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

翻译人员: Jingyao Xue 校对人员: Min WANG

As an Arab female photographer,

作为一个阿拉伯女摄影师,

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

在个人经历中，我总是找到 充分的灵感，做我的项目。

The passion I developed for knowledge,

我培养追求知识的激情，

which allowed me to break barriers towards a better life

这种激情让我打破障碍， 迈向更美好的生活，

was the motivation for my project I Read I Write.

也是我读和写，做项目的动机。

Pushed by my own experience,

被自身起初

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

我不被允许追求高等教育的经历所激励，

I decided to explore and document stories of other women

我决定去探索和记录其他妇女

who changed their lives through education,

通过接受教育， 改变生活的故事，

while exposing and questioning the barriers they face.

同时揭露和探究她们面对的障碍。

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

我覆盖了一系列 关注女性教育的主题

keeping in mind the differences among Arab countries

并考虑到阿拉伯国家之间

due to economic and social factors.

由于经济和社会因素造成的差异。

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

这些问题包括女性文盲， 这个数量在该地区相当高；

educational reforms; programs for dropout students;

教育的改革；对辍学学生培训项目；

and political activism among university students.

和在大学生中政治活动。

As I started this work,

当我开始这项工作

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

说服妇女参与总是不容易。

Only after explaining to them

只有向她们解释

how their stories might influence other women's lives,

她们的故事可能影响其他妇女的生活，

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

他们可能成为社区楷模之后，一些人才认同。

Seeking a collaborative and reflexive approach,

寻求一个合作和反思的方法，

I asked them to write their own words and ideas

我要求她们把自己的话和想法

on prints of their own images.

写在印有自己的图象上面。

Those images were then shared in some of the classrooms,

这些图像在一些教室被分享，

and worked to inspire and motivate other women

对激发和激励其他

going through similar educations and situations.

接受相似的教育和情形的妇女起了作用。

Aisha, a teacher from Yemen, wrote,

Aisha，来自也门 的一名教师，写到

"I sought education in order to be independent

“我为了成为独立的人去追求教育

and to not count on men with everything."

并且不把一切都依靠男人“。

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

最先，我的对象之一是 来自埃及的Umm El-Saad

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

当我们第一次见面，她 仅仅能写出她的名字。

She was attending a nine-month literacy program

她参加了九个月 读写能力课程。

run by a local NGO in the Cairo suburbs.

该课程由当地非政府组织在开罗郊区举办。

Months later, she was joking that her husband

几个月后，她开玩笑说，她丈夫

had threatened to pull her out of the classes,

曾威胁要把她 从学习班中辍学，

as he found out that his now literate wife

因为他发现， 现在他识字的妻子

was going through his phone text messages.

翻遍他的手机短信

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Naughty Umm El-Saad.

淘气的Umm El-Saad。

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

当然，这不是UmmEl-Saad参加这个课程的原因

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

我看到，她是如何渴望掌控简单日常事务

small details that we take for granted,

以及我们认为的理所当然的一些小细节，

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

从在市场上数钱，到帮助她的孩子做作业。

Despite her poverty and her community's mindset,

尽管她贫穷，并且 她社区的观念模式

which belittles women's education,

是贬低妇女的教育，

Umm El-Saad, along with her Egyptian classmates,

Umm El-Saad, 和 她的埃及同学

was eager to learn how to read and write.

是渴望学习阅读和书写的。

In Tunisia, I met Asma,

在突尼斯，我遇到Asma，

one of the four activist women I interviewed.

我采访的四位积极女性之一，

The secular bioengineering student is quite active on social media.

这位世俗的生物工程学生在社交媒体上相当活跃。

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

关于她的国家，她对 阿拉伯之春的抗议活动高度评价，

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

她说，“我一直梦想 发现一个新的细菌。

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

革命后，现在我们 每一天有一个新细菌“

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

Asma提及，宗教原教旨 主义在该地区复活，

which is another obstacle to women in particular.

这尤其对妇女是另一个障碍。

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

在我遇到的所有女性中， 来自也门的Fayza影响我最多

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

Fayza在8岁结婚被迫辍学，

That marriage lasted for a year.

这段婚姻持续了一年。

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

在14岁时，她成为了 一个60岁男人第三任妻子，

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

到她18岁时，她是有 三个孩子的离婚母亲。

Despite her poverty,

不顾她的贫穷，

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

不顾她的社会地位，作为 在极端保守社会的离婚母亲

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

不顾她的父母 反对她回学校，

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

Fayza知道，她唯一可以 掌控人生的途径是通过教育。

She is now 26.

现在她26岁。

She received a grant from a local NGO

她收到当地非政府组织 提供的补助金

to fund her business studies at the university.

资助她在大学学习商业。

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

她的目标是要找一份工作， 找地方租房子住，

and bring her kids back with her.

并把她的孩子带回来 和她一起住。

The Arab states are going through tremendous change,

阿拉伯国家正在经历 翻天覆地的变化，

and the struggles women face are overwhelming.

而女性面临的斗争 是势不可挡的。

Just like the women I photographed,

就像我拍摄的女性，

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

我必须克服许多障碍 成为今天的我，一名摄影师，

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

一路走来很多人告诉我， 能做什么，不能做什么。

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

在整个阿拉伯世界，Umm El-Saad, Asma, Fayza和许多妇女，

show that it is possible to overcome barriers to education,

表明克服障碍， 接受教育是可能的，

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

他们知道这是拥有美好未来的方法。

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

在这里，我想引用 Yasmine的话来结束

one of the four activist women I interviewed in Tunisia.

她是我在突尼斯采访的四个积极女性之一，

Yasmine wrote,

Yasmine写道

"Question your convictions.

“问一问你的信仰。

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

成为你想成为的人， 而不是成为他们要你成为人。

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

不要接受他们的奴役， 因为你母亲让你来世上，给了你自由。

Thank you.

谢谢

(Applause)

鼓掌