How the arts help homeless youth heal and build | Malika Whitley

Translator: Line Andersen Reviewer: Jette Thrane

Don't you love a good nap?

Elsker du ikke en god lur?

(Laughter)

(grin)

Just stealing away that small block of time

At stjæle et lille øjeblik

to curl up on your couch for that sweet moment of escape.

at krybe sammen på sofaen og tage en pause

It's one of my favorite things,

Det er en af mine favoritter,

but something I took for granted

men noget jeg tog for givet,

before I began experiencing homelessness as a teenager.

før jeg som teenager oplevede at blive hjemløs

The ability to take a nap is only reserved for stability and sureness,

At kunne tage en lur, er reserveret for stabilitet og tryghed

something you can't find

noget man ikke finder

when you're carrying everything you own in your book bag

når alt hvad man ejer og har, kan være i en taske

and carefully counting the amount of time you're allowed to sit in any given place

og du stjæler dig til at sidde lidt tid, et givent sted,

before being asked to leave.

før du bliver bedt om at gå.

I grew up in Atlanta, Georgia,

Jeg voksede op i Atlanta, Georgia,

bouncing from house to house

flyttede fra hus til hus

with a loving, close-knit family

med en kærlig og tæt familie

as we struggled to find stability

der kæmpede for stabilitet

in our finances.

i økonomien.

But when my mom temporarily lost herself to mania

Men da min mor midlertidigt mistede sig selv til manien

and when that mania chose me as its primary scapegoat

og denne mani valgte mig som primær syndebuk

through both emotional and physical abuse,

gennem følelsesmæssigt og fysisk misbrug

I fled for my safety.

flygtede jeg af frygt for min sikkerhed.

I had come to the conclusion that homelessness was safer for me

Min konklusion var, at hjemløshed sikrere

than being at home.

end at være hjemme.

I was 16.

Jeg var 16.

During my homelessness, I joined Atlanta's 3,300 homeless youth

Jeg blev en af Atlantas 3300 hjemløse unge

in feeling uncared for,

som ingen tog sig af

left out and invisible each night.

som var ude og usynlige hver aften.

There wasn't and still is not any place

Der var ikke, og der er stadig ikke noget sted

for a homeless minor to walk off the street

en hjemløs mindreårig kan komme indenfor

to access a bed.

og få en seng.

I realized that most people thought of homelessness

Det gik op for mig at de fleste tænker på hjemløshed

as some kind of lazy, drug-induced squalor and inconvenience,

som en ubelejlig konsekvens af dovenskab og narko,

but that didn't represent my book bag full of clothes and schoolbooks,

men det stemte dårligt med min taske, fyldt med tøj og skolebøger,

or my A+ grade point average.

Eller mine A+ karakterer.

I would sit on my favorite bench downtown

Jeg sad på min foretrukne bænk i midtbyen

and watch as the hours passed by

og ventede i timer

until I could sneak in a few hours of sleep

indtil jeg kunne snige mig til et par timers søvn

on couches, in cars,

på sofaer, i biler

in buildings or in storage units.

i bygninger eller lagerrum.

I, like thousands of other homeless youth, disappeared into the shadows of the city

Ligesom tusinde andre unge hjemløse forsvandt jeg i byens skygger

while the whole world kept spinning

mens verden kørte videre.

as if nothing at all had gone terribly wrong.

som om ingenting var gået helt galt.

The invisibility alone almost completely broke my spirit.

Usynligheden alene knækkede mig næsten

men jeg havde kunsten

But when I had nothing else, I had the arts,

noget der ikke forudsatte

something that didn't demand

material wealth from me in exchange for refuge.

materiel rigdom i bytte for et tilflugtssted.

Et par timer med sang og poesi

A few hours of singing, writing poetry

or saving up enough money

eller at spare penge op

to disappear into another world at a play

til at forsvinde ind i en verden af skuespil,

kept me going and jolting me back to life when I felt at my lowest.

holdt mig i gang og gav mig livet tilbage når jeg var allerlængst nede

I would go to church services on Wednesday evenings

Jeg gik til gudstjeneste onsdag aften

and, desperate for the relief the arts gave me,

og i desperation efter at søge tilflugt i kunsten

I would go a few hours early,

tog jeg afsted et par timer før

gik ned af trappen

slip downstairs

and into a part of the world where the only thing that mattered

og ind i en verden hvor det eneste der betød noget

was whether or not I could hit the right note in the song

var om jeg kunne ramme tonen i den sang

I was perfecting that week.

jeg øvede den uge.

I would sing for hours.

Jeg sang i timevis.

It gave me so much strength to give myself permission

Det gav mig styrke til at

to just block it all out and sing.

at glemme alt og bare synge.

Five years later, I started my organization, ChopArt,

Fem år senere, startede jeg ChopArt,

which is a multidisciplinary arts organization for homeless minors.

en tværfaglig kunstorganisation for hjemløse mindreårige.

ChopArt uses the arts as a tool for trauma recovery

ChopArt benytter kunst som et værktøj til at komme sig over traumer

by taking what we know about building community

med vores viden om at bygge et fællesskab

and restoring dignity

og genoprette værdighed

og anvende det i den kreative proces.

and applying that to the creative process.

ChopArt is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia,

ChopArt har hovedkvarter i Atlanta, Georgia,

with additional programs in Hyderabad, India, and Accra, Ghana,

og initiativer i Hyderabad, India og Accra, Ghana,

and since our start in 2010,

og siden vi startede i 2010

we've served over 40,000 teens worldwide.

har vi hjulpet over 40.000 teenagere over hele verden.

Our teens take refuge

Disse teenagere søger tilflugt

in the transformative elements of the arts,

i de foranderlige elementer i kunsten,

and they depend on the safe space ChopArt provides for them to do that.

og ChopArt giver dem et sikkert sted at gøre dette.

An often invisible population uses the arts to step into their light,

En usynlig gruppe, som bruger kunsten til at træde ind i lyset

but that journey out of invisibility is not an easy one.

men vejen ud af usynlighed er ikke nem.

We have a sibling pair, Jeremy and Kelly,

Et søskendepar, Jeremy og Kelly,

who have been with our program for over three years.

har været med i vores program i over tre år

They come to the ChopArt classes every Wednesday evening.

De kommer i ChopArt klassen hver onsdag aften

But about a year ago,

Men for ca et år siden,

Jeremy and Kelly witnessed their mom seize and die right in front of them.

var Jeremy og Kelly vidne til at deres mor døde.

They watched as the paramedics failed to revive her.

De så til da lægerne måtte opgive at genoplive hende.

They cried as their father

De græd da deres far

signed over temporary custody to their ChopArt mentor, Erin,

gav midlertidig forældremyndighed til deres ChopArt mentor, Erin,

without even allowing them to take an extra pair of clothes on their way out.

uden at give dem så meget som et ekstra sæt tøj med, på vej ud af døren.

This series of events broke my heart,

Det knuste mit hjerte at se,

but Jeremy and Kelly's faith and resolve in ChopArt

men Jeremy og Kellys beslutsomhed og tro på ChopArt

is what keeps me grounded in this work.

er det der holder mig igang med dette arbejde.

Kelly calling Erin in her lowest moment,

Kelly der ringer til Erin i de svære øjeblikke

knowing that Erin would do whatever she could

og ved at Erin gør hvad hun kan

to make them feel loved and cared for,

så de føler sig elsket og holdt af,

is proof to me that by using the arts as the entry point,

beviser for mig, at med kunsten som base

we can heal and build our homeless youth population.

kan vi hjælpe og støtte vores hjemløse unge.

And we continue to build.

Og vi fortsætter med at støtte

We build with Devin,

Vi støtter Devin

who became homeless with his family

som blev hjemløs med sin familie

when his mom had to choose between medical bills or the rent.

da hans mor måtte vælge mellem medicin og husleje.

Hos Chopart fandt han kærligheden til at male

He discovered his love of painting through ChopArt.

We build with Liz,

Vi støtter Liz,

who has been on the streets most of her teenage years

som har levet på gaden det meste af sit teenageliv

but turns to music to return to herself

men bruger musikken når hun skal finde sig selv

when her traumas feel too heavy for her young shoulders.

når traumerne bliver for tunge for hendes unge skuldre

We build for Maria,

Vi støtter Maria,

who uses poetry to heal

som bruger poesi til at hele

after her grandfather died in the van

efter tabet af sin bedstefar, der døde i den bil

she's living in with the rest of her family.

hun boede i med resten af sin familie.

And so to the youth out there experiencing homelessness,

Til de unge derude der oplever hjemløsheden,

let me tell you,

lad mig fortælle jer at,

you have the power to build within you.

i har mulighed for at støtte Jer selv.

You have a voice through the arts

I har en stemme gennem kunsten

that doesn't judge what you've been through.

som ikke dømmer det i har gennemgået

So never stop fighting to stand in your light

Kæmp videre og find ind i lyset,

because even in your darkest times,

for selv når mørket er værst

we see you.

ser vi dig.

Thank you.

Tak

(Applause)

(bifald)