"Rollercoaster"
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Sara Ramirez |
TED Talks Live
• November 2015
Singer, songwriter and actress Sara Ramirez is a woman of many talents. Joined by Michael Pemberton on guitar, Ramirez sings of opportunity, wisdom and the highs and lows of life in this live performance of her song, "Rollercoaster."
Singer, songwriter and actress Sara Ramirez is a woman of many talents. Joined by Michael Pemberton on guitar, Ramirez sings of opportunity, wisdom and the highs and lows of life in this live performance of her song, "Rollercoaster."
This talk was presented at an official TED conference. TED's editors chose to feature it for you.
About the speakers
Broadway and TV veteran Sara Ramirez challenges stereotypes even as she beguiles audiences.
Michael Pemberton is a New York-based actor and singer/songwriter.
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It’s rare to come across a book that so beautifully encapsulates the complexities of women’s experiences of migration, colonization, Latinx culture, bisexual identity and love, but Daisy Hernandez’ powerful memoir does just that. This Cuban-Colombian-American daughter explores the many intersectionalities her life touches on and envelops us into her heartbreaking and heart-mending journey toward finding herself, her community and creating a new queer life.
Reyna Grande | Washington Square Press, 2013 | Book
What is it like for a 4-year-old girl to grow up in her grandmother’s home in Mexico while her divorced parents individually leave her and her siblings behind for a new life in the United States, otherwise referred to as "El Otro Lado" (The Other Side)? And what happens when her father comes to take them across the border, a few months before her 10th birthday, in a dangerous attempt to give them a new life with him? This gut-wrenching, harrowing and ultimately life-affirming memoir is powerful, important and a must read.
Nadia Lopez | Penguin Books, 2017 | Book
Standing on the front line of the fight to educate America’s youth, Nadia Lopez takes us through her rollercoaster journey in starting Mott Hall Bridges Academy in Brownsville, Brooklyn, one of the poorest and most dangerous neighborhoods in all of New York City. Ms. Lopez is a smart no-nonsense force to be reckoned with, full of love and respect for the dignity of her students and teachers, and they love her for it. This book is informative, educational, grounded in reality, full of hope and offers solutions to very complex and difficult problems within the educational system.
Julie Lythcott-Haims | 2015 | Book
You do not have to be a parent, a caretaker or have children to benefit from reading this book. Sometimes we must re-raise ourselves in order to become our truest selves. This insightful book reminds us that the "helicopter" parenting/caretaker trap can have detrimental effects on our children’s sense of self as they grow into adulthood. It’s possible that, in focusing so much on doing so much for their children, an entire generation of parents may have eclipsed their own kid's chances of developing a belief in their own selves, or a critical psychological trait called "self-efficacy." The alternative solutions offered in this book give hope for a future full of adults who have been allowed to develop the resilience, self-confidence and self-trust necessary for success.
Edited by Loraine Hutchins and Lani Ka'ahumanu | Riverdale Avenue Books, 2015 | Book
The "B" in the acronym LGBTQ (or LGBTQ+) stands for the bisexual community; an often misrepresented and misunderstood group silenced by biphobia, bierasure and other fear based internalizations/projections within the LGBTQ community as well as outside of it. Large portions of the bisexual community are comprised of transgender people and people of color, and while the bisexual community is the single largest group within the LGBTQ community, it is one of the most at risk populations within it (according to a 2015 published study by BinetUSA, The Bisexual Organizing Project, and the Bisexual Resource Center in partnership with The Human Rights Campaign). Thanks to this groundbreaking book a generation of previously unseen bisexuals has been given a voice, and a new genre for books on bisexuality has been created. It was also named one of Lamda Book Report’s Top 100 Queer Books of the 20th Century. Education and knowledge is power. In the spirit of empowering ourselves, each other and our LGBTQ youth, I strongly encourage reading this book to understand the nuances and history of the bisexual community.
The term bisexual will be used as an inclusive term to mean romantic and/or sexual attraction to more than one gender, and includes pansexual, fluid, omnisexual and queer self-identifications.
The term bisexual will be used as an inclusive term to mean romantic and/or sexual attraction to more than one gender, and includes pansexual, fluid, omnisexual and queer self-identifications.
| Explore
Founded by Cyndi Lauper, The True Colors Fund and TCF website is a great space to learn more about ways you can help end LGBTQ youth homelessness and create a world in which all young people can be their truest selves.
| Explore
Out of Exile is the first of what I hope to be a series of Virtual Reality Experiences to inspire empathy for what our LGTBQ youth sometimes go through when faced with the challenge of coming out to their families and loved ones. Forty percent of youth experiencing homelessness identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender, while LGBT youth represent an estimated 7 percent of the total youth population. Once they are out of their homes, LGBT youth are even more vulnerable. They are at a greater risk for victimization, unsafe sexual practices and mental health issues than non-LGBT young people experiencing homelessness. This project was built from the ground up by Nonny De La Pena and Emblematic Group, was chosen in January 2017 by Sundance Film Festival for it’s New Frontiers VR Program and was nominated for a Lumiere Award.
This talk was presented at an official TED conference. TED's editors chose to feature it for you.