 
 Malala Yousufzai is a teenager
from the Swat Valley of Pakistan a
region bordering Northeast Afghanistan
a place defined by high mountains green
meadows
clear waters and bloody conflict
 by the age of 12 Malala was an
activist
in 2009 she wrote a diary for the BBC
which described the atrocious deeds of
the Taliban and advocated equal
opportunities in education for women
in 2011 Malala was nominated for the
International Children's Peace Prize
and in December of that year received
Pakistan's first National Youth Peace
Prize for her efforts
 she also received death threats
Malala was repeatedly warned by the
Taliban to be silent
to immediately discontinue her public
criticisms
and to stop speaking out for the rights
of an obviously inferior gender
in the eyes and the Taliban
Malala and all women were to submit
and accept their place in the order of
things I
but Malala was not silent, on October
9th 2012
as Malala yousufzai and other girl
students were riding home from school
armed gunmen halted the vehicle and
opened fire
two other girls were seriously wounded
Malala was shot in the head at the aged
15
for the terrible crime of insisting
that girls had the right to get an
education
to better themselves, to break the
cultural shackles which in prison them
Malala Yousufzai was the enemy
 to the Pakistani Taliban her words
were as dangerous as any weapon of
warfare
because they challenged the order of
things because they insisted
that fanatical men did not deserve to be
the Masters of her world
because they were spoken by a defiant
free female voice. For this the Pakistani
Taliban declared war
on a little girl because she was
the symbol of the infidels and
obscenity
but Malala did not die 
she escaped death by inches 
and her recovery has inspired millions
across the planet
 
among the first public photos of Malala's recovery is this one
the young girl reading a book a symbol
of the very education the Taliban
wishes to deny
 schools have been renamed for her
petitions for girls education are being
circulated in her honor
thank you Malala for showing us how
powerful a single voice can be
for providing an example of real
courage
and for reminding us that the fight for
human rights
is not the responsibility of any one
person but is instead
the responsibility of us all
 
 
