Thank you so much
I am a journalist
My job is to talk to people of all sects
And throughout the world
Today I want to tell you
Why did I decide to do it in my life and what I learned
My story begins in “Carcass” in “Venezuela”
In South America where it originated
The place was for me and will remain
Full of magic and wonders
And since I was too small
My parents wanted to have a bigger look on the world
I remember once when I was about seven years old
My father came to me and said
“Mariana will send you and your little sister
Which was then six years old
To a place where no one speaks Spanish
I want you to discover different cultures
He talked repeatedly about the benefits of spending the summer
In this summer camp in the United States
Stressing a small sentence
I did not show much interest at the time
“You will never know what the future may bring you”
While my mind was seven years old, I thought
We will go for summer camping in Miami
(Laughter)
Maybe it would have been better
We are going to go a little north to “Orlando”
Where he lived “Mickey Mouse”
(Laughter)
Really excited
And yet my father had a slightly different plan
We sent from “Caracas” to “Brainerd” in Minnesota,
(Laughter)
But Mickey Mouse was not there
(Laughter)
There was no mobile phone, snape or even instagram
I could not find any information
We got there first
Something I noticed was the hair of other children
He had several shades of blond
Most of them were blue eyes
At the time, that was what we were looking at
On the first night, the camp manager gathered everyone around the campfire
And he said
“Dear children, we have this year an international camp
Here we have “Atencios” from “Venezuela”
(Laughter)
The other children looked at us as if we were from another planet
They were asking us questions from a sample
“Do you know what hamburgers are?
Or “Do you go to school on a donkey or a boat?
(Laughter)
I tried to answer my imperfect English
They just laughed
I know they did not mean that
And they were just trying to understand who we were
And connect this with the world they knew
We can be like them
Or like characters in a book full of adventures
Such as Aladdin or the Book of the Jungle
But we certainly were not like them
Do not speak their language
We were different
How painful it is to realize this when you are seven years old
But I had my little sister to take care of
She was crying every day of the summer camp
So I decided to deal with courage
And to do everything I can to live in the American way
We later called what we called “the experience of the summer camp”
For 8 years in different cities not heard of many Americans themselves
And what I remember very well about these moments when I finally authenticated with them
Having a friend was a special gift
Each of us wants to feel valued and desirable
We think this happens spontaneously, but it does not
When you are different, focus on the sense of belonging
Either be smart, funny and loving to help
Or something good for the group you want to integrate into
Later when I became a secondary
Dad expanded in his summer plan
We were sent from “Carcass” to “Wellingford, Connecticut”
To spend the high school year
I remember at this time daydream about the plane and around the school
American High School and about getting a wardrobe
That seemed to be perfect
Such as my favorite “save the bell”
(Laughter)
I went there and they told me
That my roommate set me up waiting impatiently
I opened the door and then it
There you sit on the bed
She wears a cap on her head
Her name was Fatima and she was a Muslim from Bahrain
It was not what I expected
She was probably disappointed when I looked at her
I did not try to hide it
Well, like me any teenager I wanted to be my companion
The room is more fit than I wanted it to be
More popular and maybe a companion accompanying me for a concert
I felt Fatima was just out of the way
Shame and strict dress
I did not realize I made her feel what made me feel
Children in the summer camp
This was a secondary question equivalent to a question
“Do you know what hamburgers are?”
My selfishness was moving and I was not
Able to put myself in place
And to be frank with you
We lived together for only two months
Because she later moved to live with a counselor
Rather than living with other students
I remember thinking that she would be fine
And they are different
As you know when we classify them as different
We deprive them of their humanity in some way
Become “the other”
They do not deserve our time, they represent nothing to us
In fact, as the “other” they may be the cause of our problems
So, how do we know what we can not see?
This starts with understanding what makes you different
By adopting these qualities
Only then can you appreciate what makes others special
I still remember when that happened
Happened after a few feel
Where I found a friend for the concert
I was a group of friends
Fatima really forgot
So everyone decided to participate in the talent show for charities
I need talent to participate in the show
Everyone seemed to have something special to offer
Some children will play the violin
And others were in the process of providing a theatrical dialogue
I remember that he had an idea
We do not practice such talent in our home
But I was determined to find something of value
And when the talent show came on
I stepped onto the stage with a small music box
Set it aside and press the “Play”
A song for my favorite singer, Shakira, is cracked up
I began to echo “our destiny to be together anywhere, anytime”
I said “My name is Mariana” and I will give you a dance show
And if the whole school raises her hand high
My dance was interesting
Such as the tenth presentation of the Kaman presented on this day
After returning to my bedroom I did not feel like I was different
I felt very special
At that moment I began to remember Fatima
Fatima, who failed to see her distinction when she first met her
Fatima was from the Middle East
Such as the Shakira family, which was also from the Middle East
Perhaps she would teach me a movement or two movements of belly dancing
If you tried to know
Now I want you to take this sticker
Which I gave to you at the beginning of today’s meeting
Write in it what makes you distinguished
And I want you to see what you have written
If you see me from home, bring a paper
Write in it what makes you different
You may feel ambiguous when you look at what you have written
Or you may feel a bit ashamed or proud
But you accept it
Remember that this is the first step to appreciate what distinguishes others
When I returned to Venezuela
I began to understand the change that these experiences have made in my personality
Be able to speak different languages
And move between all those different places and people
This will give you a unique amount of sensitivity
Finally I began to understand the importance
Put myself the place of others
That’s a big part of why I decided to become a journalist
Especially since I belong to a world that has long been classified as a “backyard”
“Illegal aliens”, “Third World” and “Others”
I wanted to do something to change that situation
That was true all the time
However, when the Venezuelan government was closed
The country’s largest television channel
And when censorship was increasing
My father came back to me and said
“How are you going to be a journalist here?”
You must leave
Then he turned me and knew that
That was what he was preparing for me
This is what the future holds for me
So I prepared my bags in 2008 and came to the United States
But this time I came without a return ticket
At the age of 24, I realized painfully that I had become a refugee
And migrated to the other
Again, and permanently
I was able to get a scholarship to study journalism
I remember when they assigned me my first assignment
To cover the historic election of President “Barack Obama”
I felt very lucky and optimistic
I was saying, “Yes, that’s what I wanted”
I came to America after racism
Where the concept of “we” and “them”
At least it will vanish from my life
You guys, were you really wrong?
Why could not Barack Obama’s presidency ease ethnic tensions in our country?
Why are some people still feeling threatened
Of immigrants, homosexuals and minorities
That are trying to find space for them
In the United States, that space should be all of us?
I did not get answers then
But on November 8, 2016
When Donald Trump became our president, it became clear that it was a big part
Of voters see who they are without “others”
Some see that they are people who came to take his job
Or consider them potential terrorists who speak a different language
At the same time, minorities are not seen most of the time from the other side
Only hatred, fanaticism and narrow horizons
This is like being stuck in bubbles nobody wants to explode
The only way out of these bubbles
It is an awareness that your differences also mean that you think differently
This needs courage to show respect
In the words of “Voltaire”
“I may disagree with what you have to say but I will fight
To death to defend your right to say “
Failure to see anything good at the other end
Makes the dialogue impossible
Without dialogue, we will continue to make the same mistakes
Because we will not learn any new
I covered the 2012 elections to the news agency “NBC”
This was my first big assignment for this smash network
Where she moved from Spanish television
I wanted to do something different
I saw the results of the elections with undocumented families
With little thought to share those moments with people who are not citizens
But they paid a lot to lose tonight
When Donald Trump’s victory became certain
I looked at eight-year-old Angelina with eyes full of tears
She asked me as she jostled if her mother would be deported now
I hugged her and told her “Everything will be fine”
But I was not really sure about that
This is the picture we took this night that will forever be engraved in my heart
In this picture is a little girl
At about the same age, I saw her when she went to a camp in “Brainerd”
She was already aware that she was “the other”
Every day she came home from school amid fear of taking her mother
Away from them
So, how do we put ourselves in the place of “Angelina”?
How to make it understand that it is distinctive
And she simply deserves to meet with her family?
She tried by filming and photographing families like her family
Make people see them as human beings
And do not consider them “illegitimate citizens”
Yes, they have broken the law and must be punished
But they also gave everything to this country
As many immigrants did before them
I just told you how my way of personal maturity began
In the end, I want to tell you how I made the worst bump in my way so far
The bump that rocked me very much at my heart
On the tenth of April 2014
I drove to the studio and received a call from my parents
They asked me, “Are you on the air now?”
I knew for a moment that something had happened
I asked them, “What happened?”
The answer was “your sister was hit by a car accident”
I felt that my heart stopped
I grabbed my hands on the steering wheel
Remember the words they said
“You probably can not walk again”
It has been said that your life may change in a fraction of a second
This is what happened to my life at this moment
My sister turned from the other half successful
In one year old
To a person unable to move his feet
Or stand up or even wear her own clothes
This was not a summer camp that I could make better in a magical way
This was terrifying
For two years my sister underwent 15 operations
She spent most of her time in a wheelchair
This was not the worst thing
The worst thing was something very painful, something that is so difficult to describe so far with words
This was people’s look at her
But people look at us, their outlook has changed
People were unable to see a successful lawyer
Or a social girl with a good heart and light wit
And everywhere we went
I realized that people only see a boring girl in a wheelchair
They were not able to see beyond that
Today I can tell you that my sister was cured
And that today they walk as they were after they fought like warriors
And they recovered beyond anyone’s expectations
(clap)
thank you
But I learned through this ordeal
There are differences we simply accept
It is hard to find positive in these differences
My sister is not better off because of what happened
But she taught me: You can not let those differences determine who you are
Your ability to remain what you are despite what people see
Is the most difficult task for all
But it is also the most beautiful
We come to this world with a body
People with physical and nervous difficulties
Environmentally affected communities, migrants, boys and girls
Boys who want to wear girls and veiled girls
Women who have been sexually assaulted
Athletes who bend their knees as a sign of protest
Black, white, Asian or American citizen my sister, you or me
We all want what anyone wants: to dream and to realize our dreams
But society sometimes tells us and we tell ourselves
We do not fit the dream
Well, if you look at my story starting from
I gave birth somewhere else and went to dance in high school
To tell stories you do not usually see on television
All this is what made me different
All this is what made me resist and succeed
I traveled across the world
I met people from different walks of life
Do you know what you learned?
The only common thing that each of us has is that we are a “human being”
So take a stand to defend your race and your human race
Let us call it
Let us be human before anything else
In the end, I want you to take this sticker and the paper you wrote in
What makes you different
And celebrate it today and all day
And receive them from the roofs of your homes
I also encourage you to be curious and ask
What about the others’ papers?
What makes them special?
Let us celebrate those flaws that make us distinctive
I hope this tells you that no one has the word “normal”
We are all different
We are all unique and unique
This makes us a wonderful “human”
Thank you very much
(clap)
”
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