Khadija Gbla: My mother’s strange definition of empowerment
Хадіджа Ґбла: Дивне розуміння посвяти, в яке вірить моя матір
Khadija Gbla was born in Sierra Leone, spent her youth in Gambia, and as a teenager put down roots in Australia. She uses her cross-cultural heritage to promote understanding in both directions. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
my personal journey
одну ногу на іншу,
тілу.
the things your body does.
on me, by the way.
до речі.
well, that's in Sierra Leone as well.
це теж є в Сьєрра-Леоне.
I was checked before I got here.
Мене перевірили перед тим, як приїхати.
needs more than one wife.
більше однієї дружини.
дружини?
that's what I say.
ось як я це називаю.
in Sierra Leone in 1991.
почалася війна у 1991 році.
one night, everything was good.
ночі, все було добре.
to kill me and my family.
мене та мою сім'ю.
in Gambia, in West Africa.
у західній Африці.
was going to become of us.
статусу біженців.
і сказала:
a little holiday, a little trip."
поїдемо в коротку подорож".
and ended up in a bush
посеред лісу
стара.
away from us into a second hut.
повз нас у другу хатинку.
I don't know what's going on."
Я не знаю, що відбувається".
to get her off me, but I couldn't.
але не могла.
with a rusty-looking knife,
іржавим ножем у руці,
water or sunlight before.
ані води, ні сонячного світла.
to be my clitoris,
тепер відомо, називається клітор,
and started cutting away, inch by inch.
дюйм за дюймом.
so this pain will stop,
біль нарешті скінчився,
"Тихіше!"
for what felt like forever,
здавалось, цілу вічність,
across the floor
she's ever touched.
вона коли-небудь торкалася.
and left me there bleeding,
залишивши мене стікати кров'ю,
as to what just happened.
що щойно сталося.
that we were coming to Australia,
Австралії,
the Sydney Olympics at the time,
Олімпійські ігри у Сіднеї того разу,
to the end of the world,
кінцю світу,
to go after Australia.
and then Singapore.
а потім до Сингапуру.
opening the tap like this.
таким чином.
in Adelaide, that's what I would say.
центру Rundle.
повинні відвезти нас назад до Австралії".
You must take us back to Australia."
Австралії багато азіатів,
there were a lot of Asians in Australia
там менше расизму.
because they were less racist.
that publication. (Laughter)
сьогодні.
and I was the only black child there.
with a bit of a color on me.
кольору.
жителів.
бути на сонці,
to be under the sun.
колір. Це не одне і те ж.
though. Not the same.
волонтером в організації,
volunteering for an organization
(Жіноче здоров'я у всій країні),
стосувалася жіночого обрізання,
female genital mutilation program
this program was actually about,
nurses and doctors
Австралія, Лондон і Америка,
and now, Australia and London and America,
мультикультурному суспільстві,
we live in a multicultural society,
зі своєю культурою,
come with their culture,
можемо не схвалювати,
that we may not agree with,
of female genital mutilation,
коротше.
плоть клітора.
they cut off the whole clitoris
or your outer lips,
потім зашивають тебе,
cut off the whole clitoris
справляти нужду та виводити місячні.
to pee and have your period.
тим, що сталося,
I pretty much had amnesia.
and traumatized by what had happened,
мною,
happened to me,
of what had happened.
had a scar down there.
спогади повернулись до мене.
it all came back to me.
мене до підлоги.
переживала,
holding me down.
зробили зі мною, було жахливо,
what was done to me was a terrible thing
духовним очищенням,
it was called circumcision,
Я обрізана людина.
I'm a mutilated person.
(Laughter)
у власну матір, але
pointing at your mother,
Кадіджа?"
talking about, Khadija?"
зробила мені обрізання.
You circumcised me.
that belonged to me."
зробила це з тобою.
and I did it to you.
чесалося там?"
обрізання,
get itchy down there?"
if you were not circumcised,
get itchy all the time.
to sleep around with anybody."
was very strange. (Laughter)
of our first conversation.
Dolly та Girlfriend.
Хтось пам'ятає ці запечатані секції?
Dolly and Girlfriend magazines.
Anybody remember those sealed sections?
задоволення
(Laughter)
an article about pleasure
клітор,
that you had a clitoris, though,
"О! О!"
would moan like, "Oh! Oh!"
and their damned clitoris.
зі своїм життям?
supposed to do with her life?
цьому роді.
"Oh! Oh!" and all of that.
заслуговую на задоволення,
and said to my mom,
I deserve pleasure,
вдатися знайти клітор".
знаходженням клітора.
how to find the clitoris."
have a problem finding the clitoris.
Це Dolly сказала.
It was Dolly that said that.
за білого чоловіка.
I had an inner joke in my head
(Laughter)
заслуговую на задоволення, чи ти знаєш,
у чому відмовила мені?
I deserve pleasure, and do you know
what you have denied me?
in the most sacred way.
Girlfriend?
"Who is Dolly and Girlfriend?
That's a magazine, mom, a magazine."
було нормою.
not having a clitoris was the norm.
походження.
сконцентроване на кліторі.
that was very clitoris-centric.
this strange phase of anger
зі своїм терапевтом.
Ось так.
an appointment with my therapist.
who has a therapist. There you go.
І ось я там.
and discrimination,
and then there it was."
I'm not a woman
відомо про Ж.О.,
сексуальності.
сексуального бажання.
the sexuality of women.
any sexual desire.
хотітися сексу?
нього задоволення?"
not feeling like having sex,
років,
нормальних місячних.
around the age of 14,
і дуже болючими.
normal periods because of FGM.
and they were very painful.
sitting there.
Кадіджа".
have children, Khadija."
an angry black woman.
твоїх аргументів" -
любові до мене -
no matter what your may defense may be" --
завдає мені болю.
is harming me, and it's hurting me.
мала зробити як матір".
as a mother."
for an apology, by the way.
"подарунки".
"В тебе не може бути дітей".
Таким буде все моє життя?"
"You can't have kids."
Is this what life is all about?"
постійними інфекціями і в постійному болі.
who have gone through FGM
"подарунки".
incontinence, constant infections, pain.
народилася дівчинкою
because I was born a girl
захист від Ж.О.,
вартий.
"Ні Ж.О. Австралія".
all that pain, into advocacy
to be worth something.
called No FGM Australia.
у службу з захисту дітей,
Child Protective Services,
Я нагадаю: їй чотири рочки.
одружена з малайзійцем.
is planning on performing FGM on her.
сказав, що він збирається повезти дочок
I'll let that sink in: four years old.
who is married to a Malaysian man.
Він відповів, що вони брудні.
he was going to take their daughters
на мені".
to cut off their clitoris.
He said they were dirty.
якої вона сказала:
з моїми дочками".
не знала, що таке Ж.О.,
where she said to him,
will you do that to my daughters."
wasn't aware of what FGM was,
свого життя.
flown over to Malaysia
проблемою?
changed for the rest of their lives.
with an issue like that?
Близького Сходу.
performed on them.
кольору, це спільна проблема.
It's not a Middle Eastern problem.
it has no color, it's everybody's problem.
сексуальну насолоду.
І знаєте що? Це дурниці!
a right to sexual pleasure.
a right to our bodies.
and you know what? Bullshit.
припиненні практики Ж.О.
загрозою Ж.О.
I'm doing my part in ending FGM.
до вашої лакарні
who is at risk of FGM.
who comes to your hospital
через культуру.
над дітьми.
як виклик для вас самих.
because of a culture.
a defense for child abuse.
чи кузина.
to see FGM as an issue for you.
your sister, your cousin.
- підпишіть її.
Ж.О. в Австралії
and it'll come up, and sign it.
for FGM victims in Australia
growing up here
було недоторканим,
на клітор.
has a right to pleasure.
to their bodies being left intact,
has a right to a clitoris.
роблять".
and women to do nothing."
of female genital mutilation
що це скінчиться в моєму поколінні.
that it ends in my generation.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Khadija Gbla - Cross-cultural consultantKhadija Gbla was born in Sierra Leone, spent her youth in Gambia, and as a teenager put down roots in Australia. She uses her cross-cultural heritage to promote understanding in both directions.
Why you should listen
Khadija Gbla was just 3-years-old when the war broke out in her country, Sierra Leone. While her family initially escaped to Gambia, 10 years later they attained refugee status and resettled in Adelaide, Australia. The transition was complex—Khadija experienced racism, illness and depression—but threw herself into her education. She discovered that she had a unique talent: the ability to translate across two very different cultures.
Khadija first used this talent as a peer educator for South Australia’s Women’s Heath Statewide program, where she talked to health professionals about female genital mutilation — helping them understand what it is, where it happens, and the cultural beliefs that surround it. She’s since used her multicultural voice to offer advice on policy through South Australian Government Minister’s Youth Council, to organize camps and activities for newly-arrived refugees and to raise awareness about both sexual and mental health issues among her peers. She has represented Australia in the international arena at the Harvard National Model United Nations, Commonwealth Youth Forum and Australian and Africa Dialogue, and speaks regularly at a wide variety of events to make sure that her perspective is heard.
Khadija Gbla | Speaker | TED.com