Sayu Bhojwani: Immigrant voices make democracy stronger
薩優.博瓦尼: 移民的意見與呼聲讓民主更強大
Sayu Bhojwani recruits and supports first and second generation Americans to run for public office. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
of the 84 million Americans
這裡時,都有一個夢想,
新的意圖的夢想。
led me to the work I do today:
引導我從事如今的工作:
to run for public office
讓他們能夠競選公職,
for inclusive democracy.
追求包容性民主。
it was a cakewalk,
這是一件很容易的事情,
and welcomed me.
然後歡迎我。
a few lessons along the way
我學到了一些經驗教訓,
人口最少的民主國家。
to study English literature.
我想學習英文文學。
I buried my nose in books,
總是沈浸在書本中,
doing that as an adult?
from one less ideal job to another.
不盡人意的工作跳到另一個。
that I had about America
過於樂觀的態度
if you had the right name,
如果你有恰當的姓名
砰地一聲關上,
宗教信仰,
那樣的事實。
as a social entrepreneur,
作為社會企業家,
for young people like myself --
印度血統的年輕人
that I started it --
to the Indian subcontinent.
還很年輕。
for South Asians and other immigrants.
南亞和其他移民的維權代表。
on policy issues.
to do exit polling.
負責選後民意調查。
and I couldn't run for office.
我不能競選公職。
當政府宣佈
was going to more than double
before I could no longer afford it.
以免以後負擔不起這筆費用。
my current and my past affiliations.
宗教等方面隸屬關係的問題。
叫作極端審查。
long considered home.
to American citizen took 16 years,
美國公民,一共花了16年,
to other immigrant stories.
移民故事相比,它很短。
that formal step
for decades to come.
的移民狀況。
撫平傷痛,
in New York City.
兩件事情發生了。
mayor of New York City.
作為紐約市市長。
for the City of New York.
移民事務局。
of Immigrant Affairs
移民事務局的
年輕女移民。
in various jobs in America
一個教堂的地下室
a community-based organization
組織以前,
sent shock waves through my community.
我所屬的團體震驚。
young people I had worked with,
和我共事過的年輕人
and in airports.
to represent their concerns
更適合我了。
when I became Commissioner.
學到了兩件事。
擔任公職的
holding government positions
the difference, do we,
都不知道
and local police and the FBI.
和聯邦調查局之間的區別。
when we see someone in uniform
見到穿著制服的人
goodbye to your child,
然後去上班的時候,
當一天結束的時候
at the end of the day.
的機會有多大。
一次突擊檢查,
of your life forever.
你的人生軌跡。
is that when people like me,
當像我這樣的人,
who had navigated new systems,
了解了新體系的人,
were sitting at the table,
in a way that no one else could or would.
方式來我們表達我們團體的訴求。
of fear was like.
感覺是怎樣的。
were being harassed,
那時是我的男朋友,
a backpack on or grew a beard
都要反覆思量
was that my vote mattered
我的選票很重要
and vantage point also mattered.
視角也很重要。
voices and vantage points --
和視角 --
make our democracy stronger.
into the policy debate
加入新的議題,
of the pale, male, stale leadership
陳腐的領導風格。
in America are white.
一定不會讓你覺得驚訝。
are black, Latino or Asian.
的事實可能會讓你吃驚。
it matters who does vote.
重要的是誰真的投票了。
and Asian-American voters
和亞裔選民在2012年
not just in presidential elections.
總統選舉中很重要,
也很重要。
refugees from Vietnam,
in the San Jose City Council.
those campaign shoes
are sitting at the policy table,
參與政策制定的時候,
領導層的結構
local and state offices in America.
地方和州級職務。
are held by Asian-Americans or Latinos,
是由亞裔或者拉丁美裔擔任的,
in our country.
最大的兩個移民群體。
of the population is Latino,
on the city council until this year.
沒有一個拉丁美裔人。
joined the Yakima City Council in 2016.
在2016年加入了亞吉瓦市議會。
a community advocate.
一位社區維權者。
of the Latino community
拉丁美裔人士
in American democracy
尚未利用的資源
that immigrants bring.
and educational opportunity.
機會而來到這裡。
and religious freedom.
自由而來到這裡。
議員的初選。
巴勒斯坦·以色列西岸,
and built a life.
開始新的生活。
like education funding
等資助項目,
families like hers a leg up
與她的家庭處境相同的家庭,
the financial stability
voices and vantage points
意見和視角
to include in American democracy.
也是你們的工作。
into an equation will do.
等式中會有怎樣的結果。
to take away your place at the table,
going to get a place at the table.
that we know and love.
我們了解又熱愛的國家。
to take it away from me,
國家從我身邊帶走,
I'm going to take it away from you.
國家從你身邊帶走。
with my immigration history
有移民背景的人
意願而被驅逐。
留在了這個國家,
都會這樣做。
millions of immigrants just like me,
幾百萬像我一樣的移民,
behind me and all around me.
在我身邊。
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Sayu Bhojwani - Immigration scholarSayu Bhojwani recruits and supports first and second generation Americans to run for public office.
Why you should listen
Sayu Bhojwani served as New York City's first Commissioner of Immigrant Affairs and is the founder of South Asian Youth Action, a community-based organization in Queens. Since 2010, she has served as Founder and President of The New American Leaders Project, which is based in New York City.
Bhojwani's work to build a more inclusive democracy has been featured in The Wall Street Journal and in the New York Times. She has shared her personal journey in The National and contributes frequently to the The Huffington Post and Medium.
Bhojwani earned a PhD in Politics and Education from Columbia University, where her research focused on immigrant political participation. She is a Visiting Scholar at the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University and lives in New York City with her husband and daughter.
Sayu Bhojwani | Speaker | TED.com