Malala Yousafzai

Young Pakistani girl who defied the Talibans in Pakistan and at the age of 17, became the youngest person to win a Nobel Peace Prize. She later became an advocate for education.

### Occupation

Former blogger for BBC Urdu and activist for female education

## Biography

Malala Yousafzai was born on July 12, 1997 in Mangora, Pakistan to proud parents Ziauddin and Toor Pekai Yousafzai. Giving birth to a girl wasn't a celebration, however her father promised he would give his daughter the same rights as a boy. He named her after Malalai of Maiwand, a famous Pashtun poet and warrior woman from southern Afghanistan. Malala was educated by her father, a poet, school owner and educational rights activist most of her childhood, he was also the one who established and administered the school she attended.

Thanks to her father's support and to her own courage, she began actively fighting back, on september 11, 2008, when she was 11 years old, her father took her to a local press club to protest the school closings and gave her first speech "How Dare The Taliban Take Away My Basic Right To Education?" Her speech was publicized throughout Pakistan.

Towards the end of 2008, the British Broadcasting Company (BBC) approached Malala's father, they were looking for someone who would blog for them what it was like to live under Taliban rule. She began to write regular entries under the pseudonym Gul Makai for BBC Urdu. She wrote a total of 35 entries from January until March.

In February 2009, she also made a television appearance where she was interviewed by Pakistani journalist and talk show host Hamid Mir on the Pakistan current events show called "Capital Talk." With her continuing television appearances, her media coverage and also her dad's public activism, it was clear that she was the BBC's young blogger. Once her identity become known worldwide, she received recognition for her activism and was nominated by Desmond Tutu for the International Children's peace prize.

On October 12, 2012, Malala was shot in the head by a Taliban gunman while she was on her way to school. She survived the bullet but had to be taken all the way to England for surgery. During and after her recovery, she stayed with her family in Birmingham where she continued her studying and activism.

## Works

In October 2013, Malala coauthored a memoir called "I Am Malala: The girl who stood up for Education and was shot by a Taliban" Reviews from The Guardian called the book "fearless", another reviewer from The Washington Post called the book "riveting" and said "It is difficult to imagine a chronicle of a war more moving, apart from perhaps the diary of Anne Frank." Entertainment Weekly rated the book B+ and said "Malala's bravely eager voice can seem a little thin here, in I Am Malala, likely thanks to her co-writer, but her powerful message remains undiluted."

A children's version of the memoir was also published titled "I Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Up for Education and Changed the World."

Malala was also the subject of a documentary that came out in 2015 titled "He Named Me Malala" directed by Davis Guggenheim. The title referenced the fact that Yousafzai had been named for the Afghan heroine Malalai, or Malala.The documentary received mixed reviews.

For her 18th birthday, on July 12, 2015, she opened a school in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, near the Syrian border for the Syrian refugees. The school offers education to girls from 14 to 18 years. It was funded by the Malala Fund.

## Awards

Malala has received many awards including a Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 when she was just 17 making her the youngest person to ever receive a Nobel Peace Prize. She was also one of TIME's "100 Most Influential People in the World" in 2013 and in the same year she received the Sakharov Prize for her bravery against the Taliban.

## Feminism

When Malala first heard of feminism, she wasn't exactly sure of what it meant. She first thought that the term was controversial and thought it meant superiority rather than equality. She later told Emma Watson in an interview that she saw feminism as a "tricky word."

However, after listening to Watson's speech in her "HeForShe" campaign, the celebrity inspired Malala to look further into the movement which later on lead her to describe herself as a feminist. During a session she said: "I just looked more into it and I realized that feminism is just another word for equality — it means equality and no one would object equality, no one should object equality and it just means that women should have equal rights as men." She also said that when people speak about women's rights, they become feminists even if they choose to embrace it or not.

## Criticism

Malala has received a lot of criticism questioning her morals and if she really believes what she claims, especially by the people in Pakistan. The people in Pakistan also say that she is minimizing and criticizing her country to get more fame. Some people say that she only says what the western countries wants to hear, others even say she plotted her own murder in order to gain international recognition.

All this international media attention also disappointed some Pakistani, they were sad about how Malala Yousafzai was standing in the spotlight, getting all this fame, while people in Pakistan have much bigger problems like innocent children experiencing something worse. Their opinion is that the money that goes to Malala’s foundation should be given to people in Pakistan who need basic health care.

She's also been critized that she has become a millionaire thanks to her book and public speeking fee, and while other people are struggling to pay for tuition she is enjoying her new life by giving nothing to others in need.

## Sources

“Malala Faces Criticism For Being A New Millionaire.” Carbonated.TV, www.carbonated.tv/news/malala-faces-criticism-for-being-a-new-millionaire.

Blumberg, Naomi. “Malala Yousafzai.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., 24 Jan. 2018, www.britannica.com/biography/Malala-Yousafzai.

“Critics - MALALA YOUSAFZAI.” Google Sites, sites.google.com/site/augustinderumeaux/cri.

Fund, The Malala. Malala's Story | Malala Fund, www.malala.org/malalas-story?utm\_expid=.rFt8T4goQvu3waedVYhuNA.0&utm\_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F.

“Who is Malala Yousafzai? Everything You Need to Know.” Childhood, Life Achievements & Timeline, www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/malala-yousafzai-5482.php.