ENGLISH SPEECH | CHADWICK BOSEMAN: What You Fight For? (English Subtitles)

Summary

In this inspiring speech, the speaker reflects on the profound impact of Howard University, recounting personal challenges, triumphs, and a memorable encounter with Muhammad Ali. The speech emphasizes the significance of perseverance, purpose, and the lessons learned through struggle. The speaker encourages graduates to embrace their unique journeys, value their accomplishments, and continue fighting for their beliefs. Drawing from personal experiences in the entertainment industry, the speaker underscores the importance of integrity, resilience, and trusting in one's purpose as they step into the world. Howard's legacy, they conclude, is rooted in confronting challenges with pride and purpose.

Takeaways

• 🎓 The speech celebrates the significant accomplishment of graduating from Howard University, a place full of memorable and life-changing experiences.
• 🥊 A personal encounter with Muhammad Ali is shared, symbolizing the unique and magical moments that can happen at Howard.
• ⛰️ The metaphor of climbing a hill is used to represent the academic, financial, and social struggles that students have overcome to reach graduation.
• 📚 The speaker encourages graduates to appreciate their journey, including the difficulties faced along the way, and emphasizes that success is more than just grades.
• 💪 Overcoming challenges, whether academic, financial, or social, is a central theme, and the speaker reassures that these experiences have shaped the graduates’ resilience.
• 🏛️ Howard University is described as more than just a school; it's a place for activism, personal growth, and development, where students have made an impact beyond the classroom.
• 💼 The speaker reflects on career challenges, including facing stereotypes in acting, and encourages graduates to challenge the status quo and stand by their values.
• 🙏 The importance of purpose over career is emphasized, urging graduates to seek meaningful paths that align with their passions and values.
• ⚖️ The speaker references historical struggles, including protests at Howard, to illustrate the power of student activism in shaping institutions.
• ✨ The speech ends with a motivational message, encouraging graduates to embrace challenges and pursue their destiny with pride and purpose.

Q & A

What is the significance of the hilltop at Howard University?

The hilltop represents not only the physical campus but also the intellectual and spiritual journey students undergo at Howard University. It symbolizes the struggles and challenges students face in their academic and personal growth.

What key memory does the speaker share about encountering Muhammad Ali?

The speaker recalls a random day on campus when Muhammad Ali playfully engaged him by raising his fist in a guard, treating the speaker as a worthy opponent for a brief moment. This encounter left the speaker feeling light and inspired, reflecting the magical nature of Howard University.

How does the speaker relate their personal struggles during college to the challenges faced by the audience?

The speaker emphasizes that every student faces their unique struggles—whether academic, financial, or social—but these challenges are part of the climb to the top. The speaker encourages the graduates to appreciate their triumphs and the obstacles they have overcome.

What role did the speaker play in protests during their time at Howard?

During their time at Howard, the speaker participated in protests to preserve certain academic programs. They and their peers took over the A building to oppose the merging of several schools, including Fine Arts. Although the protest did not achieve its full aims, it was a formative experience in activism.

What lesson does the speaker draw from their experience of being fired from a TV show?

The speaker reflects on how questioning stereotypical portrayals of black characters led to their dismissal from a job. However, this experience taught them the importance of standing by their principles, even when it comes at a personal cost, and how it eventually guided them toward roles that better aligned with their values.

What does the speaker suggest is more important than finding a job or career after graduation?

The speaker emphasizes that finding purpose is more important than simply finding a job or career. Purpose transcends disciplines and is essential to fulfilling one’s destiny. The speaker advises the graduates to focus on the challenges that will shape them for their purpose.

What Biblical reference does the speaker use to inspire the graduates?

The speaker quotes Jeremiah 29:11: 'For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.' This is meant to reassure the graduates that their struggles are part of a divine plan leading them toward their purpose.

How does the speaker view the recent protests by Howard University students?

The speaker praises the recent student protests, noting that they demonstrate how education can be put into practice to create real change. The protests showed a love for the institution and a desire to make it better, something the speaker urges the graduates to continue doing beyond Howard.

Why does the speaker believe that facing defeat can be beneficial?

The speaker believes that sometimes defeat is necessary to activate one's true passion and purpose. Defeat can provide clarity and fuel the determination needed to overcome future challenges.

What final message does the speaker leave the graduates with?

The speaker encourages the graduates to press on with pride and purpose. They remind them that Howard's legacy is not about the money they will make but about the challenges they choose to confront and overcome.