ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Gill Hicks - Survivor and activist
Gill Hicks has dedicated her life to being an advocate for peace.

Why you should listen

Dr. Gill Hicks is considered to be one of the most thought provoking, powerful and life affirming speakers in Australia and the UK. She is globally known as a survivor of the London terrorist bombings on July 7, 2005. She survived, but suffered severe and permanent injuries, losing both legs from just below the knee.

Originally from Adelaide, Australia, Hicks has lived in London since 1991, however in 2012 Hicks returned to Australia where she operates nationally and internationally through her not for profit M.A.D. for Peace network and her public speaking work.

Her unique and compelling projects and initiative's, aimed at both deterring anyone from following the path of violent extremism and building sustainable models for peace, draw upon Hicks's previous roles within the Arts.

An impressive career before the bombings included being at the helm of some of the UK's most prestigious and respected institutions -- including publishing director of the architecture, design and contemporary culture magazine, Blueprint, director of the Dangerous Minds design consultancy and head curator at the Design Council. It wasn’t until after the bombings that Hicks decided to dedicate her life to being an advocate for peace. She has made it her mission to use her experiences and her new body form to positive effect.

In 2007 Hicks founded the not for profit organisation M.A.D. for Peace, a platform that connects people globally and encourages us to think of "Peace as a Verb," something that we have an individual responsibility to do every day.

In 2008 Hicks released her first book, One Unknown, named after the chilling label given to her as she arrived to hospital as an unidentified body. The book was shortlisted for the Mind Book of the Year Awards.

Since her return to Australia in 2012, Hicks has been recognised as South Australian, Australian of the Year 2015 and is Chair to the Innovation component for the Committee for Adelaide.

In 2013 Hicks welcomed her daughter, Amelie into the world. This, as she describes it, is her finest achievement and greatest acknowledgement of the brilliance and resilience of the human body.

More profile about the speaker
Gill Hicks | Speaker | TED.com
TEDxSydney

Gill Hicks: I survived a terrorist attack. Here's what I learned

Gill Hicks: Sobrevivi a um ataque terrorista. Aqui está o que aprendi

Filmed:
937,602 views

A história de Gill Hicks é de compaixão e humanidade, emergindo das cinzas do caos e do ódio. Uma sobrevivente dos atentados terroristas de Londres em 7 de julho de 2005, ela compartilha sua história sobre os acontecimentos daquele dia, e as lições profundas que aprendeu ao seguir vivendo.
- Survivor and activist
Gill Hicks has dedicated her life to being an advocate for peace. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:12
I could never have imagined
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Eu nunca poderia ter imaginado
que um homem-bomba de 19 anos
00:15
that a 19-year-old suicide bomber
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me ensinaria uma lição tão valiosa.
00:19
would actually teach me a valuable lesson.
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00:24
But he did.
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Mas ele me ensinou.
00:26
He taught me to never presume anything
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Ele me ensinou a nunca assumir nada
sobre alguém que você não conheça.
00:31
about anyone you don't know.
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00:36
On a Thursday morning in July 2005,
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Numa manhã de quinta-feira,
em julho de 2005,
o homem-bomba e eu, sem sabermos,
00:40
the bomber and I, unknowingly,
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embarcamos no mesmo vagão do metrô
ao mesmo tempo,
00:43
boarded the same train carriage
at the same time,
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afastados, aparentemente,
por alguns centímetros de distância.
00:48
standing, apparently, just feet apart.
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00:54
I didn't see him.
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Eu não o vi.
00:56
Actually, I didn't see anyone.
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Na verdade, eu não vi ninguém.
00:58
You know not to look
at anyone on the Tube,
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Você sabe que não deve olhar
para ninguém no metrô,
mas acho que ele me viu.
01:00
but I guess he saw me.
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01:04
I guess he looked at all of us,
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Acho que ele olhou para todos nós,
01:08
as his hand hovered
over the detonation switch.
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enquanto a mão dele pairava
sobre o botão de detonação.
01:14
I've often wondered: What was he thinking?
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Muitas vezes me perguntei:
"O que ele estava pensando?",
especialmente nos segundos finais.
01:18
Especially in those final seconds.
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01:24
I know it wasn't personal.
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Eu sei que não era pessoal.
Ele não estava ali para me matar
ou me mutilar, eu, Gill Hicks.
01:26
He didn't set out to kill
or maim me, Gill Hicks.
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Quero dizer, ele não me conhecia.
01:31
I mean -- he didn't know me.
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01:33
No.
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Não.
01:35
Instead, he gave me
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Em vez disso, ele me deu
01:38
an unwarranted and an unwanted label.
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um rótulo injustificado e indesejado.
01:44
I had become the enemy.
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Eu havia me tornado "o inimigo".
01:49
To him, I was the "other,"
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Para ele, eu era o "outro",
o "eles", em oposição ao "nós".
01:52
the "them," as opposed to "us."
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01:57
The label "enemy" allowed him
to dehumanize us.
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O rótulo de "inimigo" permitiu
que ele nos desumanizasse.
02:03
It allowed him to push that button.
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Permitiu que ele apertasse aquele botão.
02:07
And he wasn't selective.
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E ele não foi seletivo.
02:10
Twenty-six precious lives were taken
in my carriage alone,
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Vinte e seis vidas preciosas
foram roubadas apenas no meu vagão,
02:17
and I was almost one of them.
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e quase fui uma delas.
02:20
In the time it takes to draw a breath,
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No breve momento
que se leva para inspirar,
estávamos mergulhados
numa escuridão tão imensa
02:23
we were plunged into a darkness so immense
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que era quase tangível;
02:27
that it was almost tangible;
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o que eu imagino que seja
você tentar andar através de piche.
02:29
what I imagine wading
through tar might be like.
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02:35
We didn't know we were the enemy.
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Nós não sabíamos que éramos o inimigo.
02:38
We were just a bunch of commuters
who, minutes earlier,
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Éramos apenas um bando de passageiros
que, minutos antes,
havia seguido a etiqueta do metrô:
02:42
had followed the Tube etiquette:
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nada de contato visual direto,
02:44
no direct eye contact,
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niguém fala nada
02:47
no talking
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e, absolutamente, nada de conversa.
02:48
and absolutely no conversation.
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02:53
But in the lifting of the darkness,
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Mas com o surgimento da escuridão,
02:57
we were reaching out.
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começamos a nos comunicar.
Estávamos ajudando um ao outro.
03:00
We were helping each other.
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03:02
We were calling out our names,
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Estávamos dizendo nossos nomes,
03:05
a little bit like a roll call,
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como se fosse uma lista de chamada,
03:08
waiting for responses.
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aguardando as respostas.
03:12
"I'm Gill. I'm here.
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"Eu sou a Gill. Estou aqui.
03:17
I'm alive.
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Estou viva.
03:20
OK."
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Estou bem."
03:23
"I'm Gill.
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"Sou a Gill.
03:25
Here.
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Aqui.
03:28
Alive.
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Viva.
03:31
OK."
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Estou bem."
03:35
I didn't know Alison.
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Eu não conhecia a Alison,
03:38
But I listened for her check-ins
every few minutes.
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mas fiquei prestando atenção
na chamada dela a cada poucos minutos.
03:43
I didn't know Richard.
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Eu não conhecia o Richard,
03:45
But it mattered to me that he survived.
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mas era importante para mim
que ele sobrevivesse.
03:50
All I shared with them
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Tudo o que compartilhei com eles
03:52
was my first name.
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foi o meu primeiro nome.
03:55
They didn't know
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Eles não sabiam
03:56
that I was a head of a department
at the Design Council.
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que eu era chefe de um departamento
no Conselho de Design.
04:01
And here is my beloved briefcase,
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E aqui está minha querida bolsa,
também resgatada naquela manhã.
04:04
also rescued from that morning.
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04:08
They didn't know that I published
architecture and design journals,
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Eles não sabiam que eu publicava
revistas de arquitetura e design,
que eu era bolsista
da Sociedade Real de Artes,
04:12
that I was a Fellow
of the Royal Society of Arts,
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que eu me vestia de preto,
04:15
that I wore black --
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e ainda me visto,
04:18
still do --
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04:20
that I smoked cigarillos.
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e que eu fumava cigarrilhas.
04:23
I don't smoke cigarillos anymore.
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Eu não as fumo mais.
Eu bebia gim e assistia
às palestras do TED,
04:26
I drank gin and I watched TED Talks,
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mas claro que nunca sonhei
que um dia estaria aqui,
04:30
of course, never dreaming
that one day I would be standing,
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04:37
balancing on prosthetic legs,
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me equilibrando sobre pernas protéticas,
dando uma palestra.
04:40
giving a talk.
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04:42
I was a young Australian woman
doing extraordinary things in London.
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Eu era uma jovem australiana
fazendo coisas extraordinárias em Londres.
E não estava pronta
para que tudo aquilo terminasse.
04:48
And I wasn't ready for that all to end.
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04:52
I was so determined to survive
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Estava tão determinada a sobreviver
que usei meu lenço pra amarrar torniquetes
em torno do topo de minhas pernas,
04:56
that I used my scarf to tie tourniquets
around the tops of my legs,
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e eu simplesmente me isolei
de tudo e de todos,
05:01
and I just shut everything
and everyone out,
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05:07
to focus, to listen to myself,
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e me concentrei em ouvir a mim mesma,
05:10
to be guided by instinct alone.
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para ser guiada somente pelo instinto.
05:15
I lowered my breathing rate.
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Diminuí o ritmo da minha respiração.
05:17
I elevated my thighs.
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Elevei minhas coxas.
Eu me mantive na posição vertical
05:19
I held myself upright
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05:21
and I fought the urge to close my eyes.
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e lutei contra a vontade
de fechar os olhos.
05:26
I held on for almost an hour,
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Eu resisti por quase uma hora;
05:31
an hour to contemplate
the whole of my life
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uma hora para contemplar toda a minha vida
até aquele ponto.
05:35
up until this point.
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05:39
Perhaps I should have done more.
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Talvez eu devesse ter feito mais.
05:43
Perhaps I could have
lived more, seen more.
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Talvez pudesse ter vivido mais,
ter visto mais.
Talvez devesse ter praticado corrida,
ter dançado, começado Yoga.
05:46
Maybe I should have gone running,
dancing, taken up yoga.
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05:52
But my priority and my focus
was always my work.
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Mas a minha prioridade e meu foco
foi sempre o meu trabalho.
Eu vivia para o trabalho.
05:57
I lived to work.
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05:59
Who I was on my business card
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Quem eu era no meu cartão de visita
era importante para mim.
06:02
mattered to me.
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06:05
But it didn't matter down in that tunnel.
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Mas isso não importava ali naquele túnel.
06:11
By the time I felt that first touch
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Até sentir o primeiro toque
de um dos meus socorristas,
06:15
from one of my rescuers,
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06:18
I was unable to speak,
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eu não tive condições de falar,
era incapaz de dizer até mesmo
uma palavrinha, como "Gill".
06:20
unable to say even
a small word, like "Gill."
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06:27
I surrendered my body to them.
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Eu entreguei meu corpo a eles.
Eu tinha feito tudo o que era possível,
06:29
I had done all I possibly could,
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e agora estava nas mãos deles.
06:32
and now I was in their hands.
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06:39
I understood
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Eu compreendi
06:41
just who and what humanity really is,
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simplesmente quem e o que
a humanidade realmente é,
06:47
when I first saw the ID tag
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quando vi pela primeira vez
a etiqueta de identificação
que me foi dada quando
dei entrada no hospital.
06:51
that was given to me
when I was admitted to hospital.
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Nela estava escrito:
06:54
And it read:
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06:56
"One unknown estimated female."
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"Desconhecida do sexo feminino".
07:03
One unknown estimated female.
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Desconhecida do sexo feminino.
07:09
Those four words were my gift.
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Essas quatro palavrinhas
foram como um presente.
07:13
What they told me very clearly
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O que elas me disseram muito claramente
foi que a minha vida estava salva,
07:15
was that my life was saved,
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simplesmente porque eu era um ser humano.
07:18
purely because I was a human being.
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07:22
Difference of any kind made no difference
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Não houve qualquer preferência
por parte das equipes de resgate quanto
às suas medidas extraordinárias no preparo
07:26
to the extraordinary lengths
that the rescuers were prepared to go
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07:32
to save my life,
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para salvar a minha vida,
07:34
to save as many unknowns as they could,
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e a vida de tantos desconhecidos
quanto eles pudessem,
colocando suas próprias vidas em risco.
07:37
and putting their own lives at risk.
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07:40
To them, it didn't matter
if I was rich or poor,
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Para eles, não importava
se eu fosse rica ou pobre,
07:45
the color of my skin,
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a cor da minha pele,
se eu era homem ou mulher,
07:47
whether I was male or female,
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07:49
my sexual orientation,
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minha orientação sexual,
07:51
who I voted for,
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para quem eu havia votado,
07:53
whether I was educated,
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se eu tinha instrução,
07:54
if I had a faith or no faith at all.
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se tinha uma religião ou nenhuma.
07:59
Nothing mattered
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Nada importava
a não ser o fato de que eu era
uma vida humana preciosa.
08:01
other than I was a precious human life.
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08:07
I see myself as a living fact.
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Eu me vejo como um fato vivo.
08:12
I am proof
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Eu sou a prova
de que o amor e o respeito incondicionais
08:14
that unconditional love and respect
can not only save,
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não apenas podem salvar,
mas podem transformar vidas.
08:21
but it can transform lives.
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08:25
Here is a wonderful image
of one of my rescuers, Andy, and I
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Aqui está uma imagem maravilhosa
de um dos meus socorristas,
Andy, e eu, tirada no ano passado.
08:29
taken just last year.
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Dez anos após o evento,
08:32
Ten years after the event,
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e aqui estamos nós, de braços dados.
08:34
and here we are, arm in arm.
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08:39
Throughout all the chaos,
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Durante todo o caos,
seguraram minha mão firmemente.
08:41
my hand was held tightly.
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08:45
My face was stroked gently.
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Meu rosto foi acariciado delicadamente.
08:49
What did I feel?
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O que eu senti?
08:51
I felt loved.
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Eu me senti amada.
08:53
What's shielded me from hatred
and wanting retribution,
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O que me protegeu do ódio
e do desejo de vingança,
o que me deu a coragem de dizer:
08:58
what's given me the courage to say:
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"Isso tem seu fim em mim",
09:01
this ends with me
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09:06
is love.
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é o amor.
09:08
I was loved.
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Eu fui amada.
09:13
I believe the potential
for widespread positive change
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Acredito que o potencial
para uma ampla mudança positiva
seja absolutamente enorme,
09:19
is absolutely enormous
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09:21
because I know what we're capable of.
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pois sei o que somos capazes de realizar.
Eu conheço o brilho da humanidade.
09:24
I know the brilliance of humanity.
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09:27
So this leaves me with some
pretty big things to ponder
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Isto me dá fatos importantes para ponderar
e algumas perguntas
para todos considerarmos:
09:31
and some questions for us all to consider:
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09:36
Is what unites us not far greater
than what can ever divide?
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o que nos une não é muito maior
do que aquilo que pode nos dividir?
09:43
Does it have to take
a tragedy or a disaster
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Será que é preciso
uma tragédia ou um desastre
para nos sentirmos profundamente
ligados como espécie,
09:47
for us to feel deeply
connected as one species,
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09:52
as human beings?
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como seres humanos?
09:55
And when will we embrace
the wisdom of our era
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E quando será que vamos abraçar
a sabedoria da nossa era,
10:01
to rise above mere tolerance
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emergir da mera tolerância,
10:05
and move to an acceptance
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e caminhar para uma aceitação
de todos aqueles que são apenas
um rótulo até que os conheçamos?
10:08
for all who are only a label
until we know them?
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10:15
Thank you.
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Obrigada.
(Aplausos)
10:16
(Applause)
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Translated by Maricene Crus
Reviewed by Custodio Marcelino

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Gill Hicks - Survivor and activist
Gill Hicks has dedicated her life to being an advocate for peace.

Why you should listen

Dr. Gill Hicks is considered to be one of the most thought provoking, powerful and life affirming speakers in Australia and the UK. She is globally known as a survivor of the London terrorist bombings on July 7, 2005. She survived, but suffered severe and permanent injuries, losing both legs from just below the knee.

Originally from Adelaide, Australia, Hicks has lived in London since 1991, however in 2012 Hicks returned to Australia where she operates nationally and internationally through her not for profit M.A.D. for Peace network and her public speaking work.

Her unique and compelling projects and initiative's, aimed at both deterring anyone from following the path of violent extremism and building sustainable models for peace, draw upon Hicks's previous roles within the Arts.

An impressive career before the bombings included being at the helm of some of the UK's most prestigious and respected institutions -- including publishing director of the architecture, design and contemporary culture magazine, Blueprint, director of the Dangerous Minds design consultancy and head curator at the Design Council. It wasn’t until after the bombings that Hicks decided to dedicate her life to being an advocate for peace. She has made it her mission to use her experiences and her new body form to positive effect.

In 2007 Hicks founded the not for profit organisation M.A.D. for Peace, a platform that connects people globally and encourages us to think of "Peace as a Verb," something that we have an individual responsibility to do every day.

In 2008 Hicks released her first book, One Unknown, named after the chilling label given to her as she arrived to hospital as an unidentified body. The book was shortlisted for the Mind Book of the Year Awards.

Since her return to Australia in 2012, Hicks has been recognised as South Australian, Australian of the Year 2015 and is Chair to the Innovation component for the Committee for Adelaide.

In 2013 Hicks welcomed her daughter, Amelie into the world. This, as she describes it, is her finest achievement and greatest acknowledgement of the brilliance and resilience of the human body.

More profile about the speaker
Gill Hicks | Speaker | TED.com