He absolutely is, I spent time with him in South Africa and we did a piece together titled "African American" which you can find here on youtube juxtaposing apartheid with slavery.
@@SansPeineIt definitely is. I think you may have missed his point. You’re talking about a different kind of silence; a sense of peace…not silent indifference towards the plight of others, as he’s speaking of.
"I gave up speaking. Figured the most valuable thing I could sacrifice was my own voice, but it was like I hadn't realized that I had given that up a long time ago" Read critically. Write consciously. Speak clearly. Tell your truth. Areas that I need to improve on everyday for me to reach that next stage in my life.
I have had to escape abuse and neglected by my own family and dilling with sexual abuse by my uncle Robert kenndy and my rasist family so I spoke because my uncle might strike again and he has a license concealed weapons
So proud! Honestly, his classes made me feel so "safe" (0:57) that I would walk out into the hallways after class thinking "these kids in the hallway have no idea how much I just went through in the last hour." Poetry unlocked so many emotions in the classroom, it was stupefying. He helped me express my voice more than I had realized, back then. Thanks Clint!
I try to listen to this video at least once a week.... It's not about the words you do speak but about words you don't. Speak not what you think people want to hear... Speak your truth....Just be you. Not what you think others want to see
I was surprised my teacher played us for this during English. It was an amazing video and once we were done with it our teacher let us sit in silence for a second and then and spoke she said. “Do you want to know how I know you understood this video? Because when I looked around, every single one of you had your eyes glued to the screen, and some were even shaking their head along with the speech.” I think it’s a part of school I’ll never forget.
I wish more people would understand how much damage their silence paves the way for. Fear of conflict and fear of feeling uncomfortabel feelings, gives space to they who seek conflict, dictatorship and war to take over, especially if they are a violent minority. Watch this please, and ask yourself if you belong to the silent majority.
Such a powerful speech. If he said that he the worst man, then I am the lowest scumbag. So many times i mute my voice instead of speaking up against injustice.
Who else got this for their classes- 😭🤚 edit: for the answers, I dont rlly know, but the chatting he does helps, just focus on the words n stuff lol, hope it helped! :D
The speaker was clearly relaying a very concise and meaningful message. There are a lot people nowadays who are terrified to speak out and express there true and honest opinions. We are not designed by God to remain silent in all ways of life but we must become true to ourselves and be mindful of our own ways to manifest our own beliefs and genuine opinions.
This is spot on - students need voice in all capacities and especially in light of the injustice that has happened recently. As a teacher educator, I thank you Mr. Smith.
Maybe, there would have been no debate. Maybe there would have been just a flow of words collaborating between two intelligent beings conducting themselves on a level above the antagonistic animals that feed off of hatred rather than love and harmony.
This was one of the best Ted talk I have ever heard, his emphasis on the right words and the storytelling was really thought provoking, it was just majestic almost like I was going through those paths with him especially the 3 incidents he mentioned about gay, beggar and fund raiser; it was an amazing experience. "YOU DON'T NEED MORE WORDS TO EXPRESS YOUR THOUGHTS, THE RIGHT ONES WILL JUST BE ENOUGH" Short but impactful, thank you, the best 5 minutes of my night.
His words were brilliantly spoken we heard the story of truth spoken in a noisy and evil world. I understood the story and now I can no longer sit quietly allow evil people to continue to take the advantage of me I will tell the story and the truth will unfold all it holds. A person should not feel the pain of in justice. We were promised we could receive the benefits of obtaining some of the American Dream. I will no longer silently by while the truth remains hidden within my domain. God tell us not to worry and fear and if we stand firmly believing our heavenly Father will act on our voice to him.
Only the second Ted talk ever that made me want to cry. I have silenced my voice trying to.keep peace and nearly destroyed myself. A blessed talk and not one word wasted. What is more powerful?
It's perhaps important to note, also, that silencing people who disagree with you in your efforts to speak out is probably not what this guy is recommending (I'm looking at you, social justice warriors).
You mean gamergaters or mra. Those are the only people systematically silencing anyone and then threatening to rape and kill anyone that disagrees. I see you haters still travel in packs wherever you go....too insecure and fragile deal with intelligent people, that see through your crap, all by yourself.
Bryna Loewer I don't agree with MRAs, I think they're annoying, but I am irritated by anybody that tries to push their beliefs of social justice onto other people. Especially when it's by means of law, which is very extreme. If you really think that people arguing against feminists are the _only people_ who systematically silence anyone, then you clearly haven't been paying much attention to the feminist movement (or really any popular movement, for that matter).
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s quote on remembering the silence of friends, not enemies, sets the stage for a compelling exploration of silence's consequences by Clint Smith. As a student, I admire Smith's efforts to create a safe space for students to share their truths. Smith's commitment to using his voice to confront ignorance and uplift others is truly inspiring. His resolution to live each day with a metaphorical microphone under his tongue serves as a compelling call to action. In summary, Clint Smith's talk is a moving reflection on the danger of silence, and I thank him for sharing his truth.
Silence can destroy families, communities and the discriminate against the weak an vunerable. so speak your truth and help others. Thank you for your inspiration Clint Smith
Holy crap. Not only is it quick and to the point, with virtually no minced words, but also tells a powerful point. People need to learn from this guy. If only the part about how to talk effectively and efficiently
Grat talk. I love how he twists his sentences so that one word gets a completely different meaning! (For example the one about the apple... just great!)
I will not stay quiet for anyone’s comfort. They were indiscriminate when they slandered, I’m equally as indiscriminate when I address and expose actions. 🙏
The Clint Smith video is one of the most powerful videos I have every seen. It reminds me of my daughter Brianna and the journey she is about to embark on.
Read critically. Write consciously. Speak clearly. Tell your truth. Teacher and poet Clint smith delivers a very powerful and precise message on the importance of speaking up against injustice and the power of communication.
What she meant is, talk is cheap. words are just words, a powerful poem is just that...a powerful poem. No matter how powerful the message is behind those words, if there is no acting behind that powerful massage then it's meaningless. At the end of the day we're just arguing semantics, and then we go back to our everyday grinding life.
This Ted Talk brought tears to my eyes. I find it so hard to use my voice. I was beaten down as young person to not use my voice. I don't know how to get over it.
Calm Dust start by using the power of silence. People who come from abusive homes tend to talk fast and verbally vomit quickly because we were always accused of lying if we were ever allowed to speak we were usually trying desperately to clear our name or to defend an injustice or an accusation. You can regain some of that power that was taken by simply learning not to respond to an inappropriate comment or behavior. Give them nothing and eventually your silence will breed confidence and within confidence you’ll find the correct words when necessary.
Thirston Howell The Bird and Friends! I have that part down to a T. I have the opposite problem. Even if I have a perfectly appropriate thing to say I keep silent because I don’t feel safe to speak up. It’s debilitating when you learned that in order survive you must keep your mouth shut.
Just do the work to ensure that you know what you are saying is right and true and that those who doubt or question you don’t have any facts behind them. And do your best to not let their feelings determine how you feel about yourself.
Calm Dust I’m sorry for what I know you went through. I’m really sorry. I can actually feel your pain written in your words. No one should have to experience something like this. So much was taken from you. I hope in time you’ll start to gain pieces back of who you were meant to be. You will be whole again I promise you will be. This hideous experience will turn out to be a blessing and you’ll become stronger than you ever thought you could be💖
The Ted talker is a teacher. He pointed that we always forget whatever our enemies did to harm us. However, we would never forget the silence of our friend. He also spoke about genocides, wars, and so on. Silence is such a harsh act.
You are awesome my Son! This truth brought me to tears! I am so proud of YOU! Thank you for having the courage to use your voice a tool for liberation.
in the 1968 speech where he reflects upon the civil rights movement, states in the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends. As a teacher, I have internalized this message. Every day, all around us, we see the consequences of silence manifest themselves in the form of discrimination, violence, genocide and war. In the classroom, I challenge my students to explore the silence in their own lives through poetry. We work together to fill those spaces, to recognized them, to name them, to understand that they don't have to be sources of shame. In an effort to create a culture within my classroom where students feel safe sharing the intimacies of their own silences, I have four core principles posted on the board that sit in the front of my class, which every student signs at the begging of the year: read critically, write consciously, speak clearly, tell you truth. and I find myself thinking a lot about that last point. tell your truth and I realize that if I was going to ask my students to speak up. I was going to have to tell my true and be honest with them about the times where I failed to do so. So I tell them that growing up as a kid in a Catholic family in New Orleans during that I was always taught that the most meaningful thing one could do was to give something up or sacrifice something you typically indulge in to prove to God you understand the sanctity I have given up soda, McDonald's, french fries, French kisses and everything in between. But one year I gave up speaking. Figure the most valuable thing I could sacrifice with my own voice, but it was like I hadn't realized that I had given that up a long time ago. I spent so much of my life telling people the things they wanted to hear instead of the things they needed to told myself I wasn't meant to be anyone's conscience because I still had to figure out being my own so sometimes I just wouldn't say anything, appeasing ignorance with my silence, unaware that validation doesn't need words to endorse its existence. When Christian was beat up for being gay, I put my hand in my pocket and walked with my head down as if I didn't even notice. couldn't use my locker for weeks because the boat on the lock reminded me of the one I put on my lips on the homeless man on the corner looked at me with eyes up merely searching for an affirmation that he was worth seeing. I was more concerned with touching the screen on my Apple and actually feeding him one. When the woman at the fundraising gala so I'm so proud of you. It must be so hard teaching those poor, unintelligent kids. I bit my lip, because apparently we needed her money more than my students needed their dignity. We spend so much time listening to the things people are saying that we really pay attention to the things they don't. Silence is the residue of fear. It is feeling your flaws gut- wrench your tongue. It is the air retreating from your chest because it doesn't feel safe in your lungs. Silence is Rwandan genocide. Silence is Katrina. It is what you hear when there aren’t enough body bags left. It is the sound after the news is already tied. It is charring. It is chains. It is privilege. It is pain. there is no time to pick your battles when your battles have already picked you I will not let silence wrap itself around my indecision. I will tell Christian that he is a lion a sanctuary of bravery and brilliance. I will ask that homeless man what his name is and how his day was because sometimes all people want to be is human. I will tell that woman that my students can talk about transcendentalism like their last name was the Thoreau, it just because you watch one episode of the wire doesn't mean you know anything about my kids. so this year instead of giving something up, I will live every day as if they were microphone tucked under my tongue, a stage on the underside of my inhibition. Because who has to have a soapbox When all you've ever needed is your voice
This was nothing short of beautiful. It's really allowed me to step back and observe my addiction of silence, and it has given me the urge to speak out. Thank you for the motivation!
Subhanallah, this beautiful lecture and spoken word proves that truth is universal. Now imagine if all teachers were this honest and logical. May Allah (swt) guide this brother to Islam if he's not there already...
Go ahead and say what you think needs to be said, but just make sure it really needs to be said and that you are saying it to the right people. Preaching to the choir doesn't make converts or change minds. Saying only what you feel when you're angry can loose you more ground then you gain. And sometimes the best thing to say is to ask the right question.
I agree that silence is dangerous and that's the reason why we need friends. We need someone to talk to and we shouldnt be ashamed of voicing out to express ourself more.
woww this video really slapped my face so hard. I've always chosen to be silent and only speak when it's absolutely necessary. I didn't realize that with silence, we wouldn't change anything. But our silence may have a bad impact on others and also ourselves. I always hesitate to express my opinion and spend my time just thinking, is my opinion acceptable and matter to others? And whether what I’m gonna say is right? Just like what the speaker said, i just wouldn't say anything, and appeasing ignorance with my silence. The “silence is the residue of fear” was blown my mind and made me realize that it's feeling my flaws. From now, I will not let silence wrap itself around my indecision again. I will be braver to say what I think is right.
Dr Martin Luther king jr in a 1968 speech where he reflects upon the Civil Right Movement states "In the end we will remember not the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends ".
Two ears to listen one mouth to speak... listen twice as much than speak. Then listening is more than using ears or eyes... understanding takes putting an open mind up but in thought. Thinking critically with putting aside much bias as possible to even looknupon one's self in the golden rule. Beyond even understanding is that compassion. Also without the truth how can one love? Walk in love.
Mr. Smith!!!! He was my 10 grade English teacher! Definitely one of the most influential teachers I've ever had
I'd love to have a teacher like him!
what school did you go to because he mentioned new orleans and that’s where i’m from
@@chesneyaudrict5244 same
@@chesneyaudrict5244 do you think hes gonna respond ? The comment was 6 years ago
@@elijah1521 worth a try
He sounds like an amazing teacher and an amazing person
He absolutely is, I spent time with him in South Africa and we did a piece together titled "African American" which you can find here on youtube juxtaposing apartheid with slavery.
He also sound like if he's a rapper.
he should do rap
IIGytyII yah
He is btw
He isn’t
"Silence is the residue of fear."
That was perfect.
No it is not. Some people just prefer silence
@@SansPeineIt definitely is. I think you may have missed his point. You’re talking about a different kind of silence; a sense of peace…not silent indifference towards the plight of others, as he’s speaking of.
"I gave up speaking. Figured the most valuable thing I could sacrifice was my own voice, but it was like I hadn't realized that I had given that up a long time ago" Read critically. Write consciously. Speak clearly. Tell your truth. Areas that I need to improve on everyday for me to reach that next stage in my life.
Very nice!
📝📝📝📝📝
deep
We all need to improve in these.
Listening is important too
"If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor."
-Desmond Tutu
Couldn't be more true.
I have had to escape abuse and neglected by my own family and dilling with sexual abuse by my uncle Robert kenndy and my rasist family so I spoke because my uncle might strike again and he has a license concealed weapons
"Thou shalt not be a victim, thou shalt not be a perpetrator, but, above all, thou shalt not be a bystander." Yehuda Bauer
Yes.
Not true
So proud! Honestly, his classes made me feel so "safe" (0:57) that I would walk out into the hallways after class thinking "these kids in the hallway have no idea how much I just went through in the last hour." Poetry unlocked so many emotions in the classroom, it was stupefying. He helped me express my voice more than I had realized, back then.
Thanks Clint!
Good for you man
Français
I try to listen to this video at least once a week.... It's not about the words you do speak but about words you don't. Speak not what you think people want to hear... Speak your truth....Just be you. Not what you think others want to see
Excellent. Silence is golden, righteous words are divine. Knowing when to speak and when not to is a great treasure.
I was surprised my teacher played us for this during English. It was an amazing video and once we were done with it our teacher let us sit in silence for a second and then and spoke she said. “Do you want to know how I know you understood this video? Because when I looked around, every single one of you had your eyes glued to the screen, and some were even shaking their head along with the speech.” I think it’s a part of school I’ll never forget.
I wish more people would understand how much damage their silence paves the way for. Fear of conflict and fear of feeling uncomfortabel feelings, gives space to they who seek conflict, dictatorship and war to take over, especially if they are a violent minority. Watch this please, and ask yourself if you belong to the silent majority.
This guy would be an awesome rapper. A poet with a message, love it.
"In the end we would remember not the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends." I feel that
the way he speaks is just ... powerful.
“Silence is the residue of fear”
I got chills.
sounds like he was rapping
It’s poetry
Poetry is rapping
That's the beauty of spoken word.
Slam poetry always sounds like that
Welcome to the spoken word
i dont know why i cried so much watching this. this was so eloquently spoken and well compromised. so so powerful, thank you clint.
Beautiful, This moves me every time I watch. Goosebumps, tears, hope...
Thank you so much. I have been silenced for so long. Fear will no longer silence me!!
The way he spoke conveyed his message so well, i didn't expect to burst into tears when i was watching this
Such a powerful speech. If he said that he the worst man, then I am the lowest scumbag. So many times i mute my voice instead of speaking up against injustice.
Who else got this for their classes- 😭🤚
edit: for the answers, I dont rlly know, but the
chatting he does helps, just focus on the words
n stuff lol, hope it helped! :D
dude same
Yowwwww
AAHAAAHAAAA girl please stop exposing us.
Y'all, i need answers. Help me out😗👉🏻👈🏻
@@zimzalabim2029 depending on the level of your class, your speech not even be like this. I just needed an idea of how to start 🥴
The speaker was clearly relaying a very concise and meaningful message. There are a lot people nowadays who are terrified to speak out and express there true and honest opinions. We are not designed by God to remain silent in all ways of life but we must become true to ourselves and be mindful of our own ways to manifest our own beliefs and genuine opinions.
This is spot on - students need voice in all capacities and especially in light of the injustice that has happened recently. As a teacher educator, I thank you Mr. Smith.
I'd love to see a debate between him and a librarian.
Maybe, there would have been no debate. Maybe there would have been just a flow of words collaborating between two intelligent beings conducting themselves on a level above the antagonistic animals that feed off of hatred rather than love and harmony.
how do you know hes not a librarian?
@@chancemoore6062 He's a teacher
This inspired me to stop beinging silente and speak my mind about how i Really feel so thankyou for this
This was one of the best Ted talk I have ever heard, his emphasis on the right words and the storytelling was really thought provoking, it was just majestic almost like I was going through those paths with him especially the 3 incidents he mentioned about gay, beggar and fund raiser; it was an amazing experience.
"YOU DON'T NEED MORE WORDS TO EXPRESS YOUR THOUGHTS, THE RIGHT ONES WILL JUST BE ENOUGH"
Short but impactful, thank you, the best 5 minutes of my night.
Goosebumps and chills hearing this Man speak. So motivating and inspiring.. Wow!
His words were brilliantly spoken we heard the story of truth spoken in a noisy and evil world. I understood the story and now I can no longer sit quietly allow evil people to continue to take the advantage of me I will tell the story and the truth will unfold all it holds. A person should not feel the pain of in justice. We were promised we could receive the benefits of obtaining some of the American Dream. I will no longer silently by while the truth remains hidden within my domain. God tell us not to worry and fear and if we stand firmly believing our heavenly Father will act on our voice to him.
Only the second Ted talk ever that made me want to cry. I have silenced my voice trying to.keep peace and nearly destroyed myself. A blessed talk and not one word wasted. What is more powerful?
This talk got to me. Bravo! 😭
Every now and then, I would come back and watch this!!!! Love this !!!
Same
It's perhaps important to note, also, that silencing people who disagree with you in your efforts to speak out is probably not what this guy is recommending (I'm looking at you, social justice warriors).
Your comment gave me PTSD.
I'm a social justice warrior and you're silencing me!!! GIVE ME ATTENTION!!!! :p
You mean gamergaters or mra. Those are the only people systematically silencing anyone and then threatening to rape and kill anyone that disagrees. I see you haters still travel in packs wherever you go....too insecure and fragile deal with intelligent people, that see through your crap, all by yourself.
Bryna Loewer I don't agree with MRAs, I think they're annoying, but I am irritated by anybody that tries to push their beliefs of social justice onto other people. Especially when it's by means of law, which is very extreme.
If you really think that people arguing against feminists are the _only people_ who systematically silence anyone, then you clearly haven't been paying much attention to the feminist movement (or really any popular movement, for that matter).
sjw's aren't the only silencers around
i adore this way of speaking
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s quote on remembering the silence of friends, not enemies, sets the stage for a compelling exploration of silence's consequences by Clint Smith. As a student, I admire Smith's efforts to create a safe space for students to share their truths.
Smith's commitment to using his voice to confront ignorance and uplift others is truly inspiring. His resolution to live each day with a metaphorical microphone under his tongue serves as a compelling call to action. In summary, Clint Smith's talk is a moving reflection on the danger of silence, and I thank him for sharing his truth.
I've watched this multiple times and everytime I am moved by it
Silence can destroy families, communities and the discriminate against the weak an vunerable. so speak your truth and help others. Thank you for your inspiration Clint Smith
This is like spoken word poetry. Love it
Holy crap. Not only is it quick and to the point, with virtually no minced words, but also tells a powerful point. People need to learn from this guy. If only the part about how to talk effectively and efficiently
i Clapped at this.
he is a brave man and has done a great job.
This is one of my favorite TED talks. Such a wonderful and inspiring message I share whenever I get a chance:)
Thank you so much for this beautiful speech 🙏
the power of good speech...
this was powerful. Amazing how some videos go viral and the ones that should don't. This needs to go viral.
Wow. So powerful.
Sounds poetic. Beautiful.
Look at Clint man... so inspirational
Deep, yet so true. Touching....
Grat talk. I love how he twists his sentences so that one word gets a completely different meaning! (For example the one about the apple... just great!)
How amazing!!! ❤️
This is very good for an introvert like me
The best voice I’ve ever heard
I will not stay quiet for anyone’s comfort. They were indiscriminate when they slandered, I’m equally as indiscriminate when I address and expose actions. 🙏
The Clint Smith video is one of the most powerful videos I have every seen. It reminds me of my daughter Brianna and the journey she is about to embark on.
Read critically. Write consciously. Speak clearly. Tell your truth.
Teacher and poet Clint smith delivers a very powerful and precise message on the importance of speaking up against injustice and the power of communication.
What? I didn't really understand that.
What she meant is, talk is cheap. words are just words, a powerful poem is just that...a powerful poem. No matter how powerful the message is behind those words, if there is no acting behind that powerful massage then it's meaningless. At the end of the day we're just arguing semantics, and then we go back to our everyday grinding life.
Andrew Yang If you go beyond words then you have action. Actions have consequences. That's why all you ever hear is talk.
This Ted Talk brought tears to my eyes. I find it so hard to use my voice. I was beaten down as young person to not use my voice. I don't know how to get over it.
Calm Dust start by using the power of silence. People who come from abusive homes tend to talk fast and verbally vomit quickly because we were always accused of lying if we were ever allowed to speak we were usually trying desperately to clear our name or to defend an injustice or an accusation. You can regain some of that power that was taken by simply learning not to respond to an inappropriate comment or behavior. Give them nothing and eventually your silence will breed confidence and within confidence you’ll find the correct words when necessary.
Thirston Howell The Bird and Friends! I have that part down to a T. I have the opposite problem. Even if I have a perfectly appropriate thing to say I keep silent because I don’t feel safe to speak up. It’s debilitating when you learned that in order survive you must keep your mouth shut.
Just do the work to ensure that you know what you are saying is right and true and that those who doubt or question you don’t have any facts behind them. And do your best to not let their feelings determine how you feel about yourself.
Kent Thank you. Much love to you for this advice. 💕🙌🏼
Calm Dust I’m sorry for what I know you went through. I’m really sorry. I can actually feel your pain written in your words. No one should have to experience something like this. So much was taken from you. I hope in time you’ll start to gain pieces back of who you were meant to be. You will be whole again I promise you will be. This hideous experience will turn out to be a blessing and you’ll become stronger than you ever thought you could be💖
"Silence is the residue of fear."
It's so beautifully put.
"silence is the residue of fear" ! I love it
the way he was talking sounded almost like a poem and it was beautiful
Wow! He lays it on perfectly- more power to him & his voice: OUR VOICES
Wow this was truly powerful, I am astonished at the in depth messaging that was provided in this video! Great Work Mr. Smith!
I got the chills
This video actually encouraged me to do something about a problem I had, to get back what was mine. Nice speech. Thank you.
Such a powerful message in so short a time.
Clint Smith gets it... I just love him so much... his words go straight to the heart and soul and pierces it with truth.
عالی
The Ted talker is a teacher. He pointed that we always forget whatever our enemies did to harm us. However, we would never forget the silence of our friend. He also spoke about genocides, wars, and so on. Silence is such a harsh act.
THE most inspiring 4 minutes on the internet!
This is one of the shortest, and most needed Ted Talks.
Truths indeed...Life in every word!
Gave me the chills
I love the speech. we don’t have to worry about what people said, just talk to the right person about your problem.
That was powerful! Well said sir
I know I could not be a person like him and do all the things he says but I will try to be better. Thank you.
You are awesome my Son! This truth brought me to tears! I am so proud of YOU! Thank you for having the courage to use your voice a tool for liberation.
I luv listening to this. Very inspirational, educational, & empowering.
The power of words is stronger than we could ever imagine
in the 1968 speech where he reflects upon the civil rights movement, states in the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends. As a teacher, I have internalized this message. Every day, all around us, we see the consequences of silence manifest themselves in the form of discrimination, violence, genocide and war. In the classroom, I challenge my students to explore the silence in their own lives through poetry. We work together to fill those spaces, to recognized them, to name them, to understand that they don't have to be sources of shame. In an effort to create a culture within my classroom where students feel safe sharing the intimacies of their own silences, I have four core principles posted on the board that sit in the front of my class, which every student signs at the begging of the year:
read critically, write consciously, speak clearly, tell you truth. and I find myself thinking a lot about that last point. tell your truth and I realize that if I was going to ask my students to speak up. I was going to have to tell my true and be honest with them about the times where I failed to do so. So I tell them that growing up as a kid in a Catholic family in New Orleans during that I was always taught that the most meaningful thing one could do was to give something up or sacrifice something you typically indulge in to prove to God you understand the sanctity I have given up soda, McDonald's, french fries, French kisses and everything in between. But one year I gave up speaking. Figure the most valuable thing I could sacrifice with my own voice, but it was like I hadn't realized that I had given that up a long time ago.
I spent so much of my life telling people the things they wanted to hear instead of the things they needed to told myself I wasn't meant to be anyone's conscience because I still had to figure out being my own so sometimes I just wouldn't say anything, appeasing ignorance with my silence, unaware that validation doesn't need words to endorse its existence. When Christian was beat up for being gay, I put my hand in my pocket and walked with my head down as if I didn't even notice. couldn't use my locker for weeks because the boat on the lock reminded me of the one I put on my lips on the homeless man on the corner looked at me with eyes up merely searching for an affirmation that he was worth seeing. I was more concerned with touching the screen on my Apple and actually feeding him one. When the woman at the fundraising gala so I'm so proud of you. It must be so hard teaching those poor, unintelligent kids. I bit my lip, because apparently we needed her money more than my students needed their dignity. We spend so much time listening to the things people are saying that we really pay attention to the things they don't.
Silence is the residue of fear. It is feeling your flaws gut- wrench your tongue. It is the air retreating from your chest because it doesn't feel safe in your lungs. Silence is Rwandan genocide. Silence is Katrina. It is what you hear when there aren’t enough body bags left. It is the sound after the news is already tied. It is charring. It is chains. It is privilege. It is pain. there is no time to pick your battles when your battles have already picked you I will not let silence wrap itself around my indecision. I will tell Christian that he is a lion a sanctuary of bravery and brilliance. I will ask that homeless man what his name is and how his day was because sometimes all people want to be is human. I will tell that woman that my students can talk about transcendentalism like their last name was the Thoreau, it just because you watch one episode of the wire doesn't mean you know anything about my kids. so this year instead of giving something up, I will live every day as if they were microphone tucked under my tongue, a stage on the underside of my inhibition. Because who has to have a soapbox When all you've ever needed is your voice
thank youu
Just had this audio sample for my english examination and i was really moved.
Same, it's very moving speech
This kinda brought tears to my eyes ngl
This was nothing short of beautiful. It's really allowed me to step back and observe my addiction of silence, and it has given me the urge to speak out. Thank you for the motivation!
Subhanallah, this beautiful lecture and spoken word proves that truth is universal. Now imagine if all teachers were this honest and logical. May Allah (swt) guide this brother to Islam if he's not there already...
Just heard him present last week. This young man is moving, articulate and very worth hearing and reading.
Go ahead and say what you think needs to be said, but just make sure it really needs to be said and that you are saying it to the right people. Preaching to the choir doesn't make converts or change minds. Saying only what you feel when you're angry can loose you more ground then you gain. And sometimes the best thing to say is to ask the right question.
Never in my life had 4 minutes felt so long. This was so good!
❤ I needed this reminder!
What a dude! Powerful, heartfelt and brave - aspire to speak like this!
I agree that silence is dangerous and that's the reason why we need friends. We need someone to talk to and we shouldnt be ashamed of voicing out to express ourself more.
Powerful Message! Encourage people by your voice!
One of the best talks ever
Poetic and truthful
In my opinion, "Tell your Truth" is the most important out of the four.
That's why it was the last thing on the list because the last thing that is said tends to be the most important
This deserves more attention.
woww this video really slapped my face so hard. I've always chosen to be silent and only speak when it's absolutely necessary. I didn't realize that with silence, we wouldn't change anything. But our silence may have a bad impact on others and also ourselves. I always hesitate to express my opinion and spend my time just thinking, is my opinion acceptable and matter to others? And whether what I’m gonna say is right? Just like what the speaker said, i just wouldn't say anything, and appeasing ignorance with my silence.
The “silence is the residue of fear” was blown my mind and made me realize that it's feeling my flaws. From now, I will not let silence wrap itself around my indecision again. I will be braver to say what I think is right.
Dr Martin Luther king jr in a 1968 speech where he reflects upon the Civil Right Movement states "In the end we will remember not the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends ".
Two ears to listen one mouth to speak... listen twice as much than speak. Then listening is more than using ears or eyes... understanding takes putting an open mind up but in thought. Thinking critically with putting aside much bias as possible to even looknupon one's self in the golden rule. Beyond even understanding is that compassion. Also without the truth how can one love?
Walk in love.
Breathtaking
“sometimes all people want to be is human”
this TED was amazing 🤍
very impressive. Thank you.
This should have way more views.
Excellent poetry.
This was extraordinarily brilliant.