Marc Bamuthi Joseph: What soccer can teach us about freedom
مارك باميوثي جوزيف: كيف نتعلم الحريّة من كرة القدم
TED Fellow Marc Bamuthi Joseph is a curator of words, ideas and protagonists. His bold, poetically-driven work investigates social issues and cultural identity. Full bio
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rising up against gravity
on the soccer pitch.
to revive the dead,
لإحياء الموتى،
at a contemporary arts center,
أعمل أميناً لمتحف الفنّ المعاصر،
that doesn't bleed or sweat or cry.
ولا يتعرّق ولا يبكي.
are going to live in a time
are fresh water and empathy.
and majestic sculpture
to turn that inspiration
لأحوّل ذاك الإلهام
who loves sports.
يحبّ الرياضة.
my latest piece /peh-LO-tah/
على آخر مشاريعي "peh-LO-tah"
was a means for my own immigrant family
وسيلة لعائلتي المهاجرة
and normality and community
والسّواء والتّواصل
and assault on immigrant identity,
والتّهجّم على هويّة المهاجر،
as an affirmational tool
أن تكون بمثابة وسيلة توكيديّة
and immigrant kids,
وكذلك الأطفال المهاجرين،
movement patterns on the field
حركيّة بعين الاعتبار في الملعب
across social and political borders.
ضمن الحدود الاجتماعيّة والسّياسيّة.
كرة القدم أو لا،
play on endangered ground.
على أراضٍ خطرة.
that they use to plan the next goal
للتّخطيط لهدفهم التّالي
to navigate the next block.
لاستكشاف الحيّ التّالي.
and even divisively,
تجريديّاً وحتّى تجزيئيّاً،
"build this wall,"
"ابنوا هذا الجّدار"
that are beautifully designed
back to something that exists inside
لشيءٍ موجود في الدّاخل
part soccer tournament,
ودورة مباريات كرة قدم من جهة أخرى،
field of inquiry
الذي تطرحه "peh-LO-tah"
political action for young people.
مبنيّة على الرّياضة.
"Moving and Passing."
site-specific performance
مع الأداء محدّد الموقع
for the urgent question
عن السّؤال الملحّ
a 15-year-old kid from Honduras
to two Nigerian immigrants.
لوالدين نيجيريين مهاجرين.
dribbling through cones
و تقفز خلال الأشكال المخروطية
a marching band comes down the field.
تأتي فرقةٌ موسيقيّة إلى أرض الملعب.
with the exuberance of culture,
مع غنى الثّقافة،
مفروشاً بالعشب.
would explain Black Lives Matter,
يشرح حركة "حياة السّود مهمّة"،
would explain gun control,
قوانين ضبط حمل السّلاح،
is the perfect metaphor
المدافع هو الكناية المثاليّة
that we can all agree to do together.
جميعاً أن نتّفق على فعله سوياً.
of this spinning ball.
الرسميّة لهذه الكرة الدوّارة.
to connect the joy of the game
in sight of a better position.
متطلّعين لمركزٍ أفضل.
to connect their families' histories
أريد أن أربط بين تاريخ عائلاتهم
اللّاعب الذي سجّل هدفاً.
after the ball beats the goalie,
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Marc Bamuthi Joseph - Arts activist, spoken word artistTED Fellow Marc Bamuthi Joseph is a curator of words, ideas and protagonists. His bold, poetically-driven work investigates social issues and cultural identity.
Why you should listen
Marc Bamuthi Joseph is a steadfast believer in empathy as the most valuable currency in building community, and he seeks to spark curiosity and dialogue about freedom, compassion and fearlessness through pioneering arts stewardship and education. A 2017 TEDGlobal Fellow, Bamuthi graced the cover of Smithsonian Magazine as one of America's Top Young Innovators in the Arts and Sciences; artistically directed HBO's "Russell Simmons presents Brave New Voices"; and is an inaugural recipient of the United States Artists Rockefeller Fellowship, which annually recognizes 50 of the country’s greatest living artists. Dance Magazine named him a Top Influencer in 2017.
Bamuthi's evening-length work, red black and GREEN: a blues, was nominated for a 2013 Bessie Award for "Outstanding Production (of a work stretching the boundaries of a traditional form)" and he has won numerous grants including from the National Endowment for the Arts and Creative Capital Foundation. His noted work /peh-LO-tah/ is inspired by soccer and Bamuthi's first generation American experience, intersecting global economics, cross-border fan culture and the politics of joy.
Bamuthi is the founding Program Director of the non-profit Youth Speaks, and he is a co-founder of Life is Living, a national series of one-day festivals which activate under-resourced parks and affirm peaceful urban life. His essays have been published in Harvard Education Press; he has lectured at more than 200 colleges, has carried adjunct professorships at Stanford and Lehigh, among others, and currently serves as Chief of Program and Pedagogy at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco.
Marc Bamuthi Joseph | Speaker | TED.com