Özlem Cekic: Why I have coffee with people who send me hate mail
Ozlem Cekic: Kwanini ninakunywa kahawa na watu wanaonitumia barua za chuki
Born in Turkey with Kurdish roots, Özlem Sara Cekic was one of the first women with a Muslim immigrant background to be elected to the Danish Parliament, where she served from 2007 to 2015. Full bio
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za chuki na matusi binafsi
and personal abuse
that we might meet for coffee and a chat.
tunaweza kukutana kwa kahawa na maongezi.
that I want to share with you.
ninachotaka kuwashirikisha.
Kurdish
when I was a young child.
nilivyokua mtoto mdogo.
in the Danish parliament
kwenye bunge la Denmark
with a minority background.
walio na chimbuko kutoka jamii ndogo.
that not everyone was happy about it
kua si kila mtu alifurahishwa
to finding hate messages in my inbox.
ujumbe wa chuki kwenye kisanduku pokezi.
with something like this:
na kitu kama hiki:
doing in our parliament?"
anafanya nini bungeni kwetu?"
and I had nothing in common.
na mimi hatuna mfanano wowote.
in the parliament said
kwenye bunge akasema
it will give the police a lead."
itawapa polisi mwongozo."
"When something happens" and not "if."
"Pale kitu kinapotokea" na sio "kama."
were also sent to my home address.
kwenye anwani ya nyumbani pia.
in public debate,
kwenye mjadala wa umma,
wingi.
to protect my family.
kulinda familia yangu.
kuniyanyasa.
Muslim women on the street.
wanawake Waislamu barabarani.
and the phone was ringing constantly.
na simu ilikua ikiita mara kwa mara.
he hate you so much, Mom,
anakuchukia sana, Mama,
that was a pretty clever answer.
kua hilo lilikua jibu lenye werevu.
most of us would give.
wengi wetu wangetoa.
and they are the bad guys, period.
na wao ndio watu wabaya, mwisho.
I was at a friend's house,
kwa rafiki yangu,
about all the hate and racism I had met.
chuki zote na ubaguzi wa rangi nliokutana nao.
that I should call them up
natakiwa niwapigie
of the Danish Parliament," he said.
wa bunge la Denmark," alisema.
you would become a martyr."
utakua shahidi."
where I had saved all the hate mail.
ambalo nilitunza barua zote za chuki.
with words like "terrorist,"
maneno kama "ugaidi,"
who had sent me the most.
alienitumia nyingi.
so I could say at least I had tried.
ili niseme angalau nilijaribu.
You have sent me so many hate mails.
Umenitumia barua pepe nyingi za chuki.
and we can drink a coffee together
na kunywa kahawa pamoja
we met at his house.
tulikutana nyumbani kwake.
when he opened his front door
alivyofungua mlango wake wa mbele
nothing like I'd imagined.
chochote nilichomfikiria.
identical to the one my parents used.
kilichofanana na cha wazazi wangu.
for two and a half hours.
kwa masaa mawili na nusu.
that when he waits for the bus
kua anapongojea basi
kilemba."
wa rangi.
of having so much in common
la kua na vitu vingi vinanvyofanana
such clearly racist views.
ana mtazamo wa ubaguzi wa rangi.
of those who had sent me hate mails
wale waliokua wakinitumia barua za chuki
of what I call #dialoguecoffee.
wa nilichoita #mazungumzokahawa.
the most terrible things to me
mambo ya kutisha kwangu
why they hate people like me
kwanini wanachukia watu kama mimi
the last eight years.
miaka nane iliopita.
I approach agree to meet me.
ninaowafuata wanakubali kukutana nami.
to always meet them in their house
kukutana nyumbani kwao daima
that I trust them.
ninawaamini.
because when we eat together,
kwa sababu tunapokula pamoja,
what we have in common
nini tunacho cha kufanana
some valuable lessons.
mafunzo ya thamani.
hate mails are workers,
barua za chuki ni wafanyakazi,
their behavior is acceptable,
yao inakubalika,
from the hateful views
na maoni ya chuki
who's expressing those views.
hayo maoni.
as afraid of people they don't know
uwoga kama tu wa watu wasiowajua
I started inviting myself for coffee.
sijaanza kujialika kwenye kahawa.
a specific theme keeps coming up.
mandhari maalum inaibuka.
I'm talking to a humanist or a racist,
na mwenye utu au mbaguzi wa rangi,
are to blame for the hate
ndio wa kulaumiwa kwa hizo chuki
have to stop demonizing.
wanatakiwa kuacha ushetani.
the media, their neighbor
vyombo vya habari, na jirani zao
who stops 10 meters away.
anaesimama mita 10 mbali.
any power or influence --
nguvu au ushawishi --
of the Danish parliament.
wa bunge la Denmark.
and influence where we are,
na ushawishi popote tulipo,
have taught me
vimenifundisha
can be caught demonizing
wanaweza jikuta wanawachukulia vibaya
different population groups.
makudi tofauti ya watu.
were very extreme.
yalikua yamekithiri.
with Danes, with Jews and with racists
Wadeni, na Wayahudi na wabaguzi wa rangi
against my own prejudices.
ya chuki zangu mwenyewe.
who have insisted on speaking to me.
wengi waliosisitiza kuongea nami.
citizen and a bridge builder.
na mjenga daraja.
people as possible
wengi iwezekanavyo
malumbano,
that doesn't demonize people.
yasiyofanya watu kuwa wabaya.
you get home and in the coming days,
nyumbani na siku zinazokuja,
mwenyewe.
no one else will know it.
hakuna mwingine atakaejua.
President Trump are deplorables?
Marekani Trump wana bahati mbaya?
President Erdoğan are crazy Islamists?
Turkey Erdogan ni Waislamu wenye wazimu?
in France are stupid fascists?
Ufaransa ni wafashisti wajinga?
who voted for Bernie Sanders
waliompigia kura Bernie Sanders
to vilify those groups.
kuhakiri hayo makundi.
do you think I am an idealist?
unafikiri mimi ni mdhanifu?
someone who you demonize --
mtu unaemuona mbaya --
politically and/or culturally
kisiasa na/au kiutamaduni
anything in common with.
chochote mnachofanana.
like this to #dialoguecoffee.
huyo kwenye #mazungumzokahawa.
to find an Ingolf in your life,
Ignolf kwenye maisha yenu,
for #dialoguecofee.
kwa #mazungumzokahawa.
you have to remember this:
unatakiwa kukumbuka hili:
if the person refuses at first.
kama mtu akikataa mwanzoni.
to arrange a #dialoguecoffee meeting.
kupanga kikao cha #mazungumzokahawa.
into their home is just as brave.
kwake ni jasiri pia.
focuses on what you have in common.
yanalenga vitu mnavyofanana.
the conversation in a positive way
mazungumzo vyema
wanashikilia kiyakinifu na sana maoni yaliokithiri
hold definitive and often extreme opinions
on the other side than in our own bases.
za upande mwingine kuliko za kwetu.
who think like us
kama zetu tu
in a category of disdain.
aina isiyostahili.
who are discriminating
wenye ubaguzi
to challenge their opinions.
maoni yao yawe na changamoto.
societies break down --
kwenye jamii inavunjika --
responsibility for the democracy.
binafsi kwa ajili ya demokrasia.
thing in a democracy
kwenye demokrasia
between people, yes,
kati ya watu, ndio,
the bridges that cross the trenches.
madaraja yanayovuka hio mifereji.
yangu,
in a terror attack
kwenye shambulizi la kigaidi
Copenhagen, 2015.
by kindness between people.
wema kati ya watu.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Özlem Cekic - Bridge builder, authorBorn in Turkey with Kurdish roots, Özlem Sara Cekic was one of the first women with a Muslim immigrant background to be elected to the Danish Parliament, where she served from 2007 to 2015.
Why you should listen
During her time as a member of Folketing, the Danish Parliament, Özlem Cekic's inbox was inundated with hate mail and threats. She first responded by deleting the emails, but then she started replying and inviting those who had sent her abusive messages to meet and engage in dialogue. She calls it #dialoguecoffee, as the meetings generally happen over coffee, and usually at the home of the person who wrote the message. She has met neo-Nazis, racists and religious extremists as she works to try to understand the origin of the hate, find a common language and develop a toolkit for building bridges.
Özlem Cekic | Speaker | TED.com