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So, my mother's a pediatrician, and when I was young,
我妈妈是儿科医生，我小时候，
she'd tell the craziest stories that combined science with her overactive imagination.
她会讲非常疯狂的故事，结合了科学和她过度活跃的想象力。
One of the stories she told was that if you eat a lot of salt,
其中一个故事是如果你吃很多盐，
all of the blood rushes up your legs, through your body, and shoots out the top of your head, killing you instantly.
所有的血液会从你的脚向上冲，通过你的身体，从你的头顶喷出，让你立即死亡。
She called it "high blood pressure."
她称之为“高血压”。
This was my first experience with science fiction, and I loved it.
这是我对科幻小说的初体验，我很喜欢。
So when I started to write my own science fiction and fantasy, I was surprised that it was considered un-African.
所以当我开始写我自己的科幻及奇幻小说时，我很意外它们被认为是“不非洲的”。
So naturally, I asked, what is African? And this is what I know so far: Africa is important.
很自然的，我会问，什么才算非洲的？目前我所知道的如下：非洲是重要的。
Africa is the future. It is, though. And Africa is a serious place where only serious things happen.
非洲是未来。尽管，它的确是。并且非洲是个严肃的地方，所有严肃的事都会在那里发生。
So when I present my work somewhere, someone will always ask,
所以当我在某处展示作品，总有人问：
"What's so important about it? How does it deal with real African issues like war, poverty, devastation or AIDS?"
“它有什么重要性？它如何处理真正的非洲议题，如战争、贫穷、毁坏或艾滋病？”
And it doesn't. My work is about Nairobi pop bands that want to go to space or about seven-foot-tall robots that fall in love.
我的作品不处理这些。我的作品内容是关于内罗毕流行乐团想要上太空，或是关于七英尺高的机器人陷入爱河。
It's nothing incredibly important. It's just fun, fierce and frivolous, as frivolous as bubble gum -- "AfroBubbleGum."
它不是什么特别重要的东西。它就是好玩、激烈、轻浮的，和泡泡糖一样轻浮--“非洲泡泡糖”。
So I'm not saying that agenda art isn't important;
我并不是说应办事项的艺术不重要；
I'm the chairperson of a charity that deals with films and theaters that write about HIV and radicalization and female genital mutilation.
我是一间慈善机构的主席，这机构处理影片和剧院创作的有关艾滋病、激进化和女性割礼等议题的剧本。
It's vital and important art, but it cannot be the only art that comes out of the continent.
那是必要且重要的艺术，但非洲大陆不能只产出这种艺术。
We have to tell more stories that are vibrant. The danger of the single story is still being realized.
我们得要说更多的故事，充满生气的故事。单一故事的危险性，还正在发生中。
And maybe it's because of the funding. A lot of art is still dependent on developmental aid.
也许资金是原因。许多艺术还仰赖发展的救援。
So art becomes a tool for agenda.
所以艺术成了应办事项的工具。
Or maybe it's because we've only seen one image of ourselves for so long that that's all we know how to create.
也可能是因为长久以来我们只看见自己的形象，以致于我们只会创造这样的形象。
Whatever the reason, we need a new way, and AfroBubbleGum is one approach.
不论是什么理由，我们都需要新方法。而非洲泡泡糖是一种方式。
It's the advocacy of art for art's sake.
它是为艺术而做的艺术拥护。
It's the advocacy of art that is not policy-driven or agenda-driven or based on education,
它不是被政治驱使的艺术拥护，不由应办事项所驱使，也不以教育为基础，
just for the sake of imagination: AfroBubbleGum art.
单纯就是为了想象而做：非洲泡泡糖艺术。
And we can't all be AfroBubbleGumists. We have to judge our work for its potential poverty porn pitfalls.
我们不能全都当非洲泡泡糖艺术家。我们得要判断我们的作品，避免陷入贫困色情的陷阱。
We have to have tests that are similar to the Bechdel test, and ask questions like:
我们得要有类似“贝克德尔测验”的测验，问类似这样的问题：
Are two or more Africans in this piece of fiction healthy?
这部小说中，有两个以上的健全非洲人吗？
Are those same Africans financially stable and not in need of saving?
这些健全的非洲人，财务稳定且不需被救助吗？
Are they having fun and enjoying life?
他们过得开心、能享受人生吗？
And if we can answer yes to two or more of these questions, then surely we're AfroBubbleGumists.
如果有两个以上的答案是肯定的，我们当然就是非洲泡泡糖艺术家。
And fun is political, because imagine if we have images of Africans
乐趣是政治的，因为，想象一下，如果我们的非洲人形象
who were vibrant and loving and thriving and living a beautiful, vibrant life.
是充满活力的、慈爱的、茁壮成长的、过着美好、充满活力的生活。
What would we think of ourselves then? Would we think that maybe we're worthy of more happiness?
那么我们会如何看待我们自己？也许会觉得我们值得更快乐？
Would we think of our shared humanity through our shared joy?
我们会透过共同的喜悦来思考我们共同的人性吗？
I think of these things when I create.
当我创作时，我会想这些事。
I think of the people and the places that give me immeasurable joy, and I work to represent them.
我会想着给我无限喜悦的人与地点，我会努力来代表他们。
And that's why I write stories about futuristic girls that risk everything to save plants
那就是为什么我写的故事是关于未来的女孩愿赌上一切去拯救植物，
or to race camels or even just to dance, to honor fun, because my world is mostly happy.
或是去赛骆驼，或甚至只是跳舞，向乐趣致敬，因为我的世界大部分是快乐的。
And I know happiness is a privilege in this current splintered world where remaining hopeful requires diligence.
我知道在目前这个分裂的世界里，快乐是项特权，得要勤勉才能保有希望。
But maybe, if you join me in creating, curating and commissioning more AfroBubbleGum art,
但也许，如果你们能加入我，创作、策展、委托更多的非洲泡泡糖艺术，
there might be hope for a different view of the world,
也许有希望达成不同的世界观，
a happy Africa view where children are strangely traumatized by their mother's dark sense of humor,
一个快乐的非洲观，那里的孩童因为母亲的黑色幽默而受到奇特的心理创伤，
but also they're claiming fun, fierce and frivolous art in the name of all things unseriously African.
但同时他们也主张好玩、激烈、轻浮的艺术，以所有不严肃的非洲事物为名。
Because we're AfroBubbleGumists and there's so many more of us than you can imagine. Thank you so much.
因为我们是非洲泡泡糖艺术家，我们的人数众多，超出你们的想象。非常谢谢。
