ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Shabana Basij-Rasikh - Educator
Shabana Basij-Rasikh helps girls and young women in Afghanistan get an education.

Why you should listen

Shabana Basij-Rasikh was born and raised in Kabul, Afghanistan. Under the Taliban, she dressed as a boy to escort her older sister to a secret school -- with dire consequences if they were caught. She attended a high school in America under the YES exchange program, and graduated from Middlebury College in Vermont. During college, she founded HELA, a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering Afghan women through education. She also raised funds through foundations and public talks across the US to build a high school for girls in her ancestral village, and to build wells on the outskirts of Kabul to give communities access to clean drinking water.

An enthusiast of systemic change and community impact, Basij-Rasikh was selected as one of Glamour's Top 10 College Women of 2010, and was awarded the Vermont Campus Compact 2011 Kunin Public Award for outstanding public service, effective leadership and community-building. Now, Shabana has joined 10×10 as a Global Ambassador, supporting a global action campaign that links nonprofits, corporations, philanthropists, policy leaders, global influencers and grassroots activists in a movement to support girls’ education. She is managing director of SOLA (School of Leadership, Afghanistan), a nonprofit that helps exceptional young Afghan women access education worldwide and jobs back home.

More profile about the speaker
Shabana Basij-Rasikh | Speaker | TED.com
TEDxWomen 2012

Shabana Basij-Rasikh: Dare to educate Afghan girls

Šabana Basiž-Rasik (Shabana Basij-Rasikh): Usudimo se da školujemo devojčice Avganistana

Filmed:
1,085,179 views

Zamislite zemlju gde devojčice moraju krišom da idu u školu, sa smrtnim posledicama ukoliko ih uhvate kako uče. Ovakav je bio Avganistan pod Talibanima i tragovi te opasnosti ostaju i danas. Dvadesetdvogodišnja Šabana Basiž-Rasik vodi školu za devojčice u Avganistanu. Ona slavi snagu odluke porodica da veruju u svoje ćerke - i iznosi nam priču o jednom hrabrom ocu koji se usprotivio pretnjama meštanina. (Snimljeno na TEDxWomen)
- Educator
Shabana Basij-Rasikh helps girls and young women in Afghanistan get an education. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:16
When I was 11,
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Kada sam imala 11 godina,
00:18
I rememberзапамтити wakingBudi up one morningјутро to the soundзвук of joyрадост in my houseкућа.
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sećam se da sam se jednog jutra probudila
uz zvuke radosti u svojoj kući.
00:22
My fatherотац was listeningслушање to BBCBBC NewsNovosti
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Moj otac je slušao vesti na BBC stanici
00:25
on his smallмали, grayсива radioрадио.
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na svom malom, sivom radiju.
00:29
There was a bigвелики smileосмех on his faceлице whichкоја was unusualнеобично then,
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Imao je širok osmeh na licu,
što je u to vreme bilo neuobičajeno,
00:32
because the newsвести mostlyуглавном depressedдепресиван him.
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jer su ga vesti uglavnom deprimirale.
00:36
"The TalibanTalibana are goneотишла!" my fatherотац shoutedpovikao je.
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"Talibani su otišli!", povikao je moj otac.
00:41
I didn't know what it meantмислио,
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Nisam znala šta je to značilo,
00:43
but I could see that my fatherотац was very, very happyсрећан.
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ali mogla sam da vidim da je moj otac
bio veoma, veoma srećan.
00:49
"You can go to a realправи schoolшкола now," he said.
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"Sada možeš da ideš u pravu školu," rekao mi je.
00:57
A morningјутро that I will never forgetзаборави.
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Nikada neću zaboraviti to jutro.
01:02
A realправи schoolшкола.
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Prava škola.
01:07
You see, I was sixшест when the TalibanTalibana tookузела over AfghanistanAvganistan
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Vidite, imala sam 6 godina
kada su Talibani zaposeli Avganistan
01:10
and madeмаде it illegalилегално for girlsдевојке to go to schoolшкола.
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i zabranili devojčicama da idu u školu.
01:14
So for the nextследећи fiveпет yearsгодине, I dressedобучен as a boyдечко
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Tako sam se sledećih pet godina
oblačila kao dečak
01:17
to escortpratnja my olderстарији sisterсестра, who was no longerдуже allowedдозвољен
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kako bih pratila svoju stariju sestru
u tajnu školu,
01:20
to be outsideспоља aloneсами, to a secretтајна schoolшкола.
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jer joj više nije bilo dozvoljeno
da sama bude napolju.
01:25
It was the only way we bothи једно и друго could be educatedобразован.
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To je bio jedini način
da se obe školujemo.
01:30
EachSvaki day, we tookузела a differentразличит routeрута
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Svakog dana išle smo drugačijim putem
01:33
so that no one would suspectосумњичени where we were going.
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kako niko ne bi posumnjao kuda smo išle.
01:37
We would coverпоклопац our booksкњиге in groceryгроцери bagsторбе
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Sakrivale smo knjige u kese od namirnica
01:39
so it would seemИзгледа we were just out shoppingшопинг.
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kako bi izgledalo kao da smo
samo izašle u kupovinu.
01:45
The schoolшкола was in a houseкућа,
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Škola je bila u jednoj kući,
01:48
more than 100 of us packedупакован in one smallмали livingживи roomсоба.
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gde je više od stotinu nas bilo sabijeno
u jednoj maloj dnevnoj sobi.
01:53
It was cozyudobno in winterзима but extremelyизузетно hotвруће in summerлето.
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Zimi je bilo prijatno,
ali je leti bilo veoma vruće.
01:59
We all knewзнала we were riskingrizika our livesживи --
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Svi smo znali da rizikujemo svoje živote -
02:02
the teacherнаставник, the studentsстуденти and our parentsродитељи.
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učitelj, učenici, kao i naši roditelji.
02:06
From time to time, the schoolшкола would suddenlyизненада be canceledотказано
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S vremena na vreme,
škola bi iznenada prestala s radom
02:08
for a weekНедеља because TalibanTalibana were suspiciousсумњив.
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na nedelju dana jer bi Talibani
postali sumnjičavi.
02:12
We always wonderedпитао се what they knewзнала about us.
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Uvek smo se pitali šta su znali o nama.
02:15
Were we beingбиће followedзатим?
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Da li su nas pratili?
02:18
Do they know where we liveживи?
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Da li su znali gde živimo?
02:22
We were scaredуплашен,
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Plašili smo se,
02:24
but still, schoolшкола was where we wanted to be.
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ali škola je ipak bila mesto
na kom smo želeli da budemo.
02:31
I was very luckyСрећно to growрасту up in a familyпородица
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Imala sam sreće da sam odrasla u porodici
02:35
where educationобразовање was prizedceni and daughtersкћери were treasuredдрагоцен.
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u kojoj se obrazovanje cenilo,
a ćerke čuvale.
02:41
My grandfatherдеда was an extraordinaryизузетно man for his time.
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Moj deda je bio čovek koji je išao
ispred svoga vremena.
02:46
A totalукупно maverickMaverik from a remoteремоте provincepokrajina of AfghanistanAvganistan,
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Bio je potpuni disident
iz udaljene pokrajine Avganistana
02:50
he insistedинсистирао that his daughterћерка, my momмама,
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i insistirao je na tome da njegova ćerka,
moja majka,
02:53
go to schoolшкола, and for that he was disownedOdrekao se by his fatherотац.
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ide u školu i zbog toga
ga se otac odrekao.
03:00
But my educatedобразован motherмајка becameпостао a teacherнаставник.
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Ali moja obrazovana majka
je postala učiteljica.
03:03
There she is.
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To je ona.
03:06
She retiredu penziji two yearsгодине agoпре, only to turnред our houseкућа
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Otišla je u penziju pre dve godine,
kako bi našu kuću pretvorila
03:09
into a schoolшкола for girlsдевојке and womenЖене in our neighborhoodкомшилук.
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u školu za devojke i žene
iz našeg komšiluka.
03:14
And my fatherотац -- that's him --
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A moj otac - to je on -
03:19
he was the first ever in his familyпородица to receiveпримити an educationобразовање.
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on je bio prvi u svojoj porodici
koji se školovao.
03:26
There was no questionпитање that his childrenдеца
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Podrazumevalo se da će i njegova deca,
03:28
would receiveпримити an educationобразовање, includingукључујући his daughtersкћери,
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uključujući i njegove ćerke,
biti obrazovana
03:33
despiteупркос the TalibanTalibana, despiteупркос the risksризике.
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uprkos Talibanima, uprkos riziku.
03:37
To him, there was greaterвеће riskризик in not educatingобразовање his childrenдеца.
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Za njega, veći rizik bio je
ne obrazovati svoju decu.
03:46
DuringTokom TalibanTalibana yearsгодине, I rememberзапамтити
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Tokom vladavine Talibana,
sećam se,
03:49
there were timesпута I would get so frustratedфрустриран by our life
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ponekad sam bila toliko isfrustrirana
našim životom
03:54
and always beingбиће scaredуплашен and not seeingвиди a futureбудућност.
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i uplašena jer nisam mogla da vidim
nikakvu budućnost.
03:58
I would want to quitодустати,
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Želela sam da odustanem,
04:01
but my fatherотац,
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ali moj otac,
04:04
he would say,
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on bi rekao:
04:06
"Listen, my daughterћерка,
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"Slušaj, ćerko moja,
04:09
you can loseизгубити everything you ownвластити in your life.
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u životu možeš da izgubiš
sve što poseduješ.
04:12
Your moneyновац can be stolenукраден. You can be forcedприсиљен to leaveодлази your home duringу току a warрат.
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Novac ti mogu ukrasti. Mogu te naterati
da napustiš svoj dom tokom rata.
04:16
But the one thing that will always remainостају with you
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Ali jedina stvar koja će uvek ostati sa tobom
04:19
is what is here,
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je ono što se nalazi ovde,
04:22
and if we have to sellпродати our bloodкрв to payплатите your schoolшкола feesнакнаде,
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i ako budemo morali da prodamo
svoju krv da platimo tvoju školarinu,
04:27
we will.
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to ćemo i uraditi.
04:30
So do you still not want to continueНастави?"
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Dakle, da li još uvek
ne želiš da nastaviš?"
04:35
TodayDanas I am 22.
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Danas imam 22 godine.
04:39
I was raisedОдгојен in a countryземљу that has been destroyedуништено
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Odgajana sam u zemlji koju su uništile
04:41
by decadesдеценија of warрат.
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decenije rata.
04:44
FewerManji broj than sixшест percentпроценат of womenЖене my ageстарост have madeмаде it beyondизван highвисоко schoolшкола,
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Manje od 6 procenata žena mojih godina
nastavilo je školovanje posle srednje škole,
04:50
and had my familyпородица not been so committedпосвећен to my educationобразовање,
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i da se moja porodica nije toliko posvetila
mom obrazovanju,
04:52
I would be one of them.
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i ja bih bila jedna od njih.
04:55
InsteadUmesto toga, I standстој here a proudпоносан graduateдипломирани of MiddleburyMidlberi CollegeFakultet.
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Umesto toga, ponosno stojim ovde
kao diplomac univerziteta u Midlberiju.
05:00
(ApplauseAplauz)
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(Aplauz)
05:10
When I returnedвратио се to AfghanistanAvganistan, my grandfatherдеда,
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Kada sam se vratila u Avganistan,
moj deda,
05:13
the one exiledпрогнани from his home for daringsmelo to educateобразовати his daughtersкћери,
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onaj koji je bio izbačen iz svog doma
jer se usudio da školuje svoje ćerke,
05:18
was amongмеђу the first to congratulateČestitam me.
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bio je među prvima koji su mi čestitali.
05:21
He not only bragsbrags about my collegeколеџ degreeстепен,
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On se hvali ne samo mojom fakultetskom diplomom,
05:24
but alsoтакође that I was the first womanжена,
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nego i time da sam bila prva žena,
05:26
and that I am the first womanжена
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i da jesam prva žena
05:28
to driveпогон him throughкроз the streetsулице of KabulKabul.
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koja ga je provozala ulicama Kabula.
05:31
(ApplauseAplauz)
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(Aplauz)
05:36
My familyпородица believesверује in me.
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Moja porodica veruje u mene.
05:39
I dreamсан bigвелики, but my familyпородица dreamsснове even biggerвеће for me.
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Imam velike snove, ali moja porodica
ima još veće snove za mene.
05:44
That's why I am a globalглобално ambassadorambasador for 10x10,
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Zato sam svetski ambasador za 10x10,
05:49
a globalглобално campaignкампању to educateобразовати womenЖене.
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globalnu kampanju za obrazovanje žena.
05:51
That's why I cofoundedsuosnivač SOLASOLA,
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Zato sam jedan od osnivača SOLA-e,
05:54
the first and perhapsможда only boardingукрцавање schoolшкола
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što je prvi i možda jedini internat
05:56
for girlsдевојке in AfghanistanAvganistan,
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za devojčice u Avganistanu,
05:58
a countryземљу where it's still riskyризичан for girlsдевојке to go to schoolшкола.
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zemlji u kojoj je za devojčice
još uvek rizično da idu u školu.
06:04
The excitingузбудљиво thing is that I see studentsстуденти at my schoolшкола
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Uzbudljivo je videti učenice u mojoj školi
06:07
with ambitionамбиција grabbingграббинг at opportunityприлика.
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kako ambiciozno grabe prilike.
06:13
And I see theirњихова parentsродитељи and theirњихова fathersПравеве техничвеве
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I vidim njihove roditelje i očeve,
06:16
who, like my ownвластити, advocateадвокат for them,
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koji ih podržavaju, kao i moj otac mene,
06:21
despiteупркос and even in the faceлице of dauntingобесхрабрујуће oppositionOpozicija.
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uprkos obeshrabrujućem otporu,
gledajući mu direktno u lice.
06:30
Like AhmedAhmed. That's not his realправи nameиме,
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Kao Ahmed. To nije njegovo pravo ime
06:32
and I cannotне може showсхов you his faceлице,
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i ne mogu da vam pokažem njegovo lice,
06:35
but AhmedAhmed is the fatherотац of one of my studentsстуденти.
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ali Ahmed je otac jedne od mojih učenica.
06:38
LessManje than a monthмесец дана agoпре, he and his daughterћерка
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Pre manje od mesec dana,
na putu od SOLA-e do svog sela,
06:42
were on theirњихова way from SOLASOLA to theirњихова villageсело,
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on i njegova ćerka
06:46
and they literallyбуквално missedПропустио beingбиће killedубијен
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bukvalno su za nekoliko minuta izbegli smrt
06:52
by a roadsideивичњак bombбомба by minutesминута.
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od bombe pored puta.
06:57
As he arrivedстигао home, the phoneтелефон rangzazvonio,
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Kada je stigao kući,
zazvonio mu je telefon
07:00
a voiceглас warningупозорење him
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i glas sa druge strane žice
ga je upozorio
07:03
that if he sentпослат his daughterћерка back to schoolшкола,
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da će ponovo pokušati da ih ubiju
07:06
they would try again.
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ako pošalje ćerku nazad u školu.
07:09
"KillUbiti me now, if you wishжелети," he said,
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"Ako želite, ubijte me odmah," rekao je,
07:13
"but I will not ruinрушење my daughter'sћерка futureбудућност
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"ali neću uništiti budućnost svoje ćerke
07:17
because of your oldстари and backwardunazad ideasидеје."
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zbog vaših zastarelih i nazadnih ideja."
07:22
What I've come to realizeсхватите about AfghanistanAvganistan,
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Ono što sam shvatila u vezi sa Avganistanom,
07:24
and this is something that is oftenчесто dismissedVoljno in the WestZapad,
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a što se često odbacuje na Zapadu,
07:28
that behindиза mostнајвише of us who succeedуспети
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je to da se iza većine nas koji uspemo,
07:31
is a fatherотац who recognizesprepoznaje the valueвредност in his daughterћерка
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nalazi otac koji prepozna vrednost u svojoj ćerki
07:38
and who seesвиди that her successуспех is his successуспех.
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i koji vidi da je njen uspeh i njegov uspeh.
07:43
It's not to say that our mothersмајке aren'tнису keyкључ in our successуспех.
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Ne kažem da naše majke
nisu ključ našeg uspeha.
07:47
In factчињеница, they're oftenчесто the initialиницијално and convincingубедљив negotiatorspregovarači
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U stvari, one su često prvi i ubeđujući faktor
07:51
of a brightсветао futureбудућност for theirњихова daughtersкћери,
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za blistavu budućnost svojih ćerki,
07:55
but in the contextконтекст of a societyдруштво like in AfghanistanAvganistan,
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ali u kontekstu društva poput avganistanskog,
07:58
we mustмора have the supportподршка of menмушкарци.
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moramo imati podršku muškaraca.
08:02
UnderU okviru the TalibanTalibana, girlsдевојке who wentотишао to schoolшкола
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Pod Talibanima, devojčice su išle u školu
08:05
numberednumerisani in the hundredsстотине --
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njih stotine -
08:07
rememberзапамтити, it was illegalилегално.
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setite se, to je bilo protiv zakona.
08:09
But todayданас, more than threeтри millionмилиона girlsдевојке are in schoolшкола in AfghanistanAvganistan.
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Ali danas, više od tri miliona devojčica
je u školama u Avganistanu.
08:15
(ApplauseAplauz)
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(Aplauz)
08:22
AfghanistanAvganistan looksизглед so differentразличит from here in AmericaAmerika.
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Avganistan se čini toliko drugačijim odavde,
iz Amerike.
08:28
I find that AmericansAmerikanci see the fragilityneћnost in changesПромене.
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Čini mi se da Amerikanci
vide krhkost u promenama.
08:33
I fearбојати се that these changesПромене will not last
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Bojim se da ove promene neće trajati
08:36
much beyondизван the U.S. troops'vojničke withdrawalpovlačenje.
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dugo nakon povlačenja američkih trupa.
08:41
But when I am back in AfghanistanAvganistan,
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Ali kad se vratim u Avganistan,
08:44
when I see the studentsстуденти in my schoolшкола
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kada vidim učenice u svojoj školi
08:49
and theirњихова parentsродитељи who advocateадвокат for them,
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i roditelje koji ih podržavaju,
08:52
who encourageохрабрити them, I see a promisingобећавајуће futureбудућност
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koji ih ohrabruju,
vidim obećavajuću budućnost
08:56
and lastingkoji je trajao changeпромена.
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i dugotrajnu promenu.
09:00
To me, AfghanistanAvganistan is a countryземљу of hopeнадати се and boundlessbezgranično possibilitiesмогућности,
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Za mene, Avganistan je zemlja
nade i beskrajnih mogućnosti.
09:08
and everyсваки singleједно day
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I svakoga dana,
09:11
the girlsдевојке of SOLASOLA remindПодсетите me of that.
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devojčice u SOLA-i podsećaju me na to.
09:15
Like me, they are dreamingсања bigвелики.
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Poput mene, one imaju velike snove.
09:18
Thank you.
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Hvala vam.
09:20
(ApplauseAplauz)
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(Aplauz)
Translated by Mile Živković
Reviewed by Anja Saric

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Shabana Basij-Rasikh - Educator
Shabana Basij-Rasikh helps girls and young women in Afghanistan get an education.

Why you should listen

Shabana Basij-Rasikh was born and raised in Kabul, Afghanistan. Under the Taliban, she dressed as a boy to escort her older sister to a secret school -- with dire consequences if they were caught. She attended a high school in America under the YES exchange program, and graduated from Middlebury College in Vermont. During college, she founded HELA, a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering Afghan women through education. She also raised funds through foundations and public talks across the US to build a high school for girls in her ancestral village, and to build wells on the outskirts of Kabul to give communities access to clean drinking water.

An enthusiast of systemic change and community impact, Basij-Rasikh was selected as one of Glamour's Top 10 College Women of 2010, and was awarded the Vermont Campus Compact 2011 Kunin Public Award for outstanding public service, effective leadership and community-building. Now, Shabana has joined 10×10 as a Global Ambassador, supporting a global action campaign that links nonprofits, corporations, philanthropists, policy leaders, global influencers and grassroots activists in a movement to support girls’ education. She is managing director of SOLA (School of Leadership, Afghanistan), a nonprofit that helps exceptional young Afghan women access education worldwide and jobs back home.

More profile about the speaker
Shabana Basij-Rasikh | Speaker | TED.com