Azim Khamisa and Ples Felix: What comes after tragedy? Forgiveness
Azim Khamisa, Ples Felix: O que vem depois da tragédia? O perdão
Azim Khamisa speaks to students and adults on nonviolence, forgiveness and peace-building, and he is a founder of two nonprofit organizations that target youth violence. Full bioPles Felix - Peace activist
Ples Felix is a leader in the Tariq Khamisa Foundation, dedicated to helping stop youth violence. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
have many defining moments in our lives.
muitos momentos decisivos em nossa vida.
if we are able to make the right choice,
capazes de fazer a escolha certa,
um estudante universitário,
a good photographer,
bom escritor, bom fotógrafo,
to work for National Geographic,
na National Geographic,
on Fridays and Saturdays.
às sextas e sábados.
por uma gangue juvenil.
to absorb a new, hideous reality.
uma nova e horrível realidade.
my life to a crashing halt.
interrompeu totalmente minha vida.
I've ever had to do
que já tive que fazer
who lived in a different city.
que morava em outra cidade.
she's never going to see her son again,
não irá ver o filho dela novamente,
e tragédias profundas,
at both ends of the gun.
nas duas extremidades da arma.
was a victim of the 14-year-old,
foi vítima do jovem de 14 anos,
that he was a victim of American society.
que ele era vítima da sociedade americana.
well, who is American society?
quem é a sociedade americana?
que a sociedade seja apenas coincidência.
that society is just happenstance.
for the society we've created.
pela sociedade que criamos.
is not a mark of a civil society.
não é uma marca de uma sociedade civil.
at the Tariq Khamisa Foundation
na Tariq Khamisa Foundation,
é salvar a vida das crianças.
is to save lives of children.
We lose so many on a daily basis.
so kids don't fall through the cracks
para que as crianças não sejam ignoradas
and drugs and alcohol and weapons.
das drogas, do álcool e das armas.
the principles of nonviolence,
os princípios da não violência,
é um comportamento aprendido.
como uma verdade evidente,
a learned behavior,
um comportamento aprendido,
aprender isso por osmose.
I reached out to my brother here,
em contato com meu irmão aqui.
that we had both lost a son.
para o sistema prisional adulto.
to the adult prison system.
we are still here together,
ainda estamos aqui juntos,
back from the dead,
de volta da morte,
in our community
de nossa comunidade acabe morto ou preso.
has been successful.
tem sido bem-sucedida.
with Ples and me.
ao vivo com Ples e eu.
o filho deste, e aqui estão eles juntos.
and we create a peace club.
após a escola e criamos um clube de paz.
these principles of nonviolence,
os princípios da não violência,
and expulsions by 70 percent,
as suspensões e expulsões em 70%,
e, para completar minha jornada do perdão,
my journey of forgiveness,
who killed my son.
because we were --
porque estávamos...
we locked eyeballs.
travamos nossos olhares.
he's looking in my eyes,
trying to find a murderer, and I didn't.
um assassino, mas não encontrei.
e tocar a benevolência dele,
não era diferente do meu
was no different than the spark in me
He was remorseful.
of forgiveness had changed him.
meu perdão o havia mudado.
my brother, Ples.
a meu irmão, Ples.
and only daughter's one and only child.
de minha única filha.
job on the planet.
mais difícil do mundo.
than raising another human being
do que criar um outro ser humano
e em condições de se dar bem na vida.
to be successful in life.
in his life as a young kid.
quando era pequeno.
de tiros de arma automática
of automatic weapon fire
in so many different ways.
de muitas formas diferentes.
tudo o que uma criança precisa
he had everything a kid needed
para tentar ser bem-sucedido
to try to be successful
of being a successful person,
de ser uma pessoa de sucesso,
Tony ran away from home that evening,
Tony fugiu de casa,
he thought were his friends,
que ele pensava serem seus amigos,
o fariam se sentir despreocupado.
they would make him feel carefree.
to make his anxiety go higher
foi aumentar a ansiedade dele
deram-lhe uma pistola 9mm
of an 18-year-old who commanded him
de 18 anos que o comandava
he thought were his friends,
que ele achava serem seus amigos,
o filho deste homem.
expressar a perda de uma criança.
that my grandson was responsible
pelo assassinato de um ser humano,
como meus velhos amigos me ensinaram,
like I was taught by my old folks,
temos em comum e que não sabíamos,
and I have in common,
besides being wonderful human beings,
maravilhosos, é que ambos meditamos.
de procurar orientação e clareza
to seek guidance and clarity
of this man and his family in this loss.
esse homem e sua família nessa perda.
na casa desse homem;
to a meeting at this man's house,
of God-spirited people led by this man,
com o espírito de Deus lideradas por ele,
uma oportunidade para mim
and to share with children
com ele e as crianças
de estar com um adulto responsável,
to be with a responsible adult,
in a way that's healthy,
de um modo saudável,
in the Tariq Khamisa Foundation
na Tariq Khamisa Foundation
for the kids to put in their toolkit
para as crianças colocarem no kit delas.
throughout their lives.
understand that loving, caring adults
carinhosos e atenciosos,
que nossas crianças aprendam a meditar,
that our children learn to meditate,
with the other children
com as outras crianças
e maravilhosamente carinhosa.
e, por isso, estamos aqui
to share the love with children,
porque elas mostrarão o caminho para nós,
will lead the way for us,
will depend on our children.
de nossas crianças.
they will take over this world for us,
elas assumirão este mundo por nós,
they will give it back to us.
com o mesmo amor que lhes ensinamos.
I was educated in England,
fui educado na Inglaterra,
que o afro-americano sou eu.
I'm the African American in the group.
da responsabilidade
by an American child.
por uma criança americana.
he killed my one and only son,
no poste mais alto.
what happened to that young man.
o que aconteceu com aquele jovem.
He just turned 37 on September 22,
no dia 22 de setembro.
to get him out for 12 years.
a nós daqui a um ano.
tens of thousands of students
de milhares de estudantes
on a regular basis.
presentes com frequência.
"When I was 11, I joined a gang.
"Aos 11 anos, entrei numa gangue;
I murdered Mr. Khamisa's son.
umpteen years in prison.
trocentos anos na prisão.
não vale a pena",
will listen to that voice?
será de uma pessoa que puxou o gatilho.
that pulled the trigger.
to turn the clock back.
the power of forgiveness.
o poder do perdão.
our session with this quote,
com esta citação,
foi escrito por Tony.
was written by Tony.
sustained goodwill creates friendship.
contínua cria a amizade.
by bombing them, right?
atacando-os com bomba, não é?
trust, empathy, compassion and peace.
confiança, empatia, compaixão e paz".
how do you extend goodwill
à pessoa que matou seu filho?"
through forgiveness.
é que funcionou para o Tony,
e para sua família,
North and South Korea,
a Coreia do Norte e a Coreia do Sul,
o Irã e a Síria.
the United States of America.
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Azim Khamisa - Author, peace activistAzim Khamisa speaks to students and adults on nonviolence, forgiveness and peace-building, and he is a founder of two nonprofit organizations that target youth violence.
Why you should listen
Azim Khamisa writes: "I emigrated to the USA in 1974 to escape violence in Kenya, where we were a targeted minority. But 22 years ago, my only son, Tariq, who was a university student and worked a part-time job as a pizza delivery man, was killed by a 14-year-old gang member in a gang initiation ritual. Tariq was only 20 years old when he died, and needless to say it brought my life to a crashing halt. He was a good and a generous kid!
"However, even clouded in a deeply painful tragedy I saw that there were victims on both sides of the gun. Nine months after Tariq died, I founded the Tariq Khamisa Foundation (TKF). Our mission is to save lives of children, empower the right choices and teach the principles of nonviolence — of empathy, compassion, forgiveness and peacemaking. I forgave my son's killer and invited his grandfather to join me in TKF's work. With the grace of God, TKF is 22 years old and has a safe school model and is successfully keeping kids away from gangs, weapons, drugs, crime and violence. The grandfather and I are still together doing this work, and the kid who killed my son is now 36 years old and he will join us when he is paroled in October 2018. I have authored four books and speak worldwide to students and adults. I am a passionate peace activist and a teacher of nonviolence, forgiveness and spawning peacemakers."
Azim Khamisa | Speaker | TED.com
Ples Felix - Peace activist
Ples Felix is a leader in the Tariq Khamisa Foundation, dedicated to helping stop youth violence.
Why you should listen
Ples Felix was a retired Green Beret, working in community development and raising his grandson Tony, trying hard to keep him safe and away from bad influences. But on one horrible night, Tony, in the company of older gang members, shot and killed a pizza delivery driver. It was a moment that changed many lives.
The delivery driver was Tariq Khamisa, a 20-year-old student in San Diego. His grieving father, Azim Khamisa, seeking to find meaning in unfathomable loss, started the Tariq Khamisa Foundation to address youth violence through education, mentorship and community service. And he invited Felix to join him -- because "there was a victim on both ends of that gun." Since 1995, Felix has co-led the Tariq Khamisa Foundation, developing mentorship programs that keep at-risk kids in school and on the right track.
Ples Felix | Speaker | TED.com