I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai #3 - Finished

          Recently, I have finished the book I Am Malala. It has been a very eye opening story. It's hard to imagine that the basic rights of people could be exploited so much. Here in the US, we take our education for granted, constantly complaining about tests and assignments. Over in Pakistan, Malala's desire for an education and her passion for equality almost came at the price of her life.

          Malala describes in her story, how education wasn't the aspect of life being censored and controlled. While at the bazaar (market), her mother and her cousin were nearly attacked simply for not covering their faces. 

          The situation continued to worsen, and seems that this is the result of fear. The people of Pakistan was afraid of the potential repercussions of speaking against the Taliban, and speaking against the government. Malala's father was one of the few ready to step up and let his voice be heard. In fact, he even attempted to rally peoples' support against the Taliban. A poem by Martin Niemöller was referenced to:

"First they came for the communists,

and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a communist.

Then they came for the socialists, 

and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a socialist.

They they came for the trade unionists,

and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, 

and I didn't speak out because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for the Catholics,

and I didn't speak out because I was not a Catholic. 

Then they came for me,

and there was no one left to speak for me"

(Yousaifzai, 73).

          Niemöller had lived in Nazi Germany. As I mentioned in my last post, there are some similarities between the two situations. In both cases, further catastrophe could have been avoided had someone shouted out in protest. Silence is almost as worse as support, since in staying neutral, lives are lost.

          Overall, I Am Malala is definitely a book I would recommend to just about anyone. It really opens one's eyes to the current state of the world, and emphasizes just how free we really are in the US. It forces us to appreciate the small things that we currently take for granted, since in other countries, people are actually dying to achieve equality for all.