Malala Yousazai Oppression

An Education to Liberate the Oppressed As a citizen of the United States, I have been blessed with many basic human rights but, in countless other countries, only the richest and most privileged could dream of attaining many of these rights. For example, the right to an education, the twenty-sixth human right of The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. As stated in the declaration, “Everyone has the right to education” (The Universal Declaration of Human Rights). This declaration was adopted as a common standard of rights for all people in Paris on December 10, 1948. However, this right has not been honored in all countries, especially in countries where extremist groups hold a considerable amount of control over the citizens, whether it …show more content…
She was not royalty, nor was she born into nobility or even a wealthy family. Yet, even with her simple roots, Malala Yousazai would become known worldwide. Malala is the voice of a global movement for female education. In Pakistan, where she was born, women are considered inferior to their male counterparts. However, in Mingora, a village in Pakistan where Malala grew up, it was different; their views were not as strict as other parts of Pakistan. Before 2007, Mingora was still in a time of peace. However, in 2007, an eerie radio broadcast threatened Sharia-style punishments for those who defied the Muslim traditions. As stated by Toni Johnson, and Mohammed Aly Sergie, online writers for the Council on Foreign Relations, these punishments could include, “…flogging, stoning, amputation, exile, or execution” (Council on Foreign Relations). From their list of oppressive regulations, what concerned Malala was the Taliban’s edicts against female education. However, this did not extinguish her spark, she continued to go to school and advocate for females rights to education. Even during the harshest times under the Taliban’s tyranny, she never lost hope and remained a guiding light. She fought their tyrannical decrees writing “Diary of a Pakistani Schoolgirl,” a blog for BBC Urdu in which she wrote about her life under Taliban power, the importance of equal opportunity education, and her hope to continue her …show more content…
Educated people have power. The oppressors know this so they try to eliminate education. The Nazis applied this strategy to their takeover of Europe. When they invaded Poland, one of their first goals was to eliminate the Polish intelligentsia, “The Germans shot thousands of teachers, priests, and other intellectuals in mass killings in and around Warsaw” (ushmm.org, “Polish Victims”). The Nazis perceived the threat posed by those who were educated. They would be able to articulate the injustice they were facing and spread their message. For this reason, it is important to keep the masses well educated. No race, gender, or ethnicity is below the right to receive education and that is why Malala’s message is significant. I am blessed to be a citizen of a country where I have been endowed with many rights, including the right to an education. I feel a strong connection to this story because I too enjoy learning. I feel empowered by learning, because anything is possible with knowledge. If I were not able to attend school, merely because of my gender, I would feel weak. That is why I stand with Malala and her message of education for all. With an education, people can make the world a better place. No one knows if the one child who was denied an education could have been the doctor who cured cancer, or the chemist who could have discovered a renewable resource for fossil fuel. As