Laura Boushnak: For these women, reading is a daring act

Prevoditelj: Izidora Zganjer Recezent: Katarina Smetko

As an Arab female photographer,

Kao Arapkinja i fotografkinja,

I have always found ample inspiration for my projects in personal experiences.

uvijek sam pronalazila obilje inspiracije za svoje projekte u osobnom iskustvu.

The passion I developed for knowledge,

Strast za znanjem,

which allowed me to break barriers towards a better life

koja mi je dopustila da razbijem granice i krenem boljem životu,

was the motivation for my project I Read I Write.

bila mi je motivacija za projekt "Čitam, pišem".

Pushed by my own experience,

Potaknuta vlastitim iskustvom,

as I was not allowed initially to pursue my higher education,

jer mi isprva nisu bili dopušteni viši stupnjevi školovanja,

I decided to explore and document stories of other women

odlučila sam istražiti i dokumentirati priče drugih žena

who changed their lives through education,

koje su školovanjem promijenile svoje živote,

while exposing and questioning the barriers they face.

otkrivajući i ispitujući prepreke s kojima se suočavaju.

I covered a range of topics that concern women's education,

Obuhvatila sam razne teme povezane s obrazovanjem žena

keeping in mind the differences among Arab countries

imajući na umu različitosti među arapskim zemljama

due to economic and social factors.

koje su posljedica gopodarskih i socijalnih faktora.

These issues include female illiteracy, which is quite high in the region;

To uključuje nepismenost žena, koja je prilično visoka u regiji,

educational reforms; programs for dropout students;

reforme obrazovanja, programe za učenike koji su prekinuli obrazovanje

and political activism among university students.

i politički aktivizam među studentima.

As I started this work,

Kad sam počela,

it was not always easy to convince the women to participate.

nije uvijek bilo lako nagovoriti žene na sudjelovanje.

Only after explaining to them

Tek nakon što sam im objasnila

how their stories might influence other women's lives,

kako bi njihove priče mogle utjecati na živote drugih žena,

how they would become role models for their own community, did some agree.

kako bi mogle postati uzori u društvu, neke su pristale.

Seeking a collaborative and reflexive approach,

Tražila sam od njih suradnju i refleksivan pristup,

I asked them to write their own words and ideas

zamolila sam ih da napišu svoje riječi i ideje

on prints of their own images.

na ispise svojih fotografija.

Those images were then shared in some of the classrooms,

Te su slike zatim podijeljene u nekoliko učionica

and worked to inspire and motivate other women

kako bi inspirirale i motivirale druge žene

going through similar educations and situations.

koje su sličnog obrazovanja i nalaze se u sličnim situacijama.

Aisha, a teacher from Yemen, wrote,

Aisha, učiteljica iz Jemena, napisala je:

"I sought education in order to be independent

"Željela sam se obrazovati kako bih bila neovisna

i kako ne bih u svemu ovisila o muškarcima."

and to not count on men with everything."

One of my first subjects was Umm El-Saad from Egypt.

Jedna od mojih prvih ispitanica bila je Umm El-Saad iz Egipta.

When we first met, she was barely able to write her name.

Kad smo se upoznale jedva je znala napisati svoje ime.

She was attending a nine-month literacy program

Pohađala je devetomjesečni program opismenjavanja

run by a local NGO in the Cairo suburbs.

koji je vodila lokalna nevladina udruga iz predgrađa Kaira.

Nekoliko mjeseci kasnije šalila se da joj je muž

Months later, she was joking that her husband

had threatened to pull her out of the classes,

prijetio da će je ispisati

as he found out that his now literate wife

jer je saznao da mu njegova, sada pismena, žena

was going through his phone text messages.

pregledava poruke na mobitelu.

(Laughter)

(Smijeh)

Naughty Umm El-Saad.

Nestašna Umm El-Saad.

Of course, that's not why Umm El-Saad joined the program.

Naravno, nije radi toga Umm El-Saad krenula na program.

Vidjela sam da želi imati kontrolu nad jednostavnim dnevnim rutinama,

I saw how she was longing to gain control over her simple daily routines,

small details that we take for granted,

malim stvarima koje uzimamo zdravo za gotovo,

from counting money at the market to helping her kids in homework.

od brojenja novca na tržnici do pomaganja djeci sa zadaćom.

Despite her poverty and her community's mindset,

Usprkos svojem siromaštvu i stavu okoline,

which belittles women's education,

koja podcjenjuje obrazovanje žena,

Umm El-Saad, along with her Egyptian classmates,

Umm El-Saad, zajedno sa svojim Egipatskim kolegicama,

was eager to learn how to read and write.

zaista je željela naučiti čitati i pisati.

In Tunisia, I met Asma,

U Tunisu sam upoznala Asmu,

one of the four activist women I interviewed.

jednu od četiri aktivistice koje sam intervjuirala.

The secular bioengineering student is quite active on social media.

Ta sekularna studentica bioinženjerstva aktivna je na društvenim mrežama.

Regarding her country, which treasured what has been called the Arab Spring,

Vezano za svoju zemlju, u kojoj se zaista cijeni takozvano Arapsko proljeće,

kaže: "Oduvijek sam sanjala da ću otkriti novu bakteriju.

she said, "I've always dreamt of discovering a new bacteria.

Now, after the revolution, we have a new one every single day."

Sada, nakon revolucije, svaki dan imamo po jednu novu."

Asma was referring to the rise of religious fundamentalism in the region,

Asma je pri tome mislila na porast vjerskog fundamentalizma u regiji,

which is another obstacle to women in particular.

što je još jedna prepreka, posebno ženama.

Out of all the women I met, Fayza from Yemen affected me the most.

Od svih žena koje sam upoznala, najviše me dirnula Fayza iz Jemena.

Fayza was forced to drop out of school at the age of eight when she was married.

Fayza je s osam godina, kad se udala, bila prisiljena prekinuti obrazovanje.

That marriage lasted for a year.

Taj brak trajao je godinu dana.

At 14, she became the third wife of a 60-year-old man,

S 14 godina postala je treća žena 60-godišnjaka,

and by the time she was 18, she was a divorced mother of three.

a s napunjenih 18 godina, bila je razvedena majka troje djece.

Despite her poverty,

Usprkos svojem siromaštvu,

despite her social status as a divorcée in an ultra-conservative society,

usprkos svojem statusu razvedene žene u ultrakonzervativnom društvu

and despite the opposition of her parents to her going back to school,

i usprkos protivljenju svojih roditelja kad se željela vratiti u školu,

Fayza knew that her only way to control her life was through education.

Fayza je znala da je obrazovanje jedini način da upravlja svojim životom.

She is now 26.

Sada ima 26 godina.

She received a grant from a local NGO

Dobila je subvenciju lokalne nevladine udruge

to fund her business studies at the university.

za financiranje studija poduzetništva.

Her goal is to find a job, rent a place to live in,

Njezin je cilj pronaći posao, unajmiti stan u kojem će živjeti

and bring her kids back with her.

i povesti svoju djecu sa sobom.

The Arab states are going through tremendous change,

Arapske države prolaze kroz goleme promjene,

and the struggles women face are overwhelming.

a žene se suočavaju s vrlo ozbiljnim problemima.

Just like the women I photographed,

Baš kao i žene koje sam fotografirala,

I had to overcome many barriers to becoming the photographer I am today,

i ja sam morala svladati mnoge prepreke da bih danas bila fotografkinja,

many people along the way telling me what I can and cannot do.

a na tom su mi putu mnogi ljudi govorili što ja mogu ili ne mogu učiniti.

Umm El-Saad, Asma and Fayza, and many women across the Arab world,

Umm El-Saad, Asma i Fayza te mnoge druge žene u arapskom svijetu

show that it is possible to overcome barriers to education,

pokazuju da je moguće svladati prepreke i obrazovati se

which they know is the best means to a better future.

jer znaju da je to najbolji zalog za bolju budućnost.

And here I would like to end with a quote by Yasmine,

Željela bih završiti s citatom Yasmine,

one of the four activist women I interviewed in Tunisia.

jedne od četiri aktivistice koje sam intervjuirala u Tunisu.

Yasmine wrote,

Yasmine je napisala:

"Question your convictions.

"Preispitaj svoja uvjerenja.

Be who you to want to be, not who they want you to be.

Budi ono što ti želiš biti, a ne ono što oni žele da budeš.

Don't accept their enslavement, for your mother birthed you free."

Nemoj prihvatiti porobljavanje jer te majka rodila slobodnu."

Thank you.

Hvala vam.

(Applause)

(Pljesak)