Durant més d'una dècada, he estudiat els joves que han estat expulsats de l'escola, als que anomenem "desertors escolars". Com que el sistema educatiu els ha fallat acaben als carrers, on són vulnerables a la violència, l'assetjament policial, la brutalitat policial i l'empresonament. He seguit aquests joves de vegades durant anys, en el seu pas per les institucions, per provar d'entendre el que s'anomena "el camí de l'escola a la presó"
For over a decade, I have studied young people that have been pushed out of school, so called "dropouts." As they end up failed by the education system, they're on the streets where they're vulnerable to violence, police harassment, police brutality and incarceration. I follow these young people for years at a time, across institutional settings, to try to understand what some of us call the "school-to-prison pipeline."
Si mireu una imatge com aquesta, de joves del meu estudi, hi podeu veure problemes. Un té una botella de licor a la mà, té 14 anys i és un dia de classe. Altres, quan veuen aquesta imatge, pensen en bandes, mafiosos, delinqüents, criminals. Però jo ho veig de forma diferent. Jo veig aquests joves des d'una perspectiva que es fixa en el que aporten al sistema educatiu. M'ajudaran vostès a canviar la manera en què etiquetem els joves de "en risc" a "prometedors"?
When you look at a picture like this, of young people who are in my study ... you might see trouble. I mean one of the boys has a bottle of liquor in his hand, he's 14 years old and it's a school day. Other people, when they see this picture, might see gangs, thugs, delinquents -- criminals. But I see it different. I see these young people through a perspective that looks at the assets that they bring to the education system. So will you join me in changing the way we label young people from "at-risk" to "at-promise?"
(Aplaudiments)
(Applause)
Com sé jo que aquests joves tenen el potencial i la promesa de canviar? Ho sé perquè sóc un d'ells. Jo em vaig criar en una zona marginal, en la pobresa absoluta, sense pare −em va abandonar abans de néixer. Depeníem de l'assistència social, a vegades sense llar, i molts cops passant gana. Quan tenia 15 anys, ja havia estat en un reformatori tres vegades per tres delictes diferents. El meu amic ja havia estat assassinat. I poc després, mentre estava just al costat del meu oncle, li van clavar un tret. I mentre esperava que arribés l'ambulància durant una hora... es va dessagnar al mig del carrer. Jo havia perdut la fe i l'esperança, i ja havia llençat la tovallola, perquè el sistema m'havia fallat. No tenia res a oferir i ningú tenia res a oferir-me. Estava resignat. Ni tan sols pensava que pogués arribar a fer-ne 18.
How do I know that these young people have the potential and the promise to change? I know this because I am one of them. You see, I grew up in dire poverty in the inner city, without a father -- he abandoned me before I was even born. We were on welfare, sometimes homeless, many times hungry. By the time I was 15 years old, I had been incarcerated in juvy three times for three felonies. My best friend had already been killed. And soon after, while I'm standing next to my uncle, he gets shot. And as I'm waiting for the ambulance to arrive for over an hour ... he bleeds to death on the street. I had lost faith and hope in the world, and I had given up on the system because the system had failed me. I had nothing to offer and no one had anything to offer me. I was fatalistic. I didn't even think I could make it to my 18th birthday.
La raó per la qual sóc avui aquí és perquè una professora a qui li importava, se'm va apropar i se les manegà per arribar-me a l'ànima. Aquesta professora, la Sra. Russ... era d'aquells profes que sempre posava el nas en els teus assumptes.
The reason I'm here today is because a teacher that cared reached out and managed to tap into my soul. This teacher, Ms. Russ ... she was the kind of teacher that was always in your business.
(Rialles)
(Laughter)
Era d'aquell tipus de profe que et diu: "Victor, sóc aquí per ajudar-te quan estiguis a punt."
She was the kind of teacher that was like, "Victor, I'm here for you whenever you're ready."
(Rialles)
(Laughter)
Jo no estava a punt. Però ella va entendre una regla bàsica sobre joves com jo: som com ostres. Només ens obrim quan estem a punt, i si no hi ets quan estem a punt, ens tornem a tancar. La Sra. Russ hi era per mi. Era culturalment rellevant, respectava la meva comunitat, la meva gent, la meva família. Li vaig explicar la història del meu oncle Ruben. Em solia dur a la feina amb ell perquè jo estava pelat, i ell sabia que jo necessitava diners. Recollia ampolles de vidre buides. A les 4 del matí d'un dia de classe, llençàvem les ampolles al darrere de la seva furgo, i les ampolles es trencaven. Les meves mans i braços començaven a sagnar i les meves sabatilles i pantalons s'omplien de sang. I jo estava aterrat i adolorit, i volia deixar la feina. Però el meu oncle em mirava als ulls i em deia: "Fill meu, ens estem buscant la vida." "Estem buscant una vida millor, estem intentant fer alguna cosa del no-res."
I wasn't ready. But she understood one basic principle about young people like me. We're like oysters. We're only going to open up when we're ready, and if you're not there when we're ready, we're going to clam back up. Ms. Russ was there for me. She was culturally relevant, she respected my community, my people, my family. I told her a story about my Uncle Ruben. He would take me to work with him because I was broke, and he knew I needed some money. He collected glass bottles for a living. Four in the morning on a school day, we'd throw the glass bottles in the back of his van, and the bottles would break. And my hands and arms would start to bleed and my tennis shoes and pants would get all bloody. And I was terrified and in pain, and I would stop working. And my uncle, he would look me in the eyes and he would say to me, "Mijo, estamos buscando vida." "We're searching for a better life, we're trying to make something out of nothing."
La Sra. Russ va escoltar la meva història, em va convidar a explicar-ho a classe i em va dir: "Victor, aquest és el teu poder. Aquest és el teu potencial. La teva família, cultura i comunitat t'han ensenyat una ètica del treball que faràs servir per empoderar-te al món acadèmic, de forma que podràs tornar i empoderar la teva comunitat."
Ms. Russ listened to my story, welcomed it into the classroom and said, "Victor, this is your power. This is your potential. Your family, your culture, your community have taught you a hard-work ethic and you will use it to empower yourself in the academic world so you can come back and empower your community."
Amb l'ajuda de la Sra. Russ, vaig acabar tornant a l'institut. Fins i tot vaig acabar les meves assignatures a temps i em vaig graduar amb la meva classe.
With Ms. Russ's help, I ended up returning to school. I even finished my credits on time and graduated with my class.
(Aplaudiments)
(Applause)
Però la Sra. Russ em va dir just abans de graduar-me: "Victor, estic tan orgullosa de tu. Sabia que podies fer-ho. Ara és hora d'anar a la universitat."
But Ms. Russ said to me right before graduation, "Victor, I'm so proud of you. I knew you could do it. Now it's time to go to college."
(Rialles)
(Laughter)
A la universitat, jo? Què coi s'ha fumat aquesta profe per pensar que aniré a la uni? Vaig fer la sol·licitud amb els mentors i el suport que em va donar, vaig rebre una carta d'admissió, i en un dels paràgrafs hi deia: "Vostè ha estat admès de forma provisional." I em vaig dir: "Provisional? Ja tinc la condicional, això no compta?".
College, me? Man, what is this teacher smoking thinking I'm going to college? I applied with the mentors and support she provided, got a letter of acceptance, and one of the paragraphs read, "You've been admitted under probationary status." I said, "Probation? I'm already on probation, that don't matter?"
(Rialles)
(Laughter)
Parlaven de quelcom acadèmic, no criminal. Què fan els profes com la Sra. Russ per manegar-se-les amb joves com als que jo estudio? Jo proposo tres estratègies. La primera: desfem-nos de la nostra perspectiva de mancances en l'educació. "Aquesta gent vénen d'una cultura violenta, una cultura pobra. Estan en risc, no van a classe. Són com envasos buits que hem d'omplir de coneixements. Ells tenen problemes, nosaltres tenim solucions.". Número 2: Valorem les històries que aquests joves aporten a l'escola. Les seves històries de superació de l'impossible són molt poderoses. I sé que coneixen algunes d'aquestes històries. Aquestes mateixes històries i experiències ja contenen coratge, caràcter i resiliència en si mateixes. Així que, ajudem els joves a polir aquestes històries. Fem-los sentir orgullosos de si mateixos, perquè el nostre sistema educatiu acull les seves famílies, cultures, comunitats i les habilitats que han après per sobreviure. I per descomptat, la tercera estratègia és la més important: recursos. Hem de proporcionar els recursos adequats pels joves. El coratge per si mateix no serveix de res. Us podeu asseure i dir-me tot el que vulgueu: "Ei, tu, és la teva vida: agafa el toro per les banyes.". Però i si no hi ha banyes on agafar-me...
It was academic probation, not criminal probation. But what do teachers like Ms. Russ do to succeed with young people like the ones I study? I propose three strategies. The first: let's get rid of our deficit perspective in education. "These people come from a culture of violence, a culture of poverty. These people are at-risk; these people are truant. These people are empty containers for us to fill with knowledge. They have the problems, we have the solutions." Number two. Let's value the stories that young people bring to the schoolhouse. Their stories of overcoming insurmountable odds are so powerful. And I know you know some of these stories. These very same stories and experiences already have grit, character and resilience in them. So let's help young people refine those stories. Let's help them be proud of who they are, because our education system welcomes their families, their cultures, their communities and the skill set they've learned to survive. And of course the third strategy being the most important: resources. We have to provide adequate resources to young people. Grit alone isn't going to cut it. You can sit there and tell me all you want, "Hey man, pick yourself up by the bootstraps." But if I was born without any straps on my boots --
(Rialles)
(Laughter)
Com se suposa que ho he de fer?
How am I supposed to pick myself up?
(Aplaudiments)
(Applause)
Formació professional, assessorament, orientació... Ensenyar els joves a aprendre dels seus errors en comptes de criminalitzar-los, i d'arrossegar-los fora de les aules com si fossin animals. Què els sembla això? Proposo implantar la justícia rehabilitadora als instituts dels EUA.
Job training, mentoring, counseling ... Teaching young people to learn from their mistakes instead of criminalizing them, and dragging them out of their classrooms like animals. How about this? I propose that we implement restorative justice in every high school in America.
(Aplaudiments)
(Applause)
Vam posar a prova aquestes idees a la comunitat de Watts a Los Angeles amb 40 joves que havien estat expulsats del sistema escolar. En William era un d'ells. En William era un d'aquells nois a qui li havien posat totes les etiquetes. Era desertor escolar, membre d'una banda, un criminal. I quan ens vam trobar, es mostrà reticent. Però vaig recordar el que la Sra. Russ solia dir: "Ei, sóc aquí per quan estigui a punt.".
So we went out to test these ideas in the community of Watts in LA with 40 young people that had been pushed out of school. William was one of them. William was the kind of kid that had been given every label. He had dropped out, he was a gang member, a criminal. And when we met him he was very resistant. But I remember what Ms. Russ used to say. "Hey, I'm here for you whenever you're ready."
(Rialles)
(Laughter)
Així que, amb el temps, amb el temps, es començà a obrir. I me'n recordo del dia que va fer el clic. Estàvem en un grup gran i una noia del programa estava plorant mentre explicava la seva història poderosa: la de l'assassinat del seu pare i l'exposició del seu cadàver als diaris l'endemà. I mentre ella plorava, jo no sabia què fer, així que li vaig donar el seu temps, i en William no es pogué aguantar. Va donar un cop a la taula i va dir: "Ei, tots! Una abraçada en grup! Una abraçada en grup!".
So over time -- over time he began to open up. And I remember the day that he made the switch. We were in a large group and a young lady in our program was crying because she told us her powerful story of her dad being killed and then his body being shown in the newspaper the next day. And as she's crying, I don't know what to do, so I give her her space, and William had enough. He slammed his hands on the desk and he said, "Hey, everybody! Group hug! Group hug!"
(Aplaudiments)
(Applause)
Les llàgrimes i dolor d'aquella noia es convertiren en alegria i rialles, sabent que la seva comunitat l'havia ajudat, i en William va aprendre que tenia un objectiu a la vida: ajudar a curar les ànimes de la gent de la seva comunitat. Ell ens explicà la seva història. La vam polir perquè deixés de ser la història d'una víctima, per ser la d'un supervivent que havia superat l'adversitat. Li vam donar un gran valor. En William va continuar fins a acabar a l'institut, va obtenir la seva llicència de guarda de seguretat i avui dia treballa en una escola de barri.
This young lady's tears and pain turned into joy and laughter knowing that her community had her back, and William had now learned that he did have a purpose in life: to help to heal the souls of people in his own community. He told us his story. We refined his story to go from being the story of a victim to being the story of a survivor that has overcome adversity. We placed high value on it. William went on to finish high school, get his security guard certificate to become a security guard, and is now working at a local school district.
(Aplaudiments)
(Applause)
El mantra de la Sra. Russ, el seu mantra sempre fou: "Quan ensenyes el cor, la ment el seguirà." El gran escriptor Khalil Gibran diu: "Del sofriment han sorgit les grans ànimes. els caràcters més sòlids estan farcits de cicatrius." Crec que en aquesta revolució educativa de què estem parlant, hem de convidar les ànimes dels joves amb què treballem, i un cop són capaços de refinar, identificar el seu coratge, resiliència i caràcter que ja han desenvolupat, el seu rendiment acadèmic millorarà.
Ms. Russ's mantra -- her mantra was always, "when you teach to the heart, the mind will follow." The great writer Khalil Gibran says, "Out of suffering have emerged the greatest souls. The massive characters are seared with scars." I believe that in this education revolution that we're talking about we need to invite the souls of the young people that we work with, and once they're able to refine -- identify their grit, resilience and character that they've already developed -- their academic performance will improve.
Hem de creure en els joves. Hem de proporcionar-los els recursos adequats. Els diré què va fer la meva professora per mi. Va creure en mi de tal forma que em va enganyar perquè cregués en mi mateix.
Let's believe in young people. Let's provide them the right kinds of resources. I'll tell you what my teacher did for me. She believed in me so much that she tricked me into believing in myself.
Gràcies.
Thank you.
(Aplaudiments)
(Applause)