How to make peace? Get angry
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0:01 - 0:06Today, I am going to talk about anger.
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0:09 - 0:11When I was 11,
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0:11 - 0:14seeing some of my friends
leaving the school -
0:14 - 0:19because their parents
could not afford textbooks -
0:19 - 0:21made me angry.
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0:23 - 0:26When I was 27,
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0:26 - 0:31hearing the plight
of a desperate slave father -
0:31 - 0:36whose daughter was
about to be sold to a brothel -
0:36 - 0:39made me angry.
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0:40 - 0:43At the age of 50,
-
0:43 - 0:48lying on the street,
in a pool of blood, -
0:48 - 0:51along with my own son,
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0:51 - 0:53made me angry.
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0:55 - 1:00Dear friends, for centuries
we were taught anger is bad. -
1:01 - 1:03Our parents, teachers, priests --
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1:03 - 1:09everyone taught us how to control
and suppress our anger. -
1:12 - 1:14But I ask why?
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1:16 - 1:21Why can't we convert our anger
for the larger good of society? -
1:21 - 1:22Why can't we use our anger
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1:22 - 1:26to challenge and change
the evils of the world? -
1:30 - 1:32That I tried to do.
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1:34 - 1:36Friends,
-
1:37 - 1:43most of the brightest ideas
came to my mind out of anger. -
1:44 - 1:54Like when I was 35 and sat
in a locked-up, tiny prison. -
1:55 - 1:57The whole night, I was angry.
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1:58 - 2:01But it has given birth to a new idea.
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2:01 - 2:04But I will come to that later on.
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2:04 - 2:11Let me begin with the story
of how I got a name for myself. -
2:13 - 2:18I had been a big admirer
of Mahatma Gandhi since my childhood. -
2:19 - 2:24Gandhi fought and lead
India's freedom movement. -
2:25 - 2:27But more importantly,
-
2:27 - 2:34he taught us how to treat
the most vulnerable sections, -
2:34 - 2:38the most deprived people,
with dignity and respect. -
2:40 - 2:45And so, when India was celebrating
-
2:45 - 2:48Mahatma Gandhi's
birth centenary in 1969 -- -
2:48 - 2:50at that time I was 15 --
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2:50 - 2:52an idea came to my mind.
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2:54 - 2:57Why can't we celebrate it differently?
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2:57 - 3:03I knew, as perhaps
many of you might know, -
3:03 - 3:11that in India, a large number of people
are born in the lowest segment of caste. -
3:12 - 3:15And they are treated as untouchables.
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3:15 - 3:17These are the people --
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3:17 - 3:21forget about allowing them
to go to the temples, -
3:21 - 3:28they cannot even go into the houses
and shops of high-caste people. -
3:28 - 3:34So I was very impressed with
the leaders of my town -
3:34 - 3:38who were speaking very highly against
the caste system and untouchability -
3:38 - 3:40and talking of Gandhian ideals.
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3:42 - 3:45So inspired by that, I thought,
let us set an example -
3:45 - 3:51by inviting these people to eat food
cooked and served -
3:51 - 3:55by the untouchable community.
-
3:55 - 4:00I went to some low-caste,
so-called untouchable, people, -
4:01 - 4:06tried to convince them,
but it was unthinkable for them. -
4:06 - 4:10They told me, "No, no. It's not possible.
It never happened." -
4:11 - 4:13I said, "Look at these leaders,
-
4:13 - 4:15they are so great,
they are against untouchability. -
4:15 - 4:18They will come. If nobody comes,
we can set an example." -
4:21 - 4:27These people thought that I was too naive.
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4:28 - 4:31Finally, they were convinced.
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4:31 - 4:36My friends and I took our bicycles
and invited political leaders. -
4:38 - 4:41And I was so thrilled, rather, empowered
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4:41 - 4:46to see that each one of them
agreed to come. -
4:47 - 4:50I thought, "Great idea.
We can set an example. -
4:50 - 4:54We can bring about change in the society."
-
4:55 - 4:57The day has come.
-
4:58 - 5:03All these untouchables,
three women and two men, -
5:03 - 5:07they agreed to come.
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5:07 - 5:13I could recall that they had used
the best of their clothes. -
5:14 - 5:17They brought new utensils.
-
5:18 - 5:20They had taken baths
hundreds of times -
5:20 - 5:23because it was unthinkable
for them to do. -
5:23 - 5:26It was the moment of change.
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5:27 - 5:30They gathered. Food was cooked.
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5:30 - 5:33It was 7 o'clock.
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5:33 - 5:36By 8 o'clock, we kept on waiting,
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5:36 - 5:41because it's not very uncommon
that the leaders become late, -
5:41 - 5:43for an hour or so.
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5:43 - 5:50So after 8 o'clock, we took our bicycles
and went to these leaders' homes, -
5:50 - 5:52just to remind them.
-
5:54 - 5:59One of the leader's wives told me,
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5:59 - 6:04"Sorry, he is having some headache,
perhaps he cannot come." -
6:04 - 6:06I went to another leader
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6:06 - 6:10and his wife told me,
"Okay, you go, he will definitely join." -
6:11 - 6:15So I thought that the dinner
will take place, -
6:15 - 6:20though not at that large a scale.
-
6:21 - 6:27I went back to the venue, which was
a newly built Mahatma Gandhi Park. -
6:29 - 6:30It was 10 o'clock.
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6:31 - 6:35None of the leaders showed up.
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6:36 - 6:39That made me angry.
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6:40 - 6:47I was standing, leaning against
Mahatma Gandhi's statue. -
6:50 - 6:54I was emotionally drained,
rather exhausted. -
6:57 - 7:02Then I sat down where
the food was lying. -
7:06 - 7:08I kept my emotions on hold.
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7:08 - 7:12But then, when I took the first bite,
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7:12 - 7:15I broke down in tears.
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7:15 - 7:20And suddenly I felt a hand on my shoulder.
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7:20 - 7:26And it was the healing, motherly touch
of an untouchable woman. -
7:26 - 7:30And she told me,
"Kailash, why are you crying? -
7:32 - 7:34You have done your bit.
-
7:34 - 7:37You have eaten the food
cooked by untouchables, -
7:37 - 7:40which has never happened in our memory."
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7:41 - 7:46She said, "You won today."
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7:46 - 7:51And my friends, she was right.
-
7:52 - 7:56I came back home, a little after midnight,
-
7:56 - 8:00shocked to see that several
high-caste elderly people -
8:00 - 8:03were sitting in my courtyard.
-
8:03 - 8:06I saw my mother and
elderly women were crying -
8:06 - 8:10and they were pleading
to these elderly people -
8:10 - 8:13because they had threatened
to outcaste my whole family. -
8:14 - 8:19And you know, outcasting the family
is the biggest social punishment -
8:19 - 8:22one can think of.
-
8:24 - 8:29Somehow they agreed to punish only me,
and the punishment was purification. -
8:29 - 8:33That means I had to go 600 miles
away from my hometown -
8:33 - 8:37to the River Ganges to take a holy dip.
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8:37 - 8:42And after that, I should organize a feast
for priests, 101 priests, -
8:42 - 8:45wash their feet and drink that water.
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8:47 - 8:50It was total nonsense,
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8:50 - 8:52and I refused to accept that punishment.
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8:53 - 8:55How did they punish me?
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8:55 - 9:01I was barred from entering into my own
kitchen and my own dining room, -
9:01 - 9:04my utensils were separated.
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9:04 - 9:09But the night when I was angry,
they wanted to outcaste me. -
9:11 - 9:15But I decided to outcaste
the entire caste system. -
9:16 - 9:20(Applause)
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9:21 - 9:26And that was possible because
the beginning would have been -
9:26 - 9:28to change the family name, or surname,
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9:28 - 9:32because in India, most of
the family names are caste names. -
9:32 - 9:34So I decided to drop my name.
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9:34 - 9:41And then, later on, I gave
a new name to myself: Satyarthi, -
9:41 - 9:44that means, "seeker of truth."
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9:45 - 9:49(Applause)
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9:49 - 9:53And that was the beginning
of my transformative anger. -
9:54 - 9:57Friends, maybe one of you can tell me,
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9:57 - 10:02what was I doing before becoming
a children's rights activist? -
10:02 - 10:04Does anybody know?
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10:05 - 10:06No.
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10:06 - 10:13I was an engineer, an electrical engineer.
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10:13 - 10:18And then I learned how the energy
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10:18 - 10:22of burning fire, coal,
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10:22 - 10:26the nuclear blast inside the chambers,
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10:26 - 10:29raging river currents,
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10:29 - 10:33fierce winds,
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10:33 - 10:38could be converted into the light
and lives of millions. -
10:39 - 10:43I also learned how the most
uncontrollable form of energy -
10:43 - 10:48could be harnessed for good
and making society better. -
10:53 - 11:00So I'll come back to the story
of when I was caught in the prison: -
11:00 - 11:04I was very happy freeing
a dozen children from slavery, -
11:04 - 11:07handing them over to their parents.
-
11:07 - 11:10I cannot explain my joy
when I free a child. -
11:11 - 11:12I was so happy.
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11:13 - 11:19But when I was waiting for my train
to come back to my hometown, Delhi, -
11:19 - 11:22I saw that dozens of children
were arriving; -
11:22 - 11:26they were being trafficked by someone.
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11:26 - 11:28I stopped them, those people.
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11:28 - 11:31I complained to the police.
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11:31 - 11:35So the policemen, instead of helping me,
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11:35 - 11:41they threw me in this small,
tiny shell, like an animal. -
11:42 - 11:43And that was the night of anger
-
11:43 - 11:47when one of the brightest
and biggest ideas was born. -
11:48 - 11:53I thought that if I keep on freeing 10
children, and 50 more will join, -
11:53 - 11:55that's not done.
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11:55 - 11:57And I believed in the power of consumers,
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11:57 - 12:01and let me tell you that this
was the first time -
12:01 - 12:06when a campaign was launched by me
or anywhere in the world, -
12:06 - 12:10to educate and sensitize the consumers
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12:10 - 12:15to create a demand
for child-labor-free rugs. -
12:16 - 12:19In Europe and America,
we have been successful. -
12:19 - 12:24And it has resulted
in a fall in child labor -
12:24 - 12:27in South Asian countries by 80 percent.
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12:27 - 12:30(Applause)
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12:33 - 12:39Not only that, but this first-ever
consumer's power, or consumer's campaign -
12:39 - 12:44has grown in other countries
and other industries, -
12:44 - 12:49maybe chocolate, maybe apparel,
maybe shoes -- it has gone beyond. -
12:51 - 12:53My anger at the age of 11,
-
12:53 - 12:58when I realized how important
education is for every child, -
12:58 - 13:06I got an idea to collect used books
and help the poorest children. -
13:06 - 13:09I created a book bank at the age of 11.
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13:11 - 13:12But I did not stop.
-
13:12 - 13:14Later on, I cofounded
-
13:14 - 13:19the world's single largest civil society
campaign for education -
13:19 - 13:22that is the Global Campaign for Education.
-
13:22 - 13:27That has helped in changing
the whole thinking towards education -
13:27 - 13:29from the charity mode
to the human rights mode, -
13:29 - 13:34and that has concretely helped
the reduction of out-of-school children -
13:34 - 13:38by half in the last 15 years.
-
13:38 - 13:42(Applause)
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13:44 - 13:47My anger at the age of 27,
-
13:47 - 13:52to free that girl who was about
to be sold to a brothel, -
13:52 - 13:57has given me an idea
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13:57 - 14:01to go for a new strategy
of raid and rescue, -
14:01 - 14:04freeing children from slavery.
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14:05 - 14:11And I am so lucky and proud to say
that it is not one or 10 or 20, -
14:11 - 14:17but my colleagues and I have been able
to physically liberate 83,000 child slaves -
14:17 - 14:20and hand them over
back to their families and mothers. -
14:20 - 14:23(Applause)
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14:26 - 14:28I knew that we needed global policies.
-
14:28 - 14:31We organized the worldwide marches
against child labor -
14:31 - 14:37and that has also resulted in
a new international convention -
14:37 - 14:41to protect the children
who are in the worst forms. -
14:42 - 14:46And the concrete result was that
the number of child laborers globally -
14:46 - 14:52has gone down by one third
in the last 15 years. -
14:52 - 14:56(Applause)
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14:56 - 15:00So, in each case,
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15:00 - 15:04it began from anger,
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15:04 - 15:06turned into an idea,
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15:06 - 15:10and action.
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15:10 - 15:12So anger, what next?
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15:12 - 15:15Idea, and --
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15:15 - 15:16Audience: Action
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15:16 - 15:21Kailash Satyarthi: Anger, idea, action.
Which I tried to do. -
15:22 - 15:25Anger is a power, anger is an energy,
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15:25 - 15:28and the law of nature is that energy
-
15:28 - 15:33can never be created and never
be vanished, can never be destroyed. -
15:33 - 15:40So why can't the energy of anger
be translated and harnessed -
15:40 - 15:44to create a better and beautiful world,
a more just and equitable world? -
15:45 - 15:47Anger is within each one of you,
-
15:47 - 15:53and I will share a secret
for a few seconds: -
15:53 - 16:01that if we are confined in
the narrow shells of egos, -
16:01 - 16:05and the circles of selfishness,
-
16:05 - 16:13then the anger will turn out to be
hatred, violence, revenge, destruction. -
16:14 - 16:17But if we are able to break the circles,
-
16:17 - 16:22then the same anger could turn
into a great power. -
16:22 - 16:27We can break the circles
by using our inherent compassion -
16:27 - 16:31and connect with the world through
compassion to make this world better. -
16:31 - 16:34That same anger could be
transformed into it. -
16:34 - 16:39So dear friends, sisters and brothers,
again, as a Nobel Laureate, -
16:40 - 16:43I am urging you to become angry.
-
16:44 - 16:47I am urging you to become angry.
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16:48 - 16:52And the angriest among us
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16:52 - 17:00is the one who can transform his anger
into idea and action. -
17:00 - 17:02Thank you so much.
-
17:02 - 17:06(Applause)
-
17:15 - 17:19Chris Anderson: For many years,
you've been an inspiration to others. -
17:19 - 17:22Who or what inspires you and why?
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17:23 - 17:24KS: Good question.
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17:24 - 17:28Chris, let me tell you,
and that is the truth, -
17:28 - 17:33each time when I free a child,
-
17:33 - 17:37the child who has lost all his hope
that he will ever come back to his mother, -
17:37 - 17:41the first smile of freedom,
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17:41 - 17:44and the mother who has lost all hope
-
17:44 - 17:51that the son or daughter
can ever come back and sit in her lap, -
17:51 - 17:53they become so emotional
-
17:53 - 17:58and the first tear of joy
rolls down on her cheek, -
17:58 - 18:01I see the glimpse of God in it --
this is my biggest inspiration. -
18:01 - 18:06And I am so lucky that not once,
as I said before, but thousands of times, -
18:06 - 18:10I have been able to witness my God
in the faces of those children -
18:10 - 18:12and they are my biggest inspirations.
-
18:12 - 18:14Thank you.
-
18:14 - 18:16(Applause)
- Title:
- How to make peace? Get angry
- Speaker:
- Kailash Satyarthi
- Description:
-
How did a young man born into a high caste in India come to free 83,000 children from slavery? Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Kailash Satyarthi offers a surprising piece of advice to anyone who wants to change the world for the better: Get angry at injustice. In this powerful talk, he shows how a lifetime of peace-making sprang from a lifetime of outrage.
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TEDTalks
- Duration:
- 18:29
Krystian Aparta edited English subtitles for How to make peace? Get angry | ||
Krystian Aparta edited English subtitles for How to make peace? Get angry | ||
Krystian Aparta edited English subtitles for How to make peace? Get angry | ||
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Krystian Aparta
The English transcript was updated on 4/17/2015. At 12:43, "maybe chocolate, maybe apples, maybe shoes -- it has gone beyond." was changed to "maybe chocolate, maybe apparel, maybe shoes -- it has gone beyond."