Malala Yousafzai
Malala Yousafzai - Proof Your Voice Can Change the World
In celebration of International Women’s Day this week, we are taking a closer look at one of Franc’s Favourite Amazing Women – Malala Yousafzai.
Malala Yousafzai is a Pakistani activist for female education and the world's youngest Nobel Prize laureate. She is also the second Pakistani to ever win a Nobel Prize.
Malala’s story started in her home country of Pakistan when the Taliban regime came to power. The Taliban started banning girls from getting an education, going out in public or even showing their faces. Malala started to speak out again the restrictions, insisting everyone deserved the right to an education. Malala made television appearances, blog posts and eventually wrote an autobiography, "I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban.” Learning her story will truly make you believe one tween or teen can really change the world.
Refusing to Be Silent
At just eleven years of age, Malala Yousafzai decided to take a stance and speak up. She fought for her right to an education, something the Taliban didn’t believe young girls deserved. Malala became very vocal online and began writing for various blogs to bring awareness to the education issue. Her activism led to a nomination for the International Children's Peace Prize in 2011. Later that year, she was awarded Pakistan's National Youth Peace Prize.
Assasination Attempt
On Tuesday, October 9, 2012, at the age of fifteen, Malala nearly paid the ultimate price for defying the Taliban. While riding the bus home from school (the school her father founded), she was shot at point-blank range directly in the head. She wasn’t expected to survive such a devastating injury.
Fighting for her Life
A portion of her skull had to be removed in order for doctors to treat the severe brain swelling. She was transferred to Birmingham, England to receive additional care. To the surprise of most, Malala made a miraculous recovery. That recovery propelled her extraordinary journey from a small valley in northern Pakistan directly to the halls of the United Nations in New York, USA.
Awards and Honors
At sixteen, Malala was recognized as a global symbol of peaceful protest. She also became the world’s youngest nominee ever for the Nobel Peace Prize. In April 2017, Malala was appointed as a U.N. Messenger of Peace to promote girls' education. She was also given honorary Canadian citizenship in April 2017.
You can read more about the amazing childhood and young adult-life of Malala in her autobiography - available at QBD Books...