Malala Yousafzai was born on July 12, 1997. Her parents couldn’t afford a hospital birth so Malala was born at home with the help of neighbors. She grew up in Mingora, a city in Swat Valley. As a child, she loved playing with her brothers and friends outside. Malala was considered a tomboy even though her favorite color was hot pink. Even though her life seemed fun, it wasn’t always exciting.
The Taliban were a group of people who attacked villagers and cities. When they attached the city of Mingora, Pakistan, Malala and other villagers feared for their lives. Girls were banned from going to school and from all electronics. If anyone broke these rules, they would be beaten, tortured or even killed. Malala was a blogger at the age of 11 for BBC Urdu in 2008. She talked about the life of a Pakistani girl during the Taliban Occupation of Swat. She was requested to do the blog by an author in New York and received many compliments from around the world. Malala later went on to go to Khushal Public School, a school organized by her dad.
On Oct. 9, 2012, Malala was riding on the bus home from school after taking an exam. All of a sudden, two Taliban members broke into the bus and yelled “Who is Malala!”, with a gun in their hands. They threatened to shoot everyone if someone didn’t come clean. Malala raised her hand and was shot in the shoulder. Two other girls were injured in the attack. People rushed her to the hospital where doctors did a 4 hour operation to remove the bullet from her shoulder. Malala was in a medically induced coma for many days. No one expected her to survive
After her incident, people from around the world sent her cards and letters of support. Many hospitals suggested taking her in for advanced treatment. After many days in Mingora, Malala was airlifted to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, England for further treatment. She described it as a life long journey that didn’t go as planned. Even though she could understand English, she felt like she was in a different world. The attempt on her life sparked an international outpouring of support for Malala. As she was in the hospital, she kept a journal about her experience in a new country with different people that are like her family.
After she recovered, she went on to become an activist in girls rights. In 2013, she was in Time Magazines “100 most influential people”. She won many awards in world peace and girls rights. On her 16th Birthday, she issued a speech to the U.N. which they called Malala Day. She started the Malala Fund and even wrote her own book, I Am Malala.
Malala now resides in Birmingham, England with her mother, father and two younger brothers, Khushal and Atal. She is currently studying PPE at Lady Margaret Hall, one of the constitutional colleges at the University of Oxford. She has been an inspiration to others around the world. Malala continues to be an activist and a great person to the world.
