For children, it is easy to come forward and blend all the beliefs which we adults find difficult because of the biases we hold against other communities. The benefit? This gives rise to form our own multi-cultural environment. Does that make refugee children any different? No! They too like to flourish, dream and hope but most of the time are deprived of opportunities.
Watch the TED video here-
Through TEDX, Somali-American model Halima Aden shares her story about the journey from being a refugee to an international model and eventually landing up on the cover of Vogue magazine.
If you want to make a difference in the society, help people to thrive and not just survive because wondering from where their next meal will come from is something not unknown to them but hoping for a better future is.
“When people come from different background and don’t speak the same language, conflicts used to break out,” says Halima.
Her story:
Halima, a black Muslim Somali American, was born in Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya after her family fled civil war in Somalia. She has returned to this refugee camp, where she lived until the age of seven, to inspire people and give them hope.
She recalls her days in the camp where often conflicts used to break out because there were people from different cultures and they spoke different languages. Over there, she started to embrace children from different communities and cultures and this gave her life a new meaning. “Celebrating holidays like Christmas even though I was raised as a Muslim and other children did the same, prayed along with me,” says Halima.
This talk was presented to a local audience at TEDxKakumaCamp.
She has appeared on magazines like Vogue Arabia, British Vogue, Teen Vogue, Grazia UK, S Moda and Allure, in which the publication showed her as an all-American beauty, which was a crucial acknowledgment for America’s Muslim community. Aden’s editorial credits also include Harper’s Bazaar and Glamour, and she appeared on the runway for Yeezy, Alberta Ferretti, Max Mara, Philipp Plein and Dolce & Gabbana.
Recently, Aden was named an official UNICEF Ambassador and loves spending time with family and friends.
Through Halima, we get to learn that the beauty of human skin is in every color and, from where you come, doesn’t determine what you will become.