and the soldier watched,  而那名士兵看着他们，

and then he sat there for a full minute  知道他们说完了之后，

after they were finished  他坐在那里待了整整一分钟，

and looked at us so bedraggled in the rain,  看着我们这群落汤鸡，

and said, "What you have said is true,  然后说，“你们说的是事实，

and we must bow to the will of the people.  而我们必须听从民意。

If you'll clear enough space for us to turn around,  如果你们让出足够的位置让我们掉头，

we'll go back the way we came."  我们会原路返回。”

And that's what they did.  而他们果真这样做了。

Sometimes, forging meaning  有时，铸造意义

can give you the vocabulary you need  能给你所需要的辞藻

to fight for your ultimate freedom.  来争取你最终的自由。

Russia awakened me to the lemonade notion  俄罗斯让我意识到逆境求生的概念：

that oppression breeds the power to oppose it,  剥削会繁衍抵抗剥削的力量，

and I gradually understood that as the cornerstone  而我逐渐明白了这是

of identity.  身份的基石。

It took identity to rescue me from sadness.  身份从伤痛中拯救了我。

The gay rights movement posits a world  同性恋权利运动憧憬一个

in which my aberrances are a victory.  我的畸形是一种胜利。

Identity politics always works on two fronts:  身份的政治总是从两方面出发：

to give pride to people who have a given condition  给有特殊情况或特征的人

or characteristic,  应有的自豪；

and to cause the outside world  和让外在的世界

to treat such people more gently and more kindly.  温柔地善待这些人。

Those are two totally separate enterprises,  这是两种不同的途径，

but progress in each sphere  但不管哪个方面的进展

reverberates in the other.  都会在另一方面造成回响。

Identity politics can be narcissistic.  身份的政治可以变成自恋的。

People extol a difference only because it's theirs.  人们称赞不同只是应为那是他们自身的。

People narrow the world and function  人们把世界窄化，

in discrete groups without empathy for one another.  形成个体，对他人毫无同情。

But properly understood  但如果它得以正确的理解

and wisely practiced,  和理智的运用，

identity politics should expand  身份的政治应该

our idea of what it is to be human.  扩充我们对人性的概念。

Identity itself  身份自身

should be not a smug label  不应是让人自满的标签

or a gold medal  或是一枚金牌

but a revolution.  但应是一个革命。

I would have had an easier life if I were straight,  如果我是异性恋，我的生活会轻松很多，

but I would not be me,  但我不会是我，

and I now like being myself better  我现在比较喜欢做我自己

than the idea of being someone else,  而不想成为另一个人，

someone who, to be honest,  说实话，

I have neither the option of being  我无法成为,

nor the ability fully to imagine.  也无法想象其他人。