The courage shown by a young teenage girl, Malala, in the face of death, is more than just courageous. Do we as a nation ignore her effort or do we champion her cause in some way? Why and how?

          The courage shown by Malala, a young Pashtun girl from Pakistan’s Swat Valley, was more than courageous as mentioned by the prompt.  Not since Anne Frank has someone been so public about the wrong-doings of others.  Even after being shot in the face by her enemies, she still stands tall and speaks out against those that inflicted her so much pain both physically and emotionally.  As an American, we take so many things for granted.  Our battles for gender equality having been fought for the most part decades ago.  Can you or I change the way Muslims in some Middle Eastern countries repress women, or do we just ignore the injustice?  To me, the teenage girl Malala and her story is a great place for us to start the fight.  Information is a powerful tool, especially to someone somewhat educated as myself.  After reading I Am Malala, I decided to research some of the repression women face on a daily basis and how this backwards radical thinking of some countries could be changed.

            Spreading information and educating others will be the best way for us as Americans to help Malala.  Even the ‘little guy’ has a voice in this country.  A quick search for reviews on Malala’s book provided some very interesting statistics.  Marie Arana of the Washington Post starts her review by breaking down the plight of women across the globe.  She suggests that by speaking with social scientists, to end poverty in the world we must educate girls.  She goes on to say that if girls between the ages of 10 to 14 receive a decent education, a community will change.  Income will go up, infant mortality will go down, economic growth will increase, disease will decline, child labor will diminish, and those women who become mothers will educate their own children (Arana, 2013).  As an example, she cites that the World Bank hypothesized that Kenya’s illiterate girls, if educated, could boost the country’s economy by $27 billion in the course of a lifetime (Arana, 2013)!  This is astounding.  Once again, a little bit of knowledge goes a long way and Malala and her story are no different. 

            The Taliban are considered ‘radical’ idealists in their ‘jihad’ or holy war against the United States.  They do not feel we stand for anything good, period.  Our entire way of life is a slap in the face to the way of life one should live; according to their interpretation of the Koran, or Muslim holy word.  In Pakistan, where Malala lived, her father wanted nothing more than for his daughter to be treated like a boy, like an equal.  She was intelligent, well spoken, and above all, loved.  He was an educator and orator.  These things he instilled upon his daughter.  He taught her to stand up for what she believed in.  He wanted her to be her own person, a good person.  This ultimately led to her near fatal interaction with the Taliban.  These things being taught to her, things she practiced on a daily basis went beyond everything they believed.  When confronted with violence, she did not back down.  This information to me helps convince one to become involved.  It trickles down.  One person reads and learns.  They pass this information on to the next person.  They tell two others, and so on and so on. 

            She did not back down and this is why I am inspired.  This type of violence would make 99% of people in the world back down.  It would silence our voices and cause us to be thankful we were still alive.  This young girl, not even an adult, has more courage than 99% of us.  That is powerful.  She continues to travel and tell her story.  She wrote her book.  She stands at the pulpit, against all odds, staring the evil enemy in the face and saying, “I will NOT be quiet”.  I am motivated, and so should you.

            To help the world, or better yet help Malala, champion a cause against repression of women’s rights and education, step one was learning her story.  Step two was for me to reflect on the situation and educate myself.  Step three will be to continue spreading the word about Malala and her plight.  The story isn’t about a young girl getting shot in the face and living to tell her story.  The message is not that simple.  The message is a strong one that opens the eyes of the world to the injustices women and young girls face every day in countries across the globe.  She is a voice.  By standing up and telling her story, others will be empowered to do the same.  The world is listening and the more they listen, the less likely they will be to allow such atrocities to continue.  I am on board.  Are you? 

REFERENCES

Arana, M. (2013, October 11). Book review: ‘i am malala’ by malala yousafzai. Washington

Post. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/book-review-i-am

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