Michael Rain: What it's like to be the child of immigrants | TED

翻译人员: janice zhu 校对人员: Junyi Sha

I remember one morning when I was in the third grade,

我还记得小学三年级时， 有一天早上，

my mom sent me to school with a Ghanaian staple dish called "fufu."

妈妈让我带着一份 叫“富富”的加纳式主食去学校。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Fufu is this white ball of starch made of cassava,

富富是一种白色的淀粉球， 由木薯做成，

and it's served with light soup, which is a dark orange color,

搭配深橘色的清汤食用，

and contains chicken and/or beef.

汤里会有鸡肉和/或牛肉。

It's a savory, flavorful dish

这是一道美味可口的菜肴，

that my mom thought would keep me warm on a cold day.

我妈妈觉得 它能在那样一个冷天为我暖身。

When I got to lunch and I opened my thermos,

吃午饭时，我打开保温盒，

releasing these new smells into the air,

一种新的气味飘散开来，

my friends did not react favorably.

我的朋友们表现出反感。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

"What's that?" one of them asked.

其中一个人问：“什么东西？”

我回答，“是富富”。

"It's fufu," I responded.

(Laughter)

（笑声）

"Ew, that smells funny. What's a fufu?" they asked.

“呃，闻起来很怪。富富是什么？” 他们又问。

Their reaction made me lose my appetite.

他们的反应让我食欲全无。

I begged my mother to never send me to school with fufu again.

我央求妈妈 别再让我带富富去学校了。

I asked her to make me sandwiches or chicken noodle soup

我让她给我做三明治 或者鸡肉汤面，

or any of the other foods that my friends were eating.

或者其他任何一种 我的朋友们吃的食物。

And this is one of the first times

这是我最早开始

I began to notice the distinction between what was unique to my family

去留意我的家庭的“独特”，

其他所有人眼中的寻常，

and what was common for everyone else,

what was Ghanaian and what was African

开始留意什么是加纳人、 什么是非洲人，

and what was American.

什么又是美国人。

I'm a first-generation American.

我是第一代美国人。

Both of my parents are immigrants.

我的父母都是移民。

In fact, my father, Gabriel, came to the US almost 50 years ago.

实际上，我的父亲加布里埃尔 差不多五十年前就到了美国。

He arrived in New York

他从库马西，

from a city called Kumasi in a northern region of Ghana,

一座位于西非国家加纳北部的城市，

in West Africa.

来到纽约。

He came for school, earning his bachelor's degree in accounting

他来这里求学并获得会计本科学位，

and eventually became an accountant.

最终成为了一名会计师。

My mother, Georgina, joined him years later.

我的母亲，乔治娜， 几年后也和父亲一样移民美国。

She had a love of fashion

她热爱时尚，

and worked in a sewing factory in lower Manhattan,

一直在曼哈顿下城的一家缝纫厂工作，

until she saved up enough to open her own women's clothing store.

后来她终于攒够钱， 开了一间自己的女装店。

I consider myself an American

我认为自己既是美国人，

and an African

也是非洲人

and a Ghanaian.

和加纳人。

And there's millions of people around the world

世界上有几百万人

who are juggling these different classifications.

身兼不同身份。

They might be Jamaican-Canadians or Korean-Americans or Nigerian-Brits.

他们可能是牙买加裔加拿大人、 韩裔美国人或是尼尔利亚裔英国人。

But what makes our stories and experiences different

但是我们的故事或经历的不同之处

is that we were born and raised in a country different than our parents,

就是我们出生并成长的国家 和父母亲的不一样，

and this can cause us to be misunderstood

这会导致当人们用 狭隘的眼光看待我们，

when being viewed through a narrow lens.

就会对我们产生误解。

I grew up in New York, which is home to the largest number of immigrants

我在纽约长大，这里拥有

anywhere in the United States.

全美数量最多的移民。

And you would think growing up in a place like New York,

你会觉得在纽约这样一个地方长大，

it would be easy for a first-generation person to find their place.

第一代美国人 很容易就能找到自己的位置。

But all throughout my childhood,

但是整个童年时代，

there were these moments that formed my understanding

总有类似的时刻让我觉得

of the different worlds I belonged to.

自己属于另一个不同的世界。

When I was in the fifth grade, a student asked me

上小学五年级时，有一个学生问我，

if my family was refugees.

我们一家人是不是难民。

I didn't know what that word meant.

我不懂难民是什么意思。

He explained to me that his parents told him

他解释说他的父母告诉他

that refugees are people from Africa who come to the US

难民是那些 为了躲避死亡、饥饿以及疾病，

to escape death, starvation and disease.

从非洲逃到美国的非洲人。

So I asked my parents, and they laughed a bit,

于是我就去问父母，他们笑了笑，

not because it was funny but because it was a generalization.

不是因为那个学生的话有多好笑， 而是因为它只是一种宽泛的概括。

And they assured me that they had enough to eat in Ghana

他们很肯定地对我说， 他们在加纳吃喝无忧，

and came to the US willingly.

是自愿来美国的。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

These questions became more complex as I got older.

随着我长大， 被问到的问题也更复杂。

Junior high school was the first time

上初中时，我第一次

I went to school with a large number of black American students,

在学校遇到一大群美国黑人学生，

and many of them couldn't understand why I sounded differently than they did

他们中有很多人都不理解 为什么我的口音和他们不一样，

or why my parents seemed different than theirs.

为什么我的父母也和他们的不一样。

"Are you even black?" a student asked.

一个学生问我， “你真是黑人吗？”

I mean, I thought I was black.

我当然认为自己是黑人。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

I thought my skin complexion settled that.

我觉得我的肤色就能说明一切。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

I asked my father about it, and he shared his own confusion

我去问爸爸，他跟我分享了

over the significance of that when he first came to the US.

自己刚到美国时， 对“黑人” 真正含义的困惑。

He explained to me that, when he was in Ghana, everyone was black,

他解释说，在加纳， 大家都是一样的黑人，

so he never thought about it.

所以他从不去想自己是不是黑人。

But in the US, it's a thing.

但在美国，这就是个事儿。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

But he would say, "But you're African.

不过他会说，“但是你也是非洲人，

Remember that."

记住这一点”。

And he would emphasize this,

而且他会强调这点，

even though many Africans in the continent would only consider me to be

尽管很多在非洲大陆的非洲人认为我

just an American.

只是一个美国人。

These misconceptions and complex cultural issues

这些误解和复杂的文化问题

are not just the inquiries of children.

不只体现在孩子们的询问。

Adults don't know who immigrants are.

成人也不了解移民究竟是什么样的。

If we look at current trends,

看看当今的形势，

if I asked you: What's the fastest-growing

如果我问你：

在美国， 哪一个移民群体是增长最快的？

immigrant demographic in the United States,

who would you think it was?

你认为是哪一个？

十个人有九个告诉我是拉丁美洲人，

Nine out of 10 people tell me it's Latinos,

but it's actually African immigrants.

但实际上是非裔移民。

How about in academics?

那学业方面呢？

What's the most educated immigrant demographic?

哪一个移民群体是受教育程度最高的？

A lot of people presume it to be Asians, but it's actually African immigrants.

很多人都猜是亚洲人， 答案却依然是非裔移民。

甚至在政策方面，

Even in matters of policy,

did you know that three out of the eight countries

你们知不知道， 八个所谓的有“旅行禁令”国家中，

in the so-called "travel ban"

有三个

是非洲国家？

are African countries?

A lot of people assume those targeted Muslims only live in the Middle East,

许多人都认为那些被禁止入境 的穆斯林只居住在中东，

but a lot of those banned people are Africans.

但很多被禁止入境的都是非洲人。

So on these issues of education and policy and religion,

所以在教育、政策及宗教等问题上，

a lot of things we presume about immigrants are incorrect.

我们对移民的很多假设都是错误的。

Even if we look at something like workplace diversity and inclusion,

甚至如果我们再看一些东西， 比如工作场合的多样性及包容性，

if I asked you what gender-ethnicity combination

如果你问我什么样的性别—种族组合

is least likely to be promoted to senior managerial positions,

最不可能晋升至高层管理岗位，

who would you think it was?

你觉得会是谁？

The answer is not Africans this time.

这次答案可不是非洲人了。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

And it's not black women or men,

不是黑人男性或女性，

and it's not Latin women or men.

也不是拉丁裔男性或女性。

It's Asian women who are least likely to be promoted.

亚裔女性才是最难获得晋升的。

Capturing these stories and issues is part of my work

作为一名数字化故事讲述人， 我的工作内容就包括

记录下这些故事和问题，

as a digital storyteller

that uses tech to make it easier for people to find these stories.

用科技拉近人们与这些故事的距离。

This year, I launched an online gallery of portraits and firsthand accounts

今年我推出了一个有人物肖像 和一手资料的在线展览馆，

for a project called Enodi.

是为一个名为”Enodi"的计划设计的。

The goal of Enodi is to highlight first-generation immigrants just like me

Enodi 计划的目的是重点介绍 类似我这样的第一代移民，

who carry this kinship for the countries we grew up in,

我们对生活成长的国家，

for the countries of origin

对出生国（或父母亲的出生国），

and for this concept called "blackness."

对所谓的“黑色”都怀有一种亲切感。

I created this space to be a cyberhome for many of us who are misunderstood

我创建这个空间，是要给 我们这些在各自国家被误解的移民

in our different home countries.

提供一个网络家园。

There are millions of Enodis

有数百万的“Enodi"人

who use hyphens to connect their countries of origin

通过身份中的连字符将他们的出身国

with their various homes in the US

与他们在美国、加拿大、 英国或德国的家

or Canada or Britain or Germany.

连接起来。

In fact, many people you might know are Enodi.

实际上， 许多你可能认识的人都是Enodi。

Actors Issa Rae and Idris Elba are Enodi.

演员伊萨·雷和伊德里斯·艾尔巴是 Enodi。

Colin Powell,

科林·鲍威尔（前美国国务卿），

former Attorney General Eric Holder,

前司法部长埃里克·霍尔德，

former President of the United States, Barack Obama,

美国前总统，巴拉克·奥巴马

are all the children of African or Caribbean immigrants.

都是非洲或加勒比移民的子女。

But how much do you know about us?

可是你对我们了解多少？

This complicated navigation

这个复杂的问题指南

is not just the experience of first-generation folks.

不单单指第一代移民的经历。

We're so intertwined

我们和北美以及欧洲人的生活、文化

in the lives and culture of people in North America and Europe,

都紧密交织在一起，

that you might be surprised how critical we are

紧密到你可能会惊讶

我们对你们的过去和将来都如此重要。

to your histories and future.

So, engage us in conversation;

所以，和我们交谈；

discover who immigrants actually are,

发掘出我们的真实一面，

and see us apart from characterizations

撇开对移民的固定刻画，

or limited media narratives

撇开局限的媒体描述

or even who we might appear to be.

甚至我们的外表， 用另一种眼光看待我们。

We're walking melting pots of culture,

我们是行走的文化熔炉，

and if something in that pot smells new or different to you --

如果熔炉里有什么东西散发出 全新的或不同的气味——

(Laughter)

（笑声）

don't turn up your nose.

别嫌弃。

Ask us to share.

请我们和你一起分享吧。

Thank you.

谢谢。

（鼓掌）

(Applause)