Stacey Abrams: 3 questions to ask yourself about everything you do
Stacey Abrams: Tres cuestiones para plantearte sobre todo aquello que haces
Former Georgia House Democratic Leader Stacey Abrams made history in 2018 when she earned the Democratic nomination for governor of Georgia. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
a la edad de 17 años,
at the age of 17 --
in Decatur, Georgia,
mi escuela secundaria—
I had grown up in Mississippi,
había crecido en Mississippi,
de Mississippi a Georgia
as United Methodist ministers.
títulos como ministros metodistas unidos.
que fuésemos lo suficientemente pobres,
we were poor enough,
por la pobreza permanente.
and I became valedictorian.
me convertí en la valedictoria.
valedictorian in the state of Georgia
en el estado de Georgia
to meet the governor of Georgia.
al gobernador de Georgia.
that he lived in a mansion,
de que él vivía en una mansión,
of "General Hospital" and "Dynasty"
"Hospital general" y "Dinastía"
ready to go to visit the governor.
lista para ir a visitar al gobernador.
who were also invited, got up,
fueron invitados, se arreglaron
a car is a necessary thing.
there aren't a lot of options.
no hay muchas opciones.
to live in a community
de vivir en una comunidad.
el transporte público.
all the way to Buckhead,
de Decatur hasta Buckhead,
on this really beautiful acreage of land,
en esta hermosa superficie de tierra,
that ran the length of the property.
a lo largo de la propiedad.
para indicar que esa era nuestra parada,
that lets them know this is our stop,
we walk across the street.
because there are cars coming up,
porque había autos subiendo,
from all across the state of Georgia.
de todo el estado de Georgia.
por el lateral.
en fila por el lateral,
I don't get hit by one of the cars
de que no me atropellara ningún auto
protegida por guardias.
the guard comes out.
and he looks at my parents,
this is a private event."
este es un evento privado".
Stacey. She's one of the valedictorians."
Stacey. Es una de las valedictoria".
invitados que está en sus manos.
at the checklist that's in his hands.
of her very voluminous purse.
de su voluminoso bolso.
nuestro hombro el autobús,
over our shoulder at the bus,
him a story about who should be there.
historia sobre quién debería estar allí.
to have our own car --
para tener auto propio...
que se contó a sí mismo.
en el color de mi piel,
something in my skin color,
to look at me again,
You don't belong here."
No deben estar aquí".
convertirse en ministros metodistas
United Methodist ministers,
to engage this gentleman
a iniciar con este caballero
sus habilidades de toma de decisiones.
of his decision-making skills.
in a very fiery place
en un lugar muy ardiente
on that checklist.
en esa lista de invitados.
the checklist eventually,
la lista al final,
and he let us inside.
the governor of Georgia.
al gobernador de Georgia.
my fellow valedictorians
a mis colegas valedictorios
que tengo de ese día.
of the most powerful place in Georgia,
ante el lugar más poderoso de Georgia,
I don't belong.
que no era lugar para mí.
veintitantos años después,
who got to open the gates.
que hayan leído el resto de la historia.
the rest of the story.
How do I move forward?
¿Cómo puedo seguir adelante?
las puertas a las jóvenes negras
to open the gates for young black women
a quienes les dijeron que no era su sitio.
and told they don't belong.
y a las asiáticas estadounidenses.
for Latinas and for Asian Americans.
for the undocumented and the documented.
a los indocumentados y los documentados.
as an ally of the LGBTQ community.
como aliada de la comunidad LGBTQ.
themselves the victims of gun violence.
víctimas de la violencia armada.
for everyone in Georgia,
a todos en Georgia,
and this is our nation,
y esta es nuestra nación,
is that the first try wasn't enough.
el primer intento no fue suficiente.
How do I move forward?
¿Cómo seguir adelante?
and the sadness and the lethargy
la tristeza y el letargo
of television as I eat ice cream?
desmedida mientras como helado?
because going backwards isn't an option
no es una opción
no es suficiente.
and what I wanted to be.
I ask myself about everything I do,
me planteo sobre todo lo que hago,
or starting a business;
para iniciar un negocio;
the New Georgia Project
el Proyecto Nueva Georgia
Fair Fight Georgia.
la última acción, Fair Fight Georgia.
I ask myself three questions:
siempre me hago tres preguntas:
I have to ask myself are:
que me tengo que hacer son:
of my ambition?
sobre el alcance de mi ambición?
that once you didn't get what you wanted,
una vez una no obtiene lo que deseaba,
have set your sights a little lower,
su meta un poco más abajo,
to be aggressive about your ambition.
que sean agresivos con sus ambiciones.
les hagan retroceder.
understand your mistakes.
los errores de los otros,
doesn't work out,
we could do better,
que podríamos hacer mejor,
not to investigate too much
no investiguemos demasiado
that our mistakes are ours alone,
nuestros errores son solo nuestros.
un beneficio compartido.
is understand your mistakes,
es entender sus errores,
and honest with those who support you.
y honestos con los que les apoyan.
revenge is not a good reason.
la venganza no es una buena razón.
not that you should do,
that doesn't allow you to sleep at night
no les permita dormir por la noche,
and gets you excited about it;
por la mañana y les emociona;
something about it.
que hacer algo al respecto.
por qué lo están haciendo.
from across this world
a mujeres de todo el mundo
las cosas tienen que suceder.
su "por qué" para sí mismo,
the "what" to the "do"
when it gets tough,
you can't try again.
no podemos intentarlo de nuevo.
de lo que quieren.
de por qué lo quieren,
you're going to get it done.
cómo lo van a hacer.
en esta carrera.
to ever become the nominee for governor
candidata a gobernadora
of America for a major party.
en un partido mayoritario.
African American voters in Georgia.
afroamericanos en Georgia salimos.
of the ticket in 2014.
en el lado demócrata en 2014.
el número de latinos.
importaban en el estado de Georgia.
in the state of Georgia.
de asiáticos esatdounidense
"This is our state, too."
"Este también es nuestro estado".
how I can get it done.
cómo puedo hacerlo.
the obstacles aren't insurmountable.
que los obstáculos no son insuperables.
that always hold us hostage.
nos mantienen como rehenes.
I'm in a little bit of debt.
estoy un poco endeudado.
you did not go outside.
no salieron a la calle.
that holds us back so often,
que nos frena tan a menudo,
by how much we have in resources.
por cuánto recursos tenemos.
those resource challenges.
esos desafíos de recursos.
something you don't talk about.
algo de lo que no se habla.
to debt-shame me in my campaign.
que me avergonzaran en mi campaña.
that my lack of opportunity
que mi falta de oportunidad
me from running.
para descalificarme de correr.
to tell me I shouldn't run.
que no debería correr.
maybe I shouldn't run.
que tal vez no debería correr.
a reason we don't let ourselves dream.
una razón por la que no nos dejamos soñar.
overcome those obstacles,
superararan esos obstáculos,
you will be damned if you do not try.
si no lo intentan.
what you're afraid of,
se cansa de intentarlo.
about processes and politics
sobre procesos y política
from getting where you want to be.
allí donde uno quiere estar.
position instead of power.
la posición en lugar del poder.
como premio de consolación,
as a consolation prize,
and we're going to get it,
lo que queremos y lo vamos a conseguir,
to evaluate how much we want it.
para evaluar cuánto los deseamos.
you said you should,
al "por qué" de eso.
to the "why" of it.
que hablen por los que no tienen voz.
who speak for the voiceless.
gente de buena conciencia
of good conscience
belongs to us all.
nos pertenece a todos.
knowing what is in my past.
sabiendo lo que está en mi pasado.
and creating new obstacles now.
energizando y creando nuevos obstáculos.
to figure it out.
and it is a stain on our nation.
y una mancha en nuestra nación.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Stacey Abrams - PoliticianFormer Georgia House Democratic Leader Stacey Abrams made history in 2018 when she earned the Democratic nomination for governor of Georgia.
Why you should listen
Stacey Abrams's 2018 campaign for governor of Georgia turned more voters than any Democrat in Georgia history, including former President Barack Obama, and invested in critical infrastructure to build progress in the state. After witnessing the gross mismanagement of the election by the Secretary of State's office, Abrams launched Fair Fight to ensure every Georgian has a voice in our election system.
Abrams received degrees from Spelman College, the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas and Yale Law School. Dedicated to civic engagement, she founded the New Georgia Project, which submitted more than 200,000 registrations from voters of color between 2014 and 2016.
Under the pen name Selena Montgomery, Abrams is the award-winning author of eight romantic suspense novels, which have sold more than 100,000 copies. As co-founder of NOW Account, a financial services firm that helps small businesses grow, Abrams has helped create and retain jobs in Georgia. And through her various business ventures, she has helped employ even more Georgians, including hundreds of young people starting out. As House Minority Leader, she has worked strategically to recruit, train, elect and defend Democrats to prevent a Republican supermajority in the House, and she has worked across the aisle on behalf of all Georgians. During her tenure, she has stopped legislation to raise taxes on the poor and middle class and to roll back reproductive healthcare. She has brokered compromises that led to progress on transportation, infrastructure, and education. In the legislature, she passed legislation to improve the welfare of grandparents and other kin raising children and secured increased funding to support these families.
Abrams and her five siblings grew up in Gulfport, Mississippi with three tenets: go to school, go to church, and take care of each other. Despite struggling to make ends meet for their family, her parents made service a way of life for their children -- if someone was less fortunate, it was their job to serve that person. This ethic led the family to Georgia. Abrams's parents attended Emory University to pursue graduate studies in divinity and become United Methodist ministers. Abrams and her younger siblings attended DeKalb County Schools, and she graduated from Avondale High School.
Stacey Abrams | Speaker | TED.com