A room full of boys. A girl child, hardly nine or ten years old, she is sitting in the center of the room, surrounded by books. She is the only girl among boys, and is barely missing her female cousins and friends, who are inside the home instead of the school, because they are not allowed to get an education alongside boys. There isn't a single functional girls' school in her village.
在一个全是男孩儿的房间里, 有一个小女孩儿, 看起来不到九岁或十岁。 她坐在房间中央,被一堆书围着。 她是一群孩子中唯一一个女孩儿, 却几乎不会想念她的表妹和朋友们, 她们正呆在家中, 因为她们不被允许 跟男孩子一起得到教育。 在女孩所在的村庄里, 没有一所女子学校。
She was born in a Baloch conservative tribe, where women and girls are a matter of honor. She is the eldest in her family, and when she was about to be born, her parents wanted a baby boy. But they had bad luck; a baby girl arrived. It was customary in her family to keep girls inside the homes. But her uncle, who was a university graduate, he wanted to give her an opportunity to see the world, to be part of the society. Luckily, she has a name that can be used for both men and women. So he saw a chance to change her course of life. So he decided to raise her as a boy.
她出身于一个传统的俾路支部落, 在那里,女人和女孩 与家族荣耀息息相关。 她是家中的长女, 当她快出生时,她的父母 期待的是一个男孩儿。 但他们的运气不好, 得到了一个女孩儿。 在她的家庭中,让女孩们 待在家里是一种习俗。 但她的叔叔身为一个大学毕业生, 想要给予她一个机会 看一看这个世界, 并成为社会中一员的机会。 幸运的是,她有一个中性化的名字。 所以她的叔叔看到了 一个改变她人生轨迹的机会。 他决定把她作为一个男孩儿养大。
At three months old, she went from being a baby girl, to baby boy. She is given a boy's getup. She is allowed to go outside and get an education alongside boys. She is free, she is confident. She observes, she notes small, everyday injustices faced by women and girls in her village. When newspapers arrive at her home, she watches as it passes from the eldest man to the youngest man. By the time women get hold of the paper, it is old news.
在她三个月大的时候, 她从一个小女孩变为一个小男孩。 她穿着男孩的服饰, 被允许走出家门, 并与一群男孩们一起得到教育。 她是自由的,也是自信的。 她注意了到日常生活中 各种细微的不公之处, 都是村庄里的 女人和女孩们所经历。 当有报纸被送到家门口, 她看着报纸从最年长的男人 传到最年轻的男人。 当女人拿到报纸时, 上面的新闻早就已经过时了。
She completes her eighth-grade year. Now fear starts to come in. This will be the end of her education, because the only option for high school for further study is five kilometers away. Boys have bicycles, they are free. But she knows her father will not allow her to travel on her own, even if she were posing as a boy. "I can't let you do that. And I don't have the time to walk you there and back. Sorry, it is impossible." She gets very upset. But a miracle happened. A long-distance relative offers to teach her ninth- and tenth-grade curricula during summer vacations. This is how she completed her matriculation. The girl whom I am talking about to you is me, Shameem, who is talking before you now.
她完成了八年级的课程, 恐惧却开始席卷而来。 这将是她接受教育的终点, 因为进入高中深造的唯一机会 在五公里外的地方。 男孩们有自行车, 他们是自由的。 但她知道, 她的父亲不会允许她独自出行, 即使她以男孩的形象出现。 “我不能让你这么做。 而且我没有时间 陪你走过去再回来。 抱歉,这是不可能的。“ 她感到十分沮丧。 但是奇迹发生了。 一个千里之外的亲戚提出, 想在暑假里教她 九年级和十年级的课程。 就这样,她完成了大学入学考试。 我所描述的这个女孩 就是我,莎米姆, 正在你们面前讲话的这个人。
(Applause)
(掌声)
Throughout centuries, people have been fighting for their identity. People have been loved, privileged, because of their identity, their nationality, their ethnicity. Again, people have been hated, denied, because of their nationality, their identity, their race, their gender, their religion. Identity determines your position in society, wherever you live. So if you ask me, I would say I hate this question of identity. Millions of girls in this world are being denied their basic rights because of being female. I would have faced the same, if I hadn't been raised as a boy. I was determined to continue my studies, to learn, to be free. After my schooling, even enrolling in college was not easy for me. I went on a three-day hunger strike.
自始自终,人们都在 为自己的身份抗争。 人们拥有爱、特权, 皆因他们的身份、 国籍和种族地位。 同时,人们受到憎恨、否定, 也皆因他们的国籍、身份, 种族、性别和宗教信仰。 无论你身处何处, 身份都决定了你在社会中的地位。 所以如果你问我,我会回答 我对于这个关于身份的问题十分反感。 在这个世界上有无数的女孩们 被剥夺了最基本的权力, 只因她们是女性。 如果我没有被作为一个男孩 抚养长大,我也会面对同样的困境。 我决心继续我的学习, 为了获取知识,为了变得自由。 在完成了学校教育之后,申请进入 高等教育学院也让我颇费了一番周折。 我进行了一场 为期三天的绝食抗议。
(Laughter)
(笑声)
Then, I got permission for college.
然后,家里人才同意我 去接受高等教育。
(Laughter)
(笑声)
(Applause)
(掌声)
In that way, I completed my college. Two years later, when the time came for me to go to university, my father turned his eyes, his attention, to my younger brothers. They need to be in school, secure jobs and support the family. And as a woman, my place was to be home. But, I don't give up. I sign up for a two-year program to become a lady health visitor. Then I hear about Thardeep Rural Development Program, a non-profit organization working to empower rural communities. I sneak away. I travel five hours to interview for a position. It is the first time I am the farthest from my home I have ever been. I am closest to my freedom I have ever been. Luckily, I got the job, but the hardest part is facing my father.
就这样,我完成了 两年的本科学习。 两年后,当我准备进入大学时, 我的父亲把他的目光 和关注投向了我的弟弟们。 他们需要上学,安全稳定的职业, 并支付家庭开销。 而作为一个女人, 我理应待在家中。 但是,我从不轻言放弃。 我加入了一个为期两年的项目, 成为了一个妇女保健视察员。 然后我听说了 夏蒂普乡村发展计划, 一个努力赋予乡村社区 权力的非盈利性组织。 我偷偷溜出家里。 历经了五个小时的长途跋涉, 只为得到面试一个岗位的机会。 这是我第一次离家这么远。 我从未像那一次一样 如此接近自由。 幸运地,我得到了那个工作机会, 但是最艰难的部分依然是 要如何面对我的父亲。
(Laughter)
(笑声)
Relatives are already scaring him about his daughter wandering off, teasing him with talk of his daughter crossing the border. When I return home, I want nothing more than just to accept the position in Thardeep. So that night, I packed all my things in a bag, and I walked into my father's room and told him, "Tomorrow morning, the bus is going to come in. If you believe in me, if you believe in me, you will wake me up and take me to the bus station. If you don't, I'll understand." Then I went to sleep. The next morning, my father was standing beside me to take me to the bus stop.
我的亲戚们已经在发布 危言耸听的言论, 关于他的女儿如何四处乱逛, 用她如何越过做女人 底线的话题来取笑他。 当我回到家时, 我只想着要接受 夏蒂普的工作岗位。 所以当晚我把所有东西打包, 走进父亲的房间并告诉他, “明天早上,大巴会到车站接人。 如果你相信我, 如果你相信我, 你就叫醒我,并把我送到汽车站。 如果你不相信我,我也会理解。” 然后我就进入了梦乡。 第二天一早,父亲出现在了我的身边, 陪我走到了汽车站。
(Applause)
(掌声)
That day, I understood the importance of words. I understood how words affect our hearts, how words play an important role in our lives. I understood words are more powerful than fighting. At TRDP, I saw there was a Pakistan which I didn't know, a country much more complex than I had realized. Until that, I thought I had a difficult life. But here, I saw what women in other parts of Pakistan were experiencing. It really opened my eyes. Some women had 11 children but nothing to feed them. For getting water, they would walk three hours every day to wells. The nearest hospital was at least 32 kilometers away. So if a woman is in labor, she travels by camel to get to the hospital. The distance is great; she may die on her way.
那一天,我明白了言辞的重要性。 我明白了言辞 如何影响我们的内心, 如何在我们的生活中 扮演了一个至关重要的角色。 我明白了言辞比武力更强大。 在夏蒂普活动中,我发现了 一个我不知道的巴基斯坦, 一个比我想象当中更复杂的国家。 在那之前,我曾经以为 我的生活就已经很艰难了。 但是在那里,我看见了在巴基斯坦 其他地区的女人正经历着什么。 那景象让我大开眼界。 有些女人有 11 个孩子, 却没有食物来喂养他们。 为了取水,她们每天要步行 三个小时到井边打水。 最近的医院至少 在 32 公里外的地方。 所以如果一个女人即将临盆, 她需要坐骆驼去医院生产。 路途十分遥远, 她或许会死在途中。
So now, this became more than just a job for me. I discovered my power. Now, as I was getting salary, I started sending back money to my home. Relatives and neighbors were noticing this. Now they started to understand the importance of education. By that time, some other parents started sending their daughters to school. Slowly, it became easier and acceptable for young women to be in college. Today, there isn't a single girl out of school in my village.
于是现在,这对我来说 不再只是一项工作了。 我发现了我的力量。 现在,我能够经济独立了, 于是开始寄钱给家里。 我过去的那些亲戚和邻居们 也都注意到了这一点。 现在他们开始意识到了 教育的重要性。 从那时起,其他一些家长也 开始把他们的女儿们送进学校。 渐渐地,年轻女性去读高等学院 变得更简单,也更容易被接受。 今天,在我的村子里, 所有的女孩都在接受教育。
(Applause)
(掌声)
Girls are doing jobs in health sites, even in police. Life was good. But somewhere in my heart, I realized that my region, beyond my village needs further change. This was also the time when I joined Acumen Fellowship. There, I met leaders like me across the country. And I saw they are taking risks in their lives. I started to understand what leadership really means. So I decided to go back to my region and take a position as a teacher in a remote school, a school that I have to reach by bus -- two hours traveling, every morning and evening. Though it was hard, on my first day I knew I made the right decision. The first day I walked into the school, I saw all these little Shameems staring back at me --
医疗机构,甚至是警察局 都能见到女孩们的身影。 生活越来越美好。 但在我心中, 我意识到在我家附近的地区, 在我的村庄之外的地方 需要更多的改变。 于是我加入了敏锐联谊会。 在那里,我遇见了全国 其他像我一样的领导者们, 甚至在冒着生命危险 从事这项工作。 我开始意识到 领导力真正的意义。 因此我决定回到我的家乡, 并在一所偏远的学校 成为了一名教师, 一所我必须每天早上和傍晚 搭乘两个小时大巴才能到达的学校。 尽管这样很辛苦, 但在我上任的第一天,我就知道 我做出了正确的决定。 我走进学校的第一天, 就看到了所有这些 年轻的小莎米姆们凝视着我——
(Laughter)
(笑声)
with dreams in their eyes, the same dream of freedom which I had in my childhood.
她们的眼中带着梦想, 一个与我儿时曾有过的 一样的,追求自由的梦想。
So the girls are eager to learn, but the school is understaffed. Girls sit hopeful, learn nothing, and they leave. I can't bear to see this happening. There was no turning back. I found my purpose. I enlisted a few of my friends to help me to teach. I'm introducing my girls to the outside world by extracurricular activities and books. I share with them the profiles of the world's best leaders, like Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela. Last year, a few of our students went to college. For me, I never stop studying. Today, I'm working to complete my PhD in education --
那些女孩们十分渴望学习, 但是学校的师资力量相当匮乏。 女孩们带着希望坐在那里, 却什么也学不到, 于是就离开了。 我不能忍受看到这些发生。 不能再让旧事重演了。 我找到了我的目标。 我招募了一些朋友来帮助我上课。 我利用课外活动和书籍, 把我教导的女孩们 介绍给了外面的世界。 我与她们分享有关 世界上最出色的领袖们的资料, 例如,马丁 · 路德金 和尼尔逊 · 曼德拉。 去年,我们的一些学生 进入了高等学院。 对我来说,我也从未停止过学习。 今天,我正努力完成 教育学的博士学位——
(Applause)
(掌声)
which will allow me to gain a management position in the school system, and I will be able to make more decisions and play a pivotal role in the system.
这将使我在教育体系中得到一个 管理层的职位, 而我将有能力做出更多决定, 并成为体系中一个关键的角色。
I believe that without educating the girls, we may not make world peace. We may not reduce child marriage. We may not reduce infant mortality rate. We may not reduce maternal mortality rate. For this, we have to continuously and collectively work together. At least I am playing my role, though the destination is not close. The road is not easy. But I have dreams in my eyes, and I am not going to look back now.
我相信如果不让女孩们得到教育, 世界和平就无法实现。 我们将不能减少未成年婚姻。 我们将不能降低未成年儿童死亡率。 我们将不能降低母亲的死亡率。 为了达成这些目标, 我们必须勇往直前, 团结协作。 至少我正在完成我的工作, 尽管最终目标仍然遥不可及。 这条路充满艰辛。 但我眼中怀有梦想, 而我再也不会回头了。
Thank you.
谢谢。
(Applause)
(掌声)