[Music]
so how many of you are special perfect
I’ll never forget walked into my first
grade class and it was amazing so I walk
up and they had this huge motivational
sign and this is exactly how it read
welcome slow learning disability
students thank you you went to that
that was the first time that a label
defined me I didn’t have any choice in
the matter at all so I just accepted it
and that’s who I am smart genius awesome
see some labels can actually empower you
idiot stupid what are you thinking
retarded
see some labels disempowered awkward
shorty you know who this is
this kid this was what he was taunted
with most of his life but now we call
him genius Elon Musk founder of Tesla
SpaceX PayPal you can’t even speak in
you’re four years old what are you a
mute you immigrant that’s what he was
taunted most of his life they even
labeled him the dopey one but now you
call him the father of physics mr.
Albert Einstein you are a nerd and this
but now you call him mr. Bill Gates
unfortunately many more people people
whose names you’ll probably never even
know are defined by their labels they’re
not even really applied to them some are
even killed because other people’s
hatred over their label hey black boy
see in the 1950s that was a very
different label that meant that label
that he couldn’t eat at the same
restaurant that he had a drink out of a
different water fountain that he was not
even allowed in most neighborhoods see
but this little boy turned into a man
and this man had a dream and now we know
him as dr. Martin Luther King loser
still fit you never know Gabriel because
in 2017 he committed suicide at 8 years
you’ll never know Matthew Shepard
because he was brutally murdered because
of his label according to statistics in
2010 there are roughly 160,000 kids
every day that miss school and the fear
of being bullied or labeled see today
we’re not only labeling people we’re not
labeling people on their face we’re
labeling people through a phone or a
computer screen that devastates a kid’s
see I was one of the lucky ones I
eventually overcame my label and applied
it and I’ll never forget so I’m at my
friend’s house and he says four of my
friends specifically they say hey you
want to go out tonight
now I’m good just don’t feel like going
out later on that night I’m at home and
I’m watching TV and it says breaking
news for teenagers kidnap a kid lock him
up in a trunk and attempted to burn him
alive I look closer to the actual TV
screen and those kids were actually my
friends that I didn’t go out that night
immediately I dropped any kind of label
that I had on myself I was not stupid
anymore I was not slow anymore
I was not somebody who was a failure I
immediately went to my guidance
counselor that next day and I said we
need to come up with a plan I need to
join the military media she looked at me
she said Franklin I don’t think you
understand you’re graduating with a
special diploma I said that’s great what
are you talking about she’s like no no
it’s not that kind of special it’s this
kind I said what do I need to do she
said well you’re gonna have to do is
you’re gonna have to take three extra
classes after school you’re gonna have
to go work in between because that’s
what your dad basically said that you
have to do plus you have to go to night
school which I didn’t even know existed
at the time plus you have to go to night
school four days out the week then you
have to go to summer school then you
have to go to summer night school then
you have to redo the entire thing again
you’re seen in a year
oh yeah and if you fail one class you
don’t graduate on time and all these are
normal classes I’ll never forget the
night before graduation I had one more
class in night school and if I passed it
I walked and if I didn’t pass I did not
and I passed I passed and then from
there I went one month later I went to
see I created a purpose for myself and
going to the military that allowed me to
actually transform my label see we not
only need to be careful about the labels
that we apply to people we need to be
sure that the people have the power to
transform and challenge that label that
they feel empowered but we have to give
them the tools and information to
challenge the status quo to transform
the meaning of their labels that hurt
them see power is having the ability to
see people for who they will become not
[Applause] [Music]
so how many of you are special perfect
I’ll never forget walked into my first
grade class and it was amazing so I walk
up and they had this huge motivational
sign and this is exactly how it read
welcome slow learning disability
students thank you you went to that
that was the first time that a label
defined me I didn’t have any choice in
the matter at all so I just accepted it
and that’s who I am smart genius awesome
see some labels can actually empower you
idiot stupid what are you thinking
retarded
see some labels disempowered awkward
shorty you know who this is
this kid this was what he was taunted
with most of his life but now we call
him genius Elon Musk founder of Tesla
SpaceX PayPal you can’t even speak in
you’re four years old what are you a
mute you immigrant that’s what he was
taunted most of his life they even
labeled him the dopey one but now you
call him the father of physics mr.
Albert Einstein you are a nerd and this
but now you call him mr. Bill Gates
unfortunately many more people people
whose names you’ll probably never even
know are defined by their labels they’re
not even really applied to them some are
even killed because other people’s
hatred over their label hey black boy
see in the 1950s that was a very
different label that meant that label
that he couldn’t eat at the same
restaurant that he had a drink out of a
different water fountain that he was not
even allowed in most neighborhoods see
but this little boy turned into a man
and this man had a dream and now we know
him as dr. Martin Luther King loser
still fit you never know Gabriel because
in 2017 he committed suicide at 8 years
you’ll never know Matthew Shepard
because he was brutally murdered because
of his label according to statistics in
2010 there are roughly 160,000 kids
every day that miss school and the fear
of being bullied or labeled see today
we’re not only labeling people we’re not
labeling people on their face we’re
labeling people through a phone or a
computer screen that devastates a kid’s
see I was one of the lucky ones I
eventually overcame my label and applied
it and I’ll never forget so I’m at my
friend’s house and he says four of my
friends specifically they say hey you
want to go out tonight
now I’m good just don’t feel like going
out later on that night I’m at home and
I’m watching TV and it says breaking
news for teenagers kidnap a kid lock him
up in a trunk and attempted to burn him
alive I look closer to the actual TV
screen and those kids were actually my
friends that I didn’t go out that night
immediately I dropped any kind of label
that I had on myself I was not stupid
anymore I was not slow anymore
I was not somebody who was a failure I
immediately went to my guidance
counselor that next day and I said we
need to come up with a plan I need to
join the military media she looked at me
she said Franklin I don’t think you
understand you’re graduating with a
special diploma I said that’s great what
are you talking about she’s like no no
it’s not that kind of special it’s this
kind I said what do I need to do she
said well you’re gonna have to do is
you’re gonna have to take three extra
classes after school you’re gonna have
to go work in between because that’s
what your dad basically said that you
have to do plus you have to go to night
school which I didn’t even know existed
at the time plus you have to go to night
school four days out the week then you
have to go to summer school then you
have to go to summer night school then
you have to redo the entire thing again
you’re seen in a year
oh yeah and if you fail one class you
don’t graduate on time and all these are
normal classes I’ll never forget the
night before graduation I had one more
class in night school and if I passed it
I walked and if I didn’t pass I did not
and I passed I passed and then from
there I went one month later I went to
see I created a purpose for myself and
going to the military that allowed me to
actually transform my label see we not
only need to be careful about the labels
that we apply to people we need to be
sure that the people have the power to
transform and challenge that label that
they feel empowered but we have to give
them the tools and information to
challenge the status quo to transform
the meaning of their labels that hurt
them see power is having the ability to
see people for who they will become not
[Applause] [Music]
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