Malala’s courageous voice continues to speak loudly to the world. The UN Education Envoy calls on international organizations to get 61,000,000 out of school children in education by the end of 2015. You can help TODAY by signing the 1 Million Strong petition that UN Envoy Gordon Brown will deliver to the President Zardari of Pakistan on November 10th.
Malala, 14, was shot giving her all to get girls in school. Learn more about Malala’s story here.
Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) — Malala Yousufzai’s courageous blogging against the Taliban set her apart from other 14-year-old Pakistani girls. She paid the price this week as Taliban fighters pulled over her school van and shot her along with two girl classmates.
https://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2013/07/12/pkg-sweeney-story-of-malala.cnn
As I read this article this afternoon and my stomach, heart and soul all sank.
‘Half the Sky’ was aired last week by PBS. This 4-hour documentary created by the Putlizer prize winning journalists and authors of the book ‘Half the Sky’ Nicholas Kristoff and Cheryl DuWunn has raised the awareness and conversation of oppression against women and girls. The Half the Sky movement first raises the awareness of how big and horrific the level of oppressioin that still exists for so many girls and women in the work. Then they tell stories of inspiration and hope as to who and what is being done to lift this oppression and create opportunity for hundreds of millions of girls and women to live healthier meaningful lives.
And then, – young Malala, a hero in this important dialogue – is shot on her school bus by the very people who oppress her.
Earlier this year Malala was awarded Pakistan’s first national peace prize for her blogging about the Taliban’s banning of education for girls.
I read a thread of her blog and am overwhelmed by her courage and perseverance in the face of real threat and danger.
You can read her blog entries here.
In the CNN article referenced above there is a quote which gives voice to how this Taliban act of violence effects the forward progress of lifting women out of oppression. “Dark hands,” she said, tried to attack Malala’s cause, “but it will discourage many others who are fighting for light.”
We can not let this discourage all those who work to lift and empower girls and women who thirst for education and the ability to participate in the global economy in order to bring a better life for their children and themselves. This truly is a battle of ‘light vs. darkness’.
The light must continue to shine.
We often ask ourselves, “What one person can do to make a difference?” Too often, the barriers seem too high and the problems seem too big, but extraordinary change occurs when we have the courage to follow our passion. The New York Times is following the story of Amantle Montsho, a female runner from Africa, who may become the first athlete from Botswana to win an Olympic gold medal in London.
Amantle Montsho’s Legacy
Montsho now has a sponsorship with Nike and earns prize money through races worldwide, including $60,000 for winning the world championships last summer — nearly four times the annual per capita income in Botswana. She finished eighth in the 400 at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
A relative unknown outside Africa, Montsho has become an icon in her home country. A billboard showing her wielding the powder blue, black and white of her nation’s flag stands above an industrial area of steam-pipe fitters and woodworkers. Editors at Mmegi, a newspaper based in Gaborone, said they had lost count of the number of times she had appeared on their front page.
Gaborone’s track at University of Botswana Stadium now attracts young athletes from villages afar. Practices are held in the late afternoon so runners can attend after class or work. Such programs were in their infancy and conducted on a volunteer basis when Montsho was a teenager. Now, several are held throughout the country, cultivating a new generation of female runners.
When Montsho, often wearing brightly colored headbands and matching nail polish, passes through Gaborone, she occasionally takes a lap on the track. Known for her shyness and modesty, she continues to make her way through the country as if she is not famous, locals say.
“Amantle! She’s our girl,” Tshepang Olerato Tlhako, a 19-year-old in Gaborone, said. “She puts Botswana on the map and motivates us. Most of the girls think that sports are a man thing. I don’t know why. Amantle has helped.”
Sethunya Sejoe, a 20-year-old runner, was stretching under an unforgiving sun at the university track. “Amantle showed that if you have the passion, you can do it,” she said.
“I want to be like her.”
Courageous Thinking 