Woman of the Week: Malala Yousafzai
“I don’t want to be remembered as the girl who got shot. I want to be remembered as the girl who stood up.”
By Emma Bartley
Malala was born in Mingora, Pakistan on July 12, 1997. For the first few years of her life, Mingora was a popular tourist spot because of its festivals. However, the Taliban began to infiltrate the town, and the area began to change.
Malala attended a school that her father had founded. The Taliban began attacking girls’ schools, and in September 2008, at the age of eleven, Malala gave a speech titled “How dare the Taliban take away my basic right to education?”
Then, in 2009, Malala began blogging about the Taliban denying her an education. She tried to hide her identity by blogging under a false name, but she was identified as the writer in December of 2009.
Malala continued to speak about the right of all women to an education. In 2011, Malala was nominated for the International Children’s Peace Prize and awarded Pakistan’s National Youth Peace Prize.
Malala began to receive death threats by the Taliban because of her activism. On October 9, 2012, when Malala (age 15) was riding a bus on her way home from school, a man stepped onto the bus and shot Malala in the left side of her head. Malala was quickly flown to a military hospital and then transferred to England to receive further care.
Malala received multiple surgeries in the UK but received no brain injury from the shot. In March of 2013, Malala began attending school in England.
Malala gave a speech at the United Nations on her 16th birthday in 2013. She has also written an autobiography which was published in October of 2013. Malala remains a strong advocate of the power of education.
Malala received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014. At only 17 years old, she became the youngest person to receive the prize.
Malala began a fund called The Malala Fund. The fund helps to cover expenses for schools so that girls can get an education. If you would like to visit her website or donate to her fund, here is the link.