officials and others who seek power, influence or attention. Only an overriding public need can justify intrusion into anyone’s privacy.
* Show good taste. Avoid pandering to lurid curiosity.
* Be cautious about identifying juvenile suspects or victims of sex crimes.
* Be judicious about naming criminal suspects before the formal filing of charges.
* Balance a criminal suspect’s fair trial rights with the public’s right to be informed.

It seems in the Michael Jackson case – and tabloid journalism in general – these rules did not apply. Statements were taken out of context, facts were twisted, and more focus was put on Michael Jackson’s appearance, than on the proceedings of the ongoing trial.
The question in all of this is not how people became so caught up in preferring fiction over truth, the question is why. Why was it that someone had apparently decided that Michael Jackson did not deserve to be treated like a human being? What was it that made people so provoked by him, and when was it decided that he did not deserve privacy, respect, or compassion? Was it when his face started changing? When he became too androgynous for people to apply the set-in-stone rules of gender roles to him that we worship and follow so religiously? Was it when he became the biggest selling artist in history, or when he gained wealth and financial freedom, while the rest of us went to our day jobs that we hated? Was it when he shunned the public eye because of the chaos that would rear its ugly head whenever he stepped foot outside? Was it his creativity, and his passionate and intense outbursts on stage? Or, was it simply, that he mirrored our own mistakes back to us?

Most of us have, upon one time or another in our lives, come across a person that we have felt an immediate aversion to. More often than not, that aversion springs from how we feel about ourselves while in their presence. Michael Jackson was an avid spokesperson for children’s rights. His charity work spanned the globe, and he donated millions on a yearly basis. He spoke frequently about love and respect as the healers of our broken planet – and most of all, he believed in it. He pointed out the suffering and the wrongdoings on the planet, wrongdoings that largely exist because of our own indifference to them. Having someone mirroring our mistakes and idleness back to us is frightening , and by looking at his generosity and childlike nature, we were reminded that we had lost our own.
This was something that was incredibly provoking to many, and when proveked and insecure, we are designed to reject. By rejecting the thing that makes us uncomfortable, we hope for the feelings it creates to go away. So Michael Jackson was rejected. Again and again, he was rejected and mocked and and crucified by people that were too insecure in their own skin to be able to accept anyone that stood out, and that didn’t fit the mold.
Michael Jackson danced with an injured back, he toured until he fainted, and he stayed up entire nights at a time, for one reason, and one reason only: the hope that we would finally love and accept him the way he so desperately yearned for. But we would not, and we kept pushing him away.

Jackson was born with an extraordinary sense of musicality. In her book ”My Family, The Jacksons”, Katherine Jackson writes:

”It dawned on me that Michael was no run-of-the-mill kid one day in 1960. I was standing in front of my washing machine, checking the load, when I happened to turn around and see my one-and-a-half-year-old son practically under my dress tail. He was holding a bottle and dancing … dancing to the rhythmic squeak of my washing machine.”
While musicality can be trained to a certain extent, it cannot be taught. It is either there, or it is not. In Michael Jackson’s two year-old mind, and in his body…it was very much present, and his parents quickly noticed.

Jackson often spoke of how he felt he could not take credit for his songs, as they ”would just come to him”, and all he did was write them down. He cited God, and felt that the music was simply breing channeled through him by a higher power. To anyone that has ever watched him on stage, his presence is undeniable. In many ways, he may well be considered a creative and musical genious. Those are few and far between, but instead of being fascinated or in awe…we were provoked. We didn’t understand it, didn’t understand his animated way of behaving or his childlike nature, we didn’t understand his visions or his appreciation for the simple things…so we rejected him. Fear is born out of ignorance, and the world was ignorant. And because he already seemed so different from most of us – again, geniouses are few and far between – it made sense to most people that he was very likely ”strange” in the ways that the tabloids reported, too. He was a thirty-something man that loved water balloon fights; a forty-something that enjoyed climbing trees. Seemed plausible he would also sleep in a hyperbarbaric chamber and try to bleach his skin.
As a society, we worship our social norms so much, that anything that strays for them by definition becomes wrong and undesirable. Michael Jackson did not fit into any of the molds set by society. He was born with dark skin, which whitened with time. He was born with a large, wide nose, that he had altered to a small and narrow one. He had long hair, a high-pitched voice, and a soft, compassionate side. He was the antithesis of what society defines as ”male”, and expects a man to be.

We raise our sons wth toy guns, scrubbed knees and the notion that boys don’t cry. Michael Jackson was not afraid to show his emotions in every aspect of his life, and he was not an image of the macho culture that we so seem to love. His shyness and softer side was cute when he was little, and possibly also in his early teens, but in a fifty year old man? No, that can’t possobly be right. TV told us that’s not how men are supposed to behave. Reject.
Although the child molestation trial became the final blow to Michael Jackson’s heart, there had been a steady stream of atrocities being written about his private persona for decades, one more vicious than the next. During the twenty years that Michael Jackson was persecuted by the media, no one ever stopped to question the likelihood of what they were reading. Somewhere along the way, we put logics and critical thinking aside and decided that if it’s in print, it must be true. It must be true, because why would anyone lie? What people should be asking themselves is, why would they not? The media is a profit business. It is naive to think that we live in a world devoid of corruption and greed, and the days where the media was a direct reflection of the truth are long gone. What we are left with, are innuendos and cleverly fabricated stories that speak to the morbid fascination and pack animal in all of us, and that are just basic enough to not require reflection.

In retrospect, a vast majority of what was written on Jackson seems laughable and bizarre. According to the press, this is someone that was born a black man but really wants to be a white woman, sleeps in a hyperbarbaric chamber to be able to reach the age of two hundred, rides the roller coaster in his backyard alone in the middle of the night, bought the remains of Joseph Merrick (also known as ”The Elephant man”), and takes female homones to maintain his high-pitched voice. Yet no one ever reacted. No one ever for a second thought ”hang on a minute, this can’t possibly be true.” The reason? They wanted it to be true. They needed it to be true, so they could feel collectively part of something. Asking your colleagues or friends if they’ve heard what that Michael Jackson has done now, makes you the center of attention, and it makes you feel part of a group. We are pack animals, we thrive off of others and do not well on our own. We want to belong, to be accepted, to feel appreciated. That was all Michael Jackson ever wanted, too. The only difference is he was never let into the pack.

So why, then, did an entire planet decide it was okay to throw another fellow human being to the wolves and enjoy watching his demise? As a human race, we are not all good. We can be vindictive, manipulative, greedy and selfish, and all of us WILL put ourselves first if we are put into a life or death situation. We’d just like to believe differently. Michael Jackson… believed differently. It is funny how the one man that for so many years experienced nothing but the absolute worst of other people, was also the one that, unlike the rest of us, never became jaded. For someone to be subjected to so much hatred, prejudice, greed and malice, and still not lose faith in humanity…is astonishing. It would have been so easy for him, as it is for all of us, when hurt, to withdraw from the world and grow bitter and cold. The fact that he not only refrained from that, but kept loving this world and everyone in it even more, says everything about the person that he was. And lying about him, judging, hounding and persecuting him and standing by, doing nothing, as he perished….says everything about us.
———-
Martin Luther King once said:
”History will have to record that the greatest tragedy of this period of social transition was not the strident clamor of the bad people, but the appalling silence of the good people.”
We must never be silent. Blind obedience and sheep mentality is the reason why bullying exists. It is, when taken to the extreme, the reason the Holocaust happened, and it is the reason Michael Jackson is dead. There is a predator in all of us, and we are all capable of giving in to the urge of preying on the weak for our own self-gratification – some of just just make the effort to try to control it. To quote the well-known Michael Jackson song: “If they say “why, why?” / Tell them that it’s human nature.”

Never be silent.