TED2014
Zak Ebrahim: I am the son of a terrorist. Here's how I chose peace.
Zak Ebrahim: Ja sam sin teroriste. Ovako sam izabrao mir.
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Ako ste odgojeni u dogmi i mržnji, možete li izabrati drugačiji put? Zaku Ebrahimu je bilo samo sedam godina kada je njegov otac pripomogao u planu da se Svjetski trgovinski centar izbombarduje 1993. godine. Njegova priča je šokantna, snažna i povrh svega, inspirativna.
Zak Ebrahim - Peace activist
Groomed for terror, Zak Ebrahim chose a different life. The author of The Terrorist's Son, he hopes his story will inspire others to reject a path of violence. Full bio
Groomed for terror, Zak Ebrahim chose a different life. The author of The Terrorist's Son, he hopes his story will inspire others to reject a path of violence. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:14
On November 5th, 1990,
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5. Novembra 1990.,
00:16
a man named El-Sayyid Nosair walked
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čovjek po imenu El-Sajid Nosair ušetao je
00:19
into a hotel in Manhattan
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u jedan hotel na Menhetnu
00:21
and assassinated Rabbi Meir Kahane,
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i ubio rabina Meira Kahane,
00:24
the leader of the Jewish Defense League.
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lidera Židovske Lige Odbrane.
00:28
Nosair was initially found not guilty of the murder,
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Nosair u prvi mah
proglašen nevinim za ubistvo,
proglašen nevinim za ubistvo,
00:31
but while serving time on lesser charges,
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ali dok je služio zatvorsku
kaznu zbog manjih prekršaja
kaznu zbog manjih prekršaja
00:34
he and other men began planning attacks
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on i drugi ljudi počeli su
planirati napade
planirati napade
00:37
on a dozen New York City landmarks,
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na desetak poznatih
znamenitosti u Njujorku
znamenitosti u Njujorku
00:39
including tunnels, synagogues
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uključujući tunele, sinagoge
00:41
and the United Nations headquarters.
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i sjedište UN-a.
00:44
Thankfully, those plans were foiled
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Srećom, ti planovi su osujećeni
00:46
by an FBI informant.
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od strane jednog od FBI doušnika.
00:49
Sadly, the 1993 bombing
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Nažalost, to se nije
desilo sa bombardovanjem
desilo sa bombardovanjem
00:51
of the World Trade Center was not.
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Svjetskog trgovinskog centra 1993. godine.
00:54
Nosair would eventually be convicted
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Nosair je na kraju bio osuđen
00:56
for his involvement in the plot.
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zbog učešća u zavjeri.
00:59
El-Sayyid Nosair is my father.
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El-Sajid Nosair je moj otac.
01:04
I was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
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Rođen sam u Pitsburgu, Pensilvaniji
01:06
in 1983 to him, an Egyptian engineer,
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1983. godine, kao sin egipatskon inžinjera
01:09
and a loving American mother
and grade school teacher,
and grade school teacher,
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i brižne američke majke,
učiteljice u osnovnoj školi
učiteljice u osnovnoj školi
01:13
who together tried their best
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koji su skupa
davali sve od sebe
davali sve od sebe
01:14
to create a happy childhood for me.
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da stvore sretno djetinjstvo za mene.
01:17
It wasn't until I was seven years old
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Tek nakon što sam
napunio sedam godina
napunio sedam godina
01:18
that our family dynamic started to change.
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dinamika naše
porodice počela je da se mijenja.
porodice počela je da se mijenja.
01:22
My father exposed me to a side of Islam
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Otac me izložio jednoj strani islama
01:25
that few people, including the majority of Muslims,
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koju jako malo ljudi,
uključujući većinu muslimana
uključujući većinu muslimana
01:28
get to see.
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uspije vidjeti.
01:31
It's been my experience that when people
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Po mom iskustvu, kada ljudi
01:32
take the time to interact with one another,
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izdvoje vrijeme za
interakciju jedni sa drugima
interakciju jedni sa drugima
01:35
it doesn't take long to realize that for the most part,
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ne treba puno da
bi se shvatilo da uglavnom
bi se shvatilo da uglavnom
01:38
we all want the same things out of life.
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svi mi želimo iste stvari u životu.
01:40
However, in every religion, in every population,
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Međutim, u svakoj
religiji, u svakoj populaciji,
religiji, u svakoj populaciji,
01:43
you'll find a small percentage of people
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naći ćete mali procenat ljudi
01:46
who hold so fervently to their beliefs
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koji se tako gorljivo
drže svojih uvjerenja
drže svojih uvjerenja
01:49
that they feel they must use any means necessary
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da osjećaju da moraju
koristiti svako neophodno sredstvo
koristiti svako neophodno sredstvo
01:52
to make others live as they do.
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kako bi natjerali druge da žive kao oni.
01:55
A few months prior to his arrest,
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Par mjeseci prije njegovog hapšenja,
01:57
he sat me down and explained that
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posjeo me pored sebe i objasnio
01:59
for the past few weekends, he and some friends
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kako je zadnjih par vikenda,
on sa nekim prijateljima
on sa nekim prijateljima
02:02
had been going to a shooting range on Long Island
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išao u streljanu na Long Ajlendu
02:04
for target practice.
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kako bi vježbao gađanje.
02:07
He told me I'd be going with him the next morning.
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Rekao mi je da ću
ići sa njim sljedeće jutro.
ići sa njim sljedeće jutro.
02:10
We arrived at Calverton Shooting Range,
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Stigli smo u streljanu Kalverton,
02:12
which unbeknownst to our group was being watched
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koja je bila pod prismotrom FBI
02:15
by the FBI.
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a da naša grupa to nije znala.
Kada je bio moj
red da pucam,
red da pucam,
02:18
When it was my turn to shoot,
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02:19
my father helped me hold the rifle to my shoulder
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Otac mi je pomogao
da držim pušku na ramenu
da držim pušku na ramenu
i objasnio kako da ciljam u metu
02:21
and explained how to aim at the target
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02:23
about 30 yards off.
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na oko 27 metara.
02:26
That day, the last bullet I shot
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Zadnji metak koji sam ispalio tog dana
02:28
hit the small orange light that sat on top of the target
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pogodio je malo
narančasto svjetlo na vrhu mete
narančasto svjetlo na vrhu mete
02:31
and to everyone's surprise, especially mine,
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i na iznenađenje svih, a posebno moje,
02:35
the entire target burst into flames.
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cijela meta je prsnula u plamenovima.
02:39
My uncle turned to the other men,
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Moj stric se okrenuo drugim ljudima,
02:40
and in Arabic said, "Ibn abuh."
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i rekao na arapskom "ibn abduh".
02:44
Like father, like son.
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Kakav otac, takav sin.
02:47
They all seemed to get a really
big laugh out of that comment,
big laugh out of that comment,
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Svi su se dobro nasmijali tom komentaru,
02:50
but it wasn't until a few years later
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ali tek nekoliko godina kasnije
02:52
that I fully understood what
they thought was so funny.
they thought was so funny.
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potpuno sam razumio
šta im je bilo tako smiješno.
šta im je bilo tako smiješno.
02:56
They thought they saw in me the same destruction
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Mislili su da me vide u istom razaranju
02:58
my father was capable of.
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za koje je moj otac bio sposoban.
03:01
Those men would eventually be convicted
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Ti ljudi su na kraju osuđeni
03:04
of placing a van filled with
1,500 pounds of explosives
1,500 pounds of explosives
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zbog kombija sa 680 kg eksploziva
ostavljenog
ostavljenog
na parkingu sjevernoj tornja
Svjetskog trgovinskog centra
Svjetskog trgovinskog centra
03:08
into the sub-level parking lot of the
World Trade Center's North Tower,
World Trade Center's North Tower,
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03:12
causing an explosion that killed six people
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uzrokujući eksploziju
koja je ubila šest ljudi
koja je ubila šest ljudi
03:15
and injured over 1,000 others.
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i povrijedila preko 1000 drugih.
03:18
These were the men I looked up to.
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To su bili ljudi na koje
sam gledao sa poštovanjem.
sam gledao sa poštovanjem.
03:20
These were the men I called
ammu, which means uncle.
ammu, which means uncle.
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Te ljude sam zvao "ammu", što znači stric.
03:25
By the time I turned 19,
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Do moje 19. godine
03:26
I had already moved 20 times in my life,
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selio sam se već 20 puta,
03:30
and that instability during my childhood
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i ta nestabilnost u mom djetinjstvu
03:32
didn't really provide an opportunity
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nije mi dala neku priliku
03:33
to make many friends.
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da se sprijateljim sa mnogo ljudi.
03:35
Each time I would begin to feel
comfortable around someone,
comfortable around someone,
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Svaki put kad se počnem
osjećati ugodno u nečijoj blizini,
osjećati ugodno u nečijoj blizini,
03:38
it was time to pack up and move to the next town.
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bilo je vrijeme
pakovati se i seliti se u novi grad.
pakovati se i seliti se u novi grad.
03:41
Being the perpetual new face in class,
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Kako sam bio uvijek novo lice u razredu,
03:44
I was frequently the target of bullies.
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često sam bio meta siledžija.
03:46
I kept my identity a secret from my classmates
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Tajio sam svoj
identitet od ostalih učenika
identitet od ostalih učenika
03:48
to avoid being targeted,
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kako ne bih bio meta,
03:50
but as it turns out, being the
quiet, chubby new kid in class
quiet, chubby new kid in class
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ali kako se pokazalo, biti tiho,
bucmasto novo dijete u razredu
bucmasto novo dijete u razredu
03:53
was more than enough ammunition.
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bilo je više nego dovoljno.
03:56
So for the most part, I spent my time at home
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Tako sam uglavnom provodio vrijeme
03:58
reading books and watching TV
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čitajući knjige i gledajući TV
04:00
or playing video games.
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ili igrajući video igrice.
04:01
For those reasons, my social skills were lacking,
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Moje društvene
04:04
to say the least,
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se nisu razvile, u najmanju ruku,
i odrastajući u
bigotnom okruženju,
bigotnom okruženju,
04:06
and growing up in a bigoted household,
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04:08
I wasn't prepared for the real world.
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nisam bio spreman za stvarni život.
04:10
I'd been raised to judge people
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Odgajan sam da sudim ljudima
04:12
based on arbitrary measurements,
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na osnovu proizvoljnih parametara,
04:14
like a person's race or religion.
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kao što je rasa ili religija.
04:18
So what opened my eyes?
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I šta mi je otvorilo oči?
04:21
One of my first experiences
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Jedno od mojih prvih iskustava
koje je izazvalo preispitivanje
mog razmišljanja
mog razmišljanja
04:23
that challenged this way of thinking
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04:25
was during the 2000 presidential elections.
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bilo je tokom predsjedničkih
izbora 2000. godine.
izbora 2000. godine.
04:28
Through a college prep program,
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Kroz program pripreme za koledž,
04:30
I was able to take part
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imao sam priliku učestvovati
04:31
in the National Youth Convention in Philadelphia.
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u Državnoj omladinskoj
konvenciji održanoj u Filadelfiji.
konvenciji održanoj u Filadelfiji.
04:34
My particular group's focus was on youth violence,
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Fokus moje grupe bio je
na nasilju među mladima,
na nasilju među mladima,
04:37
and having been the victim
of bullying for most of my life,
of bullying for most of my life,
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i s obzirom da sam
veći dio svog života bio žrtva siledžija,
veći dio svog života bio žrtva siledžija,
04:40
this was a subject in which
I felt particularly passionate.
I felt particularly passionate.
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osjećao sam posebnu
strast prema ovoj temi.
strast prema ovoj temi.
04:44
The members of our group came
from many different walks of life.
from many different walks of life.
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Članovi naše grupe bili
su raznih zanimanja i profila.
su raznih zanimanja i profila.
04:48
One day toward the end of the convention,
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Dan prije završetka konvencije,
04:50
I found out that one of the kids I had befriended
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saznao sam da je jedno
od djece sa kojima sam se sprijateljio
od djece sa kojima sam se sprijateljio
04:53
was Jewish.
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bio Jevrej.
04:55
Now, it had taken several days
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Trebalo je nekoliko dana
04:57
for this detail to come to light,
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da se sazna ovaj detalj,
04:58
and I realized that there was no natural animosity
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i shvatio sam da nije
bilo prirodnog neprijateljstva
bilo prirodnog neprijateljstva
05:02
between the two of us.
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između nas.
05:04
I had never had a Jewish friend before,
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Nisam nikad prije
imao prijatelja koji je Jevrej,
imao prijatelja koji je Jevrej,
05:07
and frankly I felt a sense of pride
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i iskreno imao sam osjećaj ponosa
05:10
in having been able to overcome a barrier
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da sam sposoban prevazići barijeru
05:12
that for most of my life I had been led to believe
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za koju sam veliki dio
života bio naveden da vjerujem
života bio naveden da vjerujem
05:14
was insurmountable.
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da je nepremostiva.
05:17
Another major turning point came when
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Druga velika prekretnica je bila
05:19
I found a summer job at Busch Gardens,
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kada sam našao ljetni
posao u Buš Vrtovima,
posao u Buš Vrtovima,
05:21
an amusement park.
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zabavnom parku.
05:24
There, I was exposed to people
from all sorts of faiths and cultures,
from all sorts of faiths and cultures,
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Tu sam bio izložen
ljudima svih religija i kultura,
ljudima svih religija i kultura,
05:27
and that experience proved to be fundamental
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i to iskustvo se pokazalo fundamentalno
05:29
to the development of my character.
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za razvoj mog karaktera.
05:33
Most of my life, I'd been taught
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Cijelog života su me učili
05:34
that homosexuality was a sin, and by extension,
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da je homoseksualnost
grijeh, i u skladu s tim,
grijeh, i u skladu s tim,
05:38
that all gay people were a negative influence.
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svi homoseksualci su
predstavljali negativan uticaj.
predstavljali negativan uticaj.
05:41
As chance would have it, I had the opportunity
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Desilo se tako da sam imao priliku
da radim sa nekim od
izvođača koji su bili homoseksualci
izvođača koji su bili homoseksualci
05:44
to work with some of the gay performers
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05:45
at a show there,
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na jednoj izvedbi,
05:47
and soon found that many were the kindest,
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i uskoro sam shvatio da
su mnogi najljubazniji,
su mnogi najljubazniji,
05:49
least judgmental people I had ever met.
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ljudi najmanje skloni
osudama koje sam ikad sreo.
osudama koje sam ikad sreo.
S obzirom da sam kao dijete
bio maltretiran od strane siledžija
bio maltretiran od strane siledžija
05:53
Being bullied as a kid
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05:55
created a sense of empathy in me
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stvorio sam osjećaj empatije
05:58
toward the suffering of others,
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prema patnji drugih,
05:59
and it comes very unnaturally to me
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i dođe mi vrlo prirodno
06:01
to treat people who are kind
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da se ponašam prema ljubaznim ljude
06:03
in any other way than how
I would want to be treated.
I would want to be treated.
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onako kako bih želio da
se ljudi ponašaju prema meni.
se ljudi ponašaju prema meni.
06:07
Because of that feeling, I was able
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Zbog tog osjećaja, mogao sam
06:09
to contrast the stereotypes I'd been taught as a child
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suprotstaviti stereotipe
kojima su me učili kao dijete
kojima su me učili kao dijete
06:14
with real life experience and interaction.
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sa stvarnim životnim
iskustvom i interakcijom.
iskustvom i interakcijom.
Ne znam kako je biti homoseksualac,
06:17
I don't know what it's like to be gay,
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ali dobro znam
kako je kada me osuđuju
kako je kada me osuđuju
06:19
but I'm well acquainted with being judged
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06:21
for something that's beyond my control.
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za nešto što je izvan moje kontrole.
06:25
Then there was "The Daily Show."
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Zatim, tu je bio "Dnevni šou".
06:29
On a nightly basis, Jon Stewart forced me
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Svake noći, Džon Stjuart me natjerao
06:31
to be intellectually honest with
myself about my own bigotry
myself about my own bigotry
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da budem intelektualno iskren
prema sebi apropo svoje netrpeljivosti
prema sebi apropo svoje netrpeljivosti
06:35
and helped me to realize that a person's race,
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i pomogao mi je da shvatim da nečija rasa,
06:37
religion or sexual orientation
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religija ili seksualna orjentacija
06:40
had nothing to do with the quality of one's character.
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nema ništa sa
kvalitetom njihova karaktera.
kvalitetom njihova karaktera.
06:45
He was in many ways a father figure to me
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Na mnoge načine,
on je za mene bio očinska figura
on je za mene bio očinska figura
06:48
when I was in desperate need of one.
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onda kad mi je očajno trebala.
06:51
Inspiration can often come
from an unexpected place,
from an unexpected place,
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Inspiracija može često
doći iz neočekivanog mjesta,
doći iz neočekivanog mjesta,
06:55
and the fact that a Jewish comedian had done more
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i činjenica da je jedan
Jevrej komičar uradio više
Jevrej komičar uradio više
06:58
to positively influence my worldview
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da pozitivno utiče na moj pogled na život
07:00
than my own extremist father
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od mog oca ekstremiste
07:02
is not lost on me.
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nije mi promakla.
Jednog dana,
razgovarao sam sa mojom majkom
razgovarao sam sa mojom majkom
07:05
One day, I had a conversation with my mother
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07:07
about how my worldview was starting to change,
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o tome kako se moj
pogled na svijet počeo mijenjati,
pogled na svijet počeo mijenjati,
07:10
and she said something to me
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i ona mi je rekla nešto
07:12
that I will hold dear to my heart
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što će mom srcu biti drago
07:14
for as long as I live.
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dok sam živ.
Pogledala me
svojim umornim očima
svojim umornim očima
07:17
She looked at me with the weary eyes
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07:19
of someone who had experienced
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očima nekoga ko je iskusio
07:20
enough dogmatism to last a lifetime, and said,
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dovoljno dogmatizma
za cijeli život, i rekla,
za cijeli život, i rekla,
07:24
"I'm tired of hating people."
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"Umorna sam od toga da mrzim ljude."
07:28
In that instant, I realized how much negative energy
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U tom momentu,
shvatio sam koliko negativne energije
shvatio sam koliko negativne energije
07:31
it takes to hold that hatred inside of you.
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treba da držite toliku mržnju u sebi.
07:36
Zak Ebrahim is not my real name.
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Zak Ebrahim nije moje pravo ime.
07:39
I changed it when my family decided
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Promijenio sam ga kad je moja porodica odlučila
07:41
to end our connection with my father
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da okonča vezu sa mojim ocem
07:42
and start a new life.
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i počne novi život.
07:45
So why would I out myself
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Zašto onda da se izlažem
07:47
and potentially put myself in danger?
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i potencijalno stavljam u opasnost?
07:50
Well, that's simple.
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Jednostavno je.
07:52
I do it in the hopes that perhaps someone someday
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Radim to u nadi da će
možda neko jednog dana
možda neko jednog dana
07:56
who is compelled to use violence
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ko se osjeća
prisiljenim da koristi nasilje
prisiljenim da koristi nasilje
07:58
may hear my story and realize
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čuti moju priču i shvatiti
08:00
that there is a better way,
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da postoji bolji put,
08:03
that although I had been subjected
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da iako sam bio podvrgnut
08:04
to this violent, intolerant ideology,
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toj nasilnoj, netolerantnoj ideologiji,
08:07
that I did not become fanaticized.
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nisam postao fanatičan.
08:10
Instead, I choose to use my experience
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Umjesto toga izabrao sam svoje iskustvo
08:12
to fight back against terrorism,
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da se borim protiv terorizma,
08:15
against the bigotry.
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protiv netrpeljivosti.
08:19
I do it for the victims of terrorism
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Radim to za žrtve terorizma
08:22
and their loved ones,
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i njihove najbliže,
08:24
for the terrible pain and loss
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za užasan bol i gubitak
08:26
that terrorism has forced upon their lives.
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koje im je terorizam uzrokovao.
08:29
For the victims of terrorism, I will speak out
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Govorit ću glasno, za žrtve terorizma
08:31
against these senseless acts
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protiv svih bemislenih djela
08:34
and condemn my father's actions.
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i osuditi djela moga oca.
08:38
And with that simple fact, I stand here as proof
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I sa tom činjenicom,
stojim ovdje kao dokaz
stojim ovdje kao dokaz
08:41
that violence isn't inherent in one's religion or race,
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da nasilje nije ukorijenjeno
ni u jednoj religiji ili rasi,
ni u jednoj religiji ili rasi,
08:45
and the son does not have to follow
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i da sin ne mora slijediti
08:48
the ways of his father.
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svoga oca.
08:51
I am not my father.
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Ja nisam moj otac.
08:54
Thank you. (Applause)
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Hvala vam.
08:57
Thank you, everybody. (Applause)
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Hvala vam, svima.
09:01
Thank you all. (Applause)
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Hvala vam svima.
09:03
Thanks a lot. (Applause)
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Hvala puno.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Zak Ebrahim - Peace activistGroomed for terror, Zak Ebrahim chose a different life. The author of The Terrorist's Son, he hopes his story will inspire others to reject a path of violence.
Why you should listen
When Zak Ebrahim was seven, his family went on the run. His father, El Sayyid Nosair, had hoped Zak would follow in his footsteps -- and become a jihadist. Instead, Zak was at the beginning of a long journey to comprehend his past.
Zak Ebrahim kept his family history a secret as they moved through a long succession of towns. In 2010, he realized his experience as a terrorist’s son not only gave him a unique perspective, but also a unique chance to show that if he could escape a violent heritage, anyone could. As he told Truthdig.com, “We must embrace tolerance and nonviolence. Who knows this better than the son of a terrorist?”
In 2014 Ebrahim published the TED Book The Terrorist's Son, a memoir written with Jeff Giles about the path he took to turn away from hate. In early 2015 the book won an American Library Association Alex award.
Zak Ebrahim | Speaker | TED.com