Elizabeth Camarillo Gutierrez: What's missing from the American immigrant narrative | TED

Translator: Josep Maria Agustí Reviewer: Anna Comas-Quinn

Hi, everyone, my name is Elizabeth,

Hola, em dic Elizabeth,

and I work on the trading floor.

i treballo a la Borsa

But I'm still pretty new to it.

però encara sóc bastant nova.

I graduated from college about a year and a half ago,

Em vaig graduar fa un any i mig

and to be quite honest,

i per ser sincera,

I'm still recovering from the recruiting process

encara m'estic recuperant del procés de selecció

I had to go through to get here.

per arribar fins aquí.

(Laughter)

(Rialles)

Now, I don't know about you,

Bé, no sé què en penseu,

but this is the most ridiculous thing

però la cosa més ridícula

that I still remember about the whole process,

que encara recordo de tot el procés,

was asking insecure college students what their biggest passion was.

era preguntar a estudiants insegurs, per la seva gran passió.

Like, do you expect me to have an answer for that?

Com haig de saber la resposta?

(Laughter)

(Rialles)

Of course I did.

Clar que vaig respondre.

And to be quite honest,

I per ser sincera,

I really showed those recruiters just how passionate I was

els vaig demostrar com m'apassionava

by telling them all about my early interest in the global economy,

quan els vaig explicar el meu interès en l'economia global,

which, conveniently, stemmed from the conversations

que, oportunament, em venia de les converses

that I would overhear my immigrant parents having

del meus pares immigrants quan parlaven

about money and the fluctuating value of the Mexican peso.

de diners, i de la cotització fluctuant del peso mexicà.

They love a good personal story.

Els agraden les històries personals.

But you know what?

Però, sabeu què?

I lied.

Vaig mentir.

(Laughter)

(Rialles)

And not because the things I said weren't true --

I no perquè el que vaig dir no fos cert;

I mean, my parents were talking about this stuff.

vull dir, que els pares realment en parlaven.

But that's not really why I decided to jump into finance.

Però allò de fet no era el motiu per voler treballar en les finances.

I just really wanted to pay my rent.

Només volia pagar el lloguer.

(Laughter)

(Rialles)

And here's the thing.

I aquesta és la qüestió.

The reality of having to pay my rent and do real adult things

Haver de pagar el lloguer i fer coses d'adults

is something that we're rarely willing to admit to employers,

és una cosa que no acostumem a confessar als nostres patrons,

to others and even to ourselves.

als altres ni a nosaltres mateixos.

I know I wasn't about to tell my recruiters

No anava pas a dir als entrevistadors

that I was there for the money.

que hi era pels diners.

And that's because for the most part,

I això és perquè, majoritàriament,

we want to see ourselves as idealists

ens volem veure com idealistes

and as people who do what they believe in

i com gent que fa allò en què creu

and pursue the things that they find the most exciting.

i empaiten allò que veuen com més engrescador.

But the reality is

Però en realitat

very few of us actually have the privilege to do that.

molt pocs de nosaltres tenim el privilegi de fer-ho.

Now, I can't speak for everyone,

No puc parlar per tothom,

but this is especially true for young immigrant professionals like me.

però això és cert per professionals immigrants i joves com jo.

And the reason this is true has something to do with the narratives

I el perquè té a veure amb els relats

that society has kept hitting us with

amb què la societat ens continua atacant

in the news, in the workplace

en les notícies, al treball,

and even by those annoyingly self-critical voices in our heads.

i fins i tot en aquestes veus autocrítiques al nostre interior.

So what narratives am I referring to?

A quins relats em refereixo?

Well, there's two that come to mind when it comes to immigrants.

N'hi ha dos que venen al cap quan parlem d'immigrants.

The first is the idea of the immigrant worker.

El primer és la idea del treballador immigrant.

You know, people that come to the US in search of jobs as laborers,

Ja sabeu, gent que arriba als USA buscant feina de jornalers,

or field workers, dish washers.

treballadors del camp, rentaplats...

You know, things that we might consider low-wage jobs

Ja sabeu, el que considerem feines mal pagades,

but the immigrants?

però, i pels immigrants?

That's a good opportunity.

Per a ells és una gran oportunitat.

The news nowadays has convoluted that whole thing quite a bit.

Actualment les notícies han canviat una mica tot això.

You could say that it's made America's relationship with immigrants complicated.

La relació d'Amèrica amb els immigrants s'ha complicat.

And as immigrant expert George Borjas would have put it,

Com diria l'expert en immigració George Borjas,

it's kind of like America wanted workers,

és com que Amèrica vol treballadors,

but then, they got confused when we got people instead.

però s'estranya quan hi arriben persones.

(Laughter)

(Rialles)

I mean, it's natural that people want to strive

És natural que la gent vulgui lluitar

to put a roof over their heads and live a normal life, right?

per tenir un lloc on viure i dur una vida normal, oi?

So for obvious reasons,

Per raons òbvies,

this narrative has been driving me a little bit crazy.

aquest relat em treu una mica de polleguera.

But it's not the only one.

Però no és l'únic.

The other narrative that I'm going to talk about

L'altre relat del que vull parlar

is the idea of the superimmigrant.

és la idea del superimmigrant.

In America, we love to idolize superimmigrants

A Amèrica, ens encanta idolatrar els superimmigrants

as the ideal symbols of American success.

com a símbols ideals de l'èxit americà.

I grew up admiring superimmigrants,

Vaig créixer admirant els superimmigrants

because their existence fueled my dreams and it gave me hope.

perquè ells em nodrien els somnis i em donaven esperança.

The problem with this narrative is that it also seems to cast a shadow

El problema amb aquest relat és que deixa malament

on those that don't succeed

els que no tenen èxit

or that don't make it in that way, as less than.

o no ho fan d'aquesta manera, com si fossin inferiors.

And for years, I got caught up in the ways

I durant anys vaig estar

in which it seemed to celebrate one type of immigrant

admirant un tipus d'immigrant

while villainizing the other.

i menystenint l'altre.

I mean, were my parents' sacrifices not enough?

No s'havien sacrificat prou, els meus pares?

Was the fact that my dad came home from the metal factory

Que el meu pare arribés a casa de la fàbrica

covered in corrosive dust,

cobert de pols corrosiva,

was that not super?

no era important?

Don't get me wrong,

No em malinterpreteu,

I've internalized both of these narratives to some degree,

d'alguna manera he interioritzat

and in many ways,

aquests dos relats.

seeing my heroes succeed, it has pushed me to do the same.

Veure els èxits dels meus herois, m'ha empès a imitar-los.

But both of these narratives are flawed in the ways

Però els dos relats tenen el defecte

in which they dehumanize people if they don't fit within a certain mold

que deshumanitzen qui no encaixa en un cert motlle

or succeed in a certain way.

o triomfa d'una certa manera.

And this really affected my self-image,

I això va afectar la meva autoestima,

because I started to question these ideas for who my parents were

començava a fer-me preguntes sobre els meus pares

and who I was,

i sobre mi mateixa,

and I started to wonder,

i em preguntava:

"Am I doing enough to protect my family and my community

"Faig prou per protegir la meva família i la meva comunitat

from the injustices that we felt every day?"

de les injustícies que patim cada dia?"

So why did I choose to "sell out"

Per què vaig decidir "rendir-me"

while watching tragedies unfold right in front of me?

quan al meu voltant veia tantes tragèdies?

Now, it took me a long time to come to terms with my decisions.

Vaig trigar a reconciliar-me amb les meves decisions.

And I really have to thank the people

I he d'agrair molt a la gent que porta

running the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, or HSF,

el Fons Hispànic de Beques, o FHB

for validating this process early on.

que legitimessin aquest procés.

And the way that HSF --

I la manera que el FHB

an organization that strives to help students achieve higher education

(una organització que ajuda els estudiants a completar

through mentorship and scholarships --

l'educació superior amb beques i tutories)

the way that they helped calm my anxiety,

la manera que em van ajudar a calmar-me,

it was by telling me something super familiar.

va ser dir-me una cosa molt coneguda.

Something that you all probably have heard before

Una cosa que segurament tots heu sentit algun cop

in the first few minutes after boarding a flight.

després de pujar a un avió:

In case of an emergency,

En cas d'emergència,

put your oxygen mask on first before helping those around you.

poseu-vos la màscara d'oxigen, abans d'ajudar als altres.

Now I understand that this means different things to different people.

Ja entenc que això significa coses diferents per gent diferent.

But for me, it meant that immigrants couldn't

Però per mi, volia dir que els immigrants no podien

and would never be able to fit into any one narrative,

i no podran encaixar mai en un sol relat,

because most of us are actually just traveling along a spectrum,

perquè la majoria anem recorrent tot un ventall,

trying to survive.

intentant sobreviure.

And although there may be people that are further along in life

I encara que hi hagi gent que han anat més endavant

with their oxygen mask on and secured in place,

amb la màscara d'oxigen ben posada,

there are undoubtedly going to be others

segur que n'hi ha d'altres

that are still struggling to put theirs on

que encara lluiten per posar-se-la

before they can even think about helping those around them.

abans que ni tan sols puguin pensar en ajudar els altres.

Now, this lesson really hit home for me,

Aquesta lliçó em va tocar de prop,

because my parents,

perquè els meus pares

while they wanted us to be able to take advantage of opportunities

volien que poguéssim aprofitar les oportunitats

in a way that we wouldn't have been able to do so anywhere else --

d'una manera que no podríem haver fet enlloc més,

I mean, we were in America,

vull dir, érem a Amèrica.

and so as a child, this made me have these crazy, ambitious

Així que, de nena, tenia aquests somnis ambiciosos

and elaborate dreams for what my future could look like.

i detallats de com podria ser el meu futur.

But the ways in which the world sees immigrants,

Però la manera que té la gent de veure els immigrants

it affects more than just the narratives in which they live.

no afecta només els relats en què viuen,

It also impacts the ways laws and systems can affect communities,

sinó també les lleis i sistemes que afecten les comunitats,

families and individuals.

les famílies i els individus.

I know this firsthand,

Ho sé de primera mà,

because these laws and systems, well, they broke up my family,

perquè aquests sistemes i lleis van separar la meva família

and they led my parents to return to Mexico.

i van fer que els meus pares se'n tornessin a Mèxic.

And at 15,

I amb 15 anys,

my eight-year-old brother and I,

amb el meu germà de vuit,

we found ourselves alone and without the guidance

ens vam trobar sols i sense l'orientació

that our parents had always provided us with.

que els pares sempre ens havien donat.

Despite being American citizens,

Malgrat ser ciutadans americans,

we both felt defeated

els dos ens sentíem vençuts

by what we had always known to be the land of opportunity.

pel que sempre havíem cregut que era el país de les oportunitats.

Now, in the weeks that followed my parents' return to Mexico,

En les setmanes després del retorn dels pares a Mèxic,

when it became clear that they wouldn't be able to come back,

quan es va veure que no podrien tornar,

I had to watch as my eight-year-old brother

Vaig haver de veure com treien de l'escola

was pulled out of school to be with his family.

el meu germà de vuit anys per estar amb la família.

And during this same time,

I durant aquells dies

I wondered if going back

vaig estar rumiant si tornar

would be validating my parents' sacrifices.

justificaria els sacrificis dels pares.

And so I somehow convinced my parents to let me stay,

I vaig convèncer els pares que em deixessin quedar

without being able to guarantee them that I'd find somewhere to live

sense poder-los garantir que trobaria un lloc per viure

or that I'd be OK.

o que estaria bé.

But to this day, I will never forget how hard it was

Però no oblidaré mai fins a quin punt va ser dur

having to say goodbye.

haver d'acomiadar-me.

And I will never forget how hard it was

I no oblidaré què dur va ser

watching my little brother crumble in their arms

veure el meu germanet arraulit en els seus braços

as I waved goodbye from the other side of steel grates.

mentre els deia adéu des de l'altra banda de la tanca.

Now, it would be naive to credit grit

Seria ingenu atribuir al valor

as the sole reason for why I've been able to take advantage

tot el mèrit del fet que hagi pogut aprofitar

of so many opportunities since that day.

tantes oportunitats des d'aleshores.

I mean, I was really lucky, and I want you to know that.

Vull dir, vaig tenir sort, i vull que ho sapigueu.

Because statistically speaking,

Perquè, segons les estadístiques,

students that are homeless or that have unstable living conditions,

els estudiants sense llar, o vivint en condicions inestables,

well, they rarely complete high school.

rarament acaben l'institut.

But I do think

Però sí que crec

that it was because my parents had the trust in letting me go

que va ser perquè els pares van confiar en mi

that I somehow found the courage and strength

que vaig trobar el valor i la força

to take on opportunities

per aprofitar les oportunitats

even when I felt unsure or unqualified.

fins i tot quan em sentia insegura o poc preparada.

Now, there's no denying that there is a cost

Però no es pot negar que viure el somni americà

to living the American dream.

té un cost.

You do not have to be

No cal que siguis

an immigrant or the child of immigrants to know that.

immigrant o fill d'immigrants per saber-ho.

But I do know that now, today,

Però sí que sé que ara mateix

I am living something close to what my parents saw

visc una cosa semblant al que els meus pares

as their American dream.

veien com el seu somni americà.

Because as soon as I graduated from college,

Perquè, tan bon punt com em vaig graduar,

I flew my younger brother to the United States to live with me,

vaig fer venir el meu germà perquè visqués amb mi,

so that he, too, could pursue his education.

i així també pogués continuar la seva educació.

Still, I knew that it would be hard flying my little brother back.

Sabia prou bé que seria difícil portar-lo.

I knew that it would be hard

Sabia que em costaria prou

having to balance the demands and professionalism

equilibrar les exigències i la professionalitat

required of an entry-level job

que et demanen en una feina nova

while being responsible for a child with dreams and ambitions of his own.

i alhora ser responsable d'un nen amb les seves pròpies ambicions.

But you can imagine how fun it is to be 24 years old,

Imagineu-vos com és de divertit amb 24 anys, en plena joventut,

at the peak of my youth, living in New York,

viure a Nova York, amb un company

with an angsty teenage roommate who hates doing the dishes.

adolescent i angoixat, que odia fregar els plats.

(Laughter)

(Rialles)

The worst.

És el pitjor de tot!

(Laughter)

(Rialles)

But when I see my brother learning how to advocate for himself,

Però quan veig el meu germà aprenent a ser autosuficient,

and when I see him get excited about his classes and school,

i quan el veig entusiasmat per l'escola i les classes,

I do not doubt anything.

no dubto gens ni mica.

Because I know that this bizarre,

Perquè sé que la meva vida actual,

beautiful and privileged life that I now live

estranya, bella i privilegiada,

is the true reason for why I decided to pursue a career

és el motiu autèntic de la meva decisió de seguir una carrera

that would help me and my family find financial stability.

que ens ajudés a trobar estabilitat financera.

I did not know it back then,

Aleshores no ho sabia,

but during those eight years that I lived without my family,

però en aquests vuit anys que he viscut lluny de la família

I had my oxygen mask on and I focused on survival.

portava la màscara d'oxigen i em centrava a sobreviure.

And during those same eight years,

I durant aquests vuit anys

I had to watch helplessly the pain and hurt

he hagut de veure sense poder fer res, el dolor

that it caused my family to be apart.

que la separació li causava a la família.

What airlines don't tell you is that putting your oxygen mask on first

El que no et diuen als avions és que posar-te la màscara d'oxigen

while seeing those around you struggle --

mentre els altres estan patint

it takes a lot of courage.

exigeix molt de valor.

But being able to have that self-control

Però tenir aquest autocontrol

is sometimes the only way that we are able to help those around us.

de vegades és l'única manera d'ajudar els que ens envolten.

Now I'm super lucky to be in a place where I can be there for my little brother

Tinc molta sort de poder ajudar el meu germà petit

so that he feels confident and prepared

a sentir-se amb confiança i preparat

to take on whatever he chooses to do next.

per emprendre el que decideixi.

But I also know

Però també sé

that because I am in this position of privilege,

que ja que estic en aquesta posició de privilegi,

I also have the responsibility

també tinc la responsabilitat

to make sure that my community finds spaces where they can find guidance,

de fer que la meva comunitat tingui llocs on trobar consell,

access and support.

accés i suport.

I can't claim to know where each and every one of you are

No puc pretendre saber on esteu cadascú de vosaltres

on your journey through life,

en el vostre viatge per la vida,

but I do know that our world is one

però sí que sé que el nostre món

that flourishes when different voices come together.

progressa quan s'ajunten veus diferents.

My hope is that you will find the courage

Desitjo que trobeu el valor

to put your oxygen mask on when you need to,

de posar-vos la màscara d'oxigen quan us cal,

and that you will find the strength

i que trobeu la força d'ajudar

to help those around you when you can.

els que us envolten quan pugueu.

Thank you.

Moltes gràcies.

(Applause)

(Aplaudiments)