Casey Gerald: The gospel of doubt
Casey Gerald: Injili ya mashaka
Casey Gerald chronicles the current state of the American Dream and explores ways to sustain it for a new generation. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
into a Texas church
kwenya kanisa la Texas
pambwa na kitambaa chekundu kilichochoka
draped in worn-down red fabric,
and a choir at my back
na kwaya nyuma yangu
built into the wall behind them.
lililojengewa ukutani nyuma yao.
in the back not paying attention.
nyuma ambao hawasikilizi.
that Jesus would return
kua Yesu angerudi
for all that I had done,
kwa yote niliyofanya,
my house in order very quickly.
nyumba yangu sawa haraka.
as one might listen for noise,
kama mtu angesikilizia kelele,
hadn't pulled a fast one on me
hajanivutia ya haraka
that were all the rage at the time.
Nyuma" ambavyo vilivuma mda huo.
in the rapture at midnight,
kwa mnyakuo kati kati ya usiku,
taking the mark of the beast,
kuchukua alama ya mnyama,
and the Antichrist himself.
na mpinga Kristo mwenyewe.
out of the pews and down to the altar
kwenye viti tuelekee madhabahuni
when midnight struck.
saa sita ikigonga.
as I like to call them --
kama ninavyopenda kuwaita --
ya madhabahu.
has a VIP section.
kuna sehemu ya VIP.
had been bent under hot suns
yao ya ujana iliinamia jua kali
a creaseless noble brown,
kama ukahawia mgumu unaofaa
for what life might become
ya maisha yangekuwaje
were the stars of the show for me.
walikua nyota wa onyesho kwangu.
for this moment,
kwa huu wakati.
had longed for the end of the world,
walivyotamani mwisho wa dunia,
waited for the Oprah Winfrey Show
alivyongoja kipindi cha Oprah Winfrey
every day at 4 o'clock.
kila siku saa 4 kamili.
to her hand during this prayer,
wakati wa maombi,
to the call of the prayer
wito wa maombi
to add the dirge.
kuongezea wimbo.
left in the field.
kwenye shamba.
being separated from the chaff.
na makapi.
ishara zozote za kusikitika,
any signs of disappointment,
mrefu
as best I could.
kadri ninavyoweza.
mara mbili
to turn on the television
kuwasha televisheni
announce the new millennium
akitangaza milenia mpya
been strange anyway,
ajabu hata hivyo,
even more ridiculous --
mjinga zaidi --
I did not stop believing.
sikuacha kuamini.
I had were wrong,
nayo hayakua sawa,
a mountain of certitude,
na mlima wa uhakika,
to its foundation,
chemchemi yake,
yangu
prepared for Y2K in a very different way,
walijiandaa kwa Y2K kwa njia tofauti,
the same thing that I have done
kitu sawa na nilichofanya
na baba yangu kukaa mbali
and my father stayed away
kutoka Oak Cliff, Texas
from Oak Cliff, Texas
all the challenges I had known,
changamoto zote nilizojua,
and broken bodies I had seen.
na miili iliovunjika niliyoona.
one winter break,
pumziko moja la winta,
couldn't save me.
isingeweza kuniokoa.
at Lehman Brothers
pale Lehman Brothers
la uchumi
couldn't save me.
isingeweza kuniokoa.
in Washington DC as a young staffer,
Washington DC kama mfanyakazi mdogo,
call out from Illinois,
ikiita kutoka Illinois,
has come to America."
mabadiliko yamekuja Marekani."
yalianza kua kama utani,
began to feel like a cruel joke,
the political second coming
wa pili wa kisiasa
of the American Dream,
mwa ndoto ya Marekani,
yangu
that I would either believe
kua ningeamua kuamini
to yet another mecca,
kwenda bado mecca nyingine,
simply accept the salvation
kukubali wokovu kirahisi
zaidi.
of a crowded party,
katika sherehe iliojaa,
miserable Cambridge winter,
ya Cambridge ya mapema inayosumbua,
swali
for something real have asked
kitu cha halisi waliuliza
or how we'd get there,
au jinsi tungefika huko,
kama Lack Kerouac alivyoandika,
as Jack Kerouac wrote,
and disappear somewhere,"
kupotea popote,"
other voices who said
sauti nyingine zilizosema
and the proof too thin,
na ushahidi mdogo sana,
in the summer of 2013,
kwenye kiangazi cha 2013,
through the desolation of Detroit,
kupita magofu ya Detroit,
with men and women
na wanaume na wanawake
at the West Point of capitalism,
West Point ya ubepari,
called MBAs Across America,
liitwalo MBAs Kupitia Marekani,
on this stage today.
kwenye hili jukwaa leo.
a great hunger in our generation
njaa kubwa zaidi kwenye kizazi chetu
countless entrepreneurs
wajasiriamali wasiohesabika
kubadili maisha
ilisambaa pia
to which I would not go
ambao nisingeenda
of a broken country,
ya nchi iliyovunjika,
in New York City,
ya jiji la New York,
of Harvard Business School.
wa Shule ya Biashara Harvard.
mzima,
and their good deeds.
na matendo yao mema.
and assets under management
raslimali chini ya utawala
sitting in an urban farm
kwenye shamba la mjini
tell me of the kids
akiniambia kuhusu watoto
wa umasikini.
all of their belongings in a backpack
zao kwenye mabegi ya mgongoni
in a homeless shelter.
mahali pa wasio na makazi.
Grown na hela ya pensheni yake,
with money from his pension,
himself a salary,
mshahara,
the program struggled for resources.
mradi ulipambana na rasilimali.
I felt the sting and salt of tears
nilihisi uchungu na chumvi ya machozi
usiku mmoja,
had half a trillion dollars,
wenye nusu ya dola trilioni,
that made me want to cry,
uliyonifanya nitake kulia,
homeless kids,
makazi wenye njaa,
because I had finally realized
sababu hatimae niligundua
a kidney transplant.
upandikizo wa figo.
stood in for all those
ilisimama kwa wale wote
themselves up by their bootstraps,
wenyewe na kamba za buti,
that never went to Harlem
ambayo haikuwahi kwenda Harlem
for all those voices
kwa niaba ya sauti zote hizo
too unwashed, too unaccommodated.
zisizosafi sana, zisizobebeka sana.
in front of the television,
mbele ya televisheni,
announce the new millennium
akitangaza milenia mpya
alikua mimi.
from that altar
kutoka madhabahuni
the world would end,
dunia ingeisha,
kwa lugha
kama tendo la lazima la Mungu
as a necessary act of God
as any time that came before.
wakati wowote uliokuja kabla
in the prophecy of Brené Brown
kwenye unabii wa Brene Brown
of The New Yorker
ya The New Yorker
at the church of TED,
kwenye kanisa la TED,
of charismatic leaders
viongozi wa karismatik
of the capitalism that is our god,
la ubepari ambao ni mungu wetu,
ya teknolojia
the human price we pay
bei ya binadamu tunayolipa
our whole foundation.
msingi wetu wote.
that we have come to accept,
ambavyo tumekuja kukubali,
of disruption or innovation
uvunjaji au uvumbuzi
to share with you today, in fact.
kuwashirikisha leo, kwa kweli.
that you stop believing,
kua uache kuamini,
we have are wrong,
yamekosewa.
themselves are wrong.
yenyewe yamekosewa.
that it is possible that we,
kua inawezekana kua sisi,
that we hold in our hands,
tulizonazo mikononi mwetu,
that we are putting my organization,
kuwashirikisha kua tunaweka shirika letu,
and closed our doors
na kufunga milango yetu
their power to do this work
nguvu zao kufanya hii kazi
and our odds are too long
na bahati zetu ni ndefu sana
there will be no miracles here.
hakutakua na miujiza hapa.
seem to lead to our demise,
kuonekana zinatupeleka kwenye kifo chetu,
no comfort to our wounds,
faraja kwenye majeraha yetu,
into the darkness of our lives
kwenye giza la maisha yetu
kunong'oneza
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Casey Gerald - AmericanCasey Gerald chronicles the current state of the American Dream and explores ways to sustain it for a new generation.
Why you should listen
Casey Gerald has witnessed every facet of the American Dream -- from his harrowing childhood in Texas, to his tenure at the heights of America's elite institutions, to his journeys through the cities and towns of the American heartland where he has spent his recent years as cofounder and CEO of MBAs Across America. Now his work as a writer, speaker, and business leader centers on the question: will the American dream survive another generation?
Gerald began his career in economic policy and government innovation at the Center for American Progress, and he has worked as a strategist with startup social ventures such as The Future Project as well as companies like The Neiman Marcus Group.
Born and raised in Dallas, Gerald received an MBA from Harvard Business School, where he delivered the 2014 commencement address, and a BA in Political Science from Yale College. He has been featured on MSNBC, in The New York Times, Financial Times, The Guardian, and he has appeared on the cover of Fast Company, which also named him one of the "Most Creative People in Business." He currently serves on the advisory board of NPR's Generation Listen.
Casey Gerald | Speaker | TED.com