MaKayla Stiffler February 12, 2014 English 1102 Malalas Story I said to myself, Malala, you must be brave.

You must not be afraid of anyone. You are only trying to get an education. You are not committing a crime. (Malala Yousafzai: The) Education is something that many Americans believe is a God-given right, while in most countries it is considered a luxury, especially for women. Malala Yousafzai is a young woman who considers education to be a precious gift. Yousafzai is a citizen of Pakistan, a country where women are forbidden from receiving an education. Malala made waves in the media with her fight for equal education for women and still continues to do so. She endured violent attacks as well as intense criticism just for sharing her story. While Malala has faced opposition from the citizens of her own country, to the world she has become a symbol of hope and peace (Malala). Malala first received attention in Swat, the region where she attended an all girls school, which was run by her father (Malala Yousafzai). During this time, the Taliban, which is an Islamic militia, was attacking other all girls schools in the region where Malala lived. After these attacks started occurring, Malala gave her first speech, titled, How dare the Taliban take away my basic right to education? This was the first, but certainly not the last time she would speak out openly against the Taliban. In 2009, Malala started blogging about how the Taliban was trying to deny her right to an education. For a young woman to speak out against such a violent terrorist group was absolutely unheard of, but this did not stop her.

The Taliban ruled Pakistan from 1996 until 2001. However, their views on the treatment of women and their support of terrorist acts caused them to be shunned by the community (Hayes). When the Taliban was in control, they forbade women from working outside of the home. Women were not allowed to leave the home without a male relative and they were also forbidden from going to school. Those who did not obey these Taliban orders were at risk of being publicly beaten or even shot (Hayes). Needless to say, the Taliban did not support rights or freedoms for women. Mullah Qari Yousef Ahmadi, a spokesman for the Taliban, actually spoke in an interview on the education system in Pakistan. Ahmadi said that it was not the Talibans intention to keep their people uneducated, but that God has created a place in the world for women and that does not involve education (Al-Shafey). After learning about how the Taliban views women, it is not difficult to understand why they were so upset by Malala taking a strong stance for the equal education for women. While the Taliban may not be in power today, they are still a very prevalent terrorist group in Pakistan. It was not until she was fourteen that Malala and her family found out that the Taliban had issued a death threat against her. Naturally, the family feared for their lives but they did not really believe that the Taliban would harm an innocent child. Unfortunately, they were wrong. On October 9, 2012, when she was on her way home from school, a man boarded her school bus and demanded to know which child was Malala. Many children looked towards Malala, giving her identity away and the gunman shot her in the head (Malala Yousazfzai). While the wound left Malala in critical condition, after many surgeries and a long recovery time, Malala survived. After this extremely tragic event, there were many protests and outbursts against the Taliban and

the harm they had brought on this little girl. One of the unnamed protesters was quoted saying, The whole of this country should be ashamed of themselves if they do not stand up for this girl, because she is somebodys daughter. This quote not only shows how the Talibans act only strengthened the support for Malala, but also shows that she is just a young child, somebodys daughter. This is when most of the world learned who Malala was and what she was fighting for. The fact that she almost lost her life for this fight only rallied more support and attention for her cause. Since the attack, Malala has continued to give speeches, participate in interviews, and even write her own memoir. Malala has also been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. When Jon Stewart asked her what she would do if the Taliban came for her again she said, Ill tell him how important education is, and that I even want education for your children as well, and I would tell him, thats what I want to tell you, now do what you want. (Simpson) However, the Taliban are not pursuing such a peaceful approach. When spokesman Shahidullah Shahid was asked if they would target Malala again he said, Yes, if there is any opportunity we can target, she would be on our hit list again. (Simpson) Despite this outward threat on her life, Malala is not stepping down. Pakistan, the country from where Malala originates, suffers from one of the poorest education systems. The country ranks 113 out of 120 countries in the Education Development Index (Redman). Pakistan has the worlds second highest number of children out of school, and two-thirds of Pakistans out of school children are girls. In the Swat District, where Malala was from only one in three girls are in school (Redman). Although the Taliban has such oppositional views toward womens education and have even destroyed over 150 schools between 2007 and 2009, they are not the only cause for

the outrageous lack of education (Simpson). It is sad to think that in America it is the norm for young people to attend school, but in a country like Pakistan, it is more normal that they do not attend school. The numbers dont lie; education has definitely taken a backseat in Pakistanian priorities.

Works Cited Al-Shafey, Mohammed. Taliban Spokesman on Girls Education, Al Qaeda, and Angelina Jolie. Asharq Al-Awsat [London] 26 Dec. 2013. Web. 6 Feb. 2014. Hayes, Brunner, and Beth Rowen. Who are the Taliban? Information Please Database. Web. 6 Feb. 2014. Malala. (2014, January 22). The Heroic Women of the Year 2013- Malala Yousafzai. Retrived from http://www.malala-yousafzai.com/ Malala Yousafzai. Biogrpahy. A+E Networks, 2014. Web. 6 Feb. 2014. Malala Yousafzai: The Girls Hero. Glamour. Cond Nast, n.d. Web. 6 Feb. 2014. Redman, Kelly. Education in Pakistan. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization Oct. 2009. Web. 6 Feb. 2014. Simpson, David. Malala Yousafzai Turns the Other Cheek to the Taliban. CNN 9 Oct. 2013. Web. 6 Feb. 2014.