Halima Aden: How I went from child refugee to international model
Halima Aden: Kako sam od izbeglice postala internacionalni model
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refugee camp feels so surreal,
izbegličkom kampu, je nestvarno,
seven years of my life.
prvih sedam godina života.
here at Kakuma.
ovde u Kakumi.
for a brighter future.
have our obstacles.
where our next meal would come from.
kako ćemo pripremiti naredni obrok.
that is here in Kakuma
koji postoji ovde u Kakumi
I remember conflicts breaking out.
sećam se konflikata koji su izbijali.
come from different backgrounds
imaju različito poreklo
some of their cultures,
ponešto od njihove kulture,
even though I was raised Muslim.
odgajana kao muslimanka.
my culture as well,
moju kulturu takođe,
to come together,
multicultural environment.
multikulturalnu sredinu.
Somali-American from Kenya.
somalijska Amerikanka iz Kenije.
homecoming queen at my high school,
kraljica mature u svojoj srednjoj školi,
senator at my college
senator na svom fakultetu
woman in many places,
na mnogim mestima,
beauty pageant,
and New York Fashion Weeks
i Njujorške nedelje mode
of British "Vogue."
britanskog Voga.
to step out on my own,
da istupim sama,
a minority is about.
as a vessel to create change
kao sredstvo za stvaranje promena
for the power of diversity.
snage raznolikosti.
an important message of acceptance.
važnu poruku prihvatanja.
and made St. Louis, Missouri home,
u naš dom u Sent Luisu u Mizuriju,
"Is this really America?"
"Je li ovo stvarno Amerika?"
that were sadly familiar,
bile dobro poznate,
that were also very different.
that brings people together."
didn't have an English immersion program.
intenzivni program učenja engleskog.
than return to Kakuma,
da se vratim u Kakumu,
that many Somalis found refuge
da su mnogi Somalijci pronašli utočište
we moved to Minnesota.
kada sam imala osam godina.
other students who spoke Somali,
druge učenike koji su govorili somalijski,
an English immersion program
intenzivni program učenja engleskog
above and beyond,
koji bi učinili sve i svašta,
and lunch breaks,
i tokom pauza za ručak,
find success in the classroom.
da budem uspešna u učionici.
that one could be stripped of everything:
da ti sve može biti oduzeto:
could ever take away from you
nikada ne može oduzeti
within the classroom.
da napredujem unutar učionice.
I became more aware of others
postala sam svesnija drugih
my race and background.
moju rasu i poreklo.
wearing the head scarf known as a hijab.
šal na glavi poznatiji kao hidžab.
wearing it, I was excited.
bila sam uzbuđena.
and I wanted to emulate her beauty.
i da sam htela da oponašam njenu lepotu.
u više razrede osnovne škole,
about not having hair,
but something I felt pressured to do.
jer sam bila pod pritiskom.
of race, religion, identity,
rase, vere, identiteta,
those of another culture
ljude drugih kultura
that have happened to me
who are different than me.
koji se razlikuju od mene.
to step outside of my comfort zone
da izađem iz svoje zone komfora
wearing a hijab and burkini.
u hidžabu i burkiniju.
to be a voice for women
had felt underrepresented.
osećale nedovoljno zastupljeno.
so many doors for me.
from women all over the world,
od žena širom sveta,
by simply staying true to myself.
ostala dosledna samoj sebi.
by fashion icon Carine Roitfeld
me je pozvala u Njujork
the first hijab-wearing model,
prvi model koji nosi hidžab,
of nine fashion magazines.
devet modnih magazina.
that remained constant --
what brings me back here to Kakuma,
vratiti ovde u Kakumu,
something incredible happened to me.
nešto neverovatno mi se desilo.
model Adut Akech,
južno-sudanskog modela Adut Akeč,
right here in Kakuma.
rođena baš ovde u Kakumi.
is the definition of hope.
je definicija nade.
u istom izbegličkom kampu
on the cover of British "Vogue."
na naslovnici britanskog Voga.
of partnering up with UNICEF,
da se udružim sa Unicefom,
that they do for children in need.
sa svime što rade za ugroženu decu.
here may be refugees,
to flourish, to hope, to dream --
da se razvijaju, nadaju, sanjaju -
in Kakuma refugee camp,
u izbegličkom kampu u Kakumi,
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Halima Aden - ModelHalima Aden was the first ever hijab-wearing fashion model.
Why you should listen
Somali-American model Halima Aden was born in Kakuma, a refugee camp in Kenya, after her family fled civil war in Somalia. She lived there for seven years before traveling to the United States and settling in St. Louis. Though she spoke Somali and Swahili, Aden was thrust into an English-speaking school system that lacked a language immersion curriculum entirely. Despite this seeming detriment, she quickly found herself in advanced placement English classes in high school, outperforming her classmates and demonstrating the resilience that makes her a powerhouse today.
Aden first made headlines after competing in the Miss USA state pageant, wearing a hijab and sporting a burkini in the swimsuit portion of the competition -- a first in the 65-year history of the event. She finished among the top 15 finalists, and her performance caught the eye of Carine Roitfeld, who recruited her to appear in what was Aden's first editorial. The CR Fashion Book cover, however, came as a surprise to Aden and marked the beginning of a new cultural phenomenon. Since then, she has covered Vogue Arabia, British Vogue, Teen Vogue, Grazia UK, S Moda and Allure, in which the publication heralded her as an all-American beauty, a crucial acknowledgment for America's Muslim community. Aden's editorial credits also include Harper's Bazaar and Glamour, and she appeared on the runway for Yeezy, Alberta Ferretti, Max Mara, Philipp Plein and Dolce & Gabbana. Rihanna tapped her to appear in the campaign for her inclusive beauty brand, Fenty Beauty.
Aden was recently named an official UNICEF Ambassador. When she's not working, she covets time spent with family and friends on the couch indulging in Netflix marathons.
Halima Aden | Speaker | TED.com