“Let us remember: One book, one pen, one child, and one teacher can change the world.”
“I speak not for myself but for those without voice… those who have fought for their rights… their right to live in peace, their right to be treated with dignity, their right to equality of opportunity, their right to be educated.”
“There should be no discrimination against languages people speak, skin color, or religion.”
“Let us make our future now, and let us make our dreams tomorrow’s reality.”
“What is interesting is the power and the impact of social media… So we must try to use social media in a good way.”
“Some girls cannot go to school because of the child labor and child trafficking.”
“It is very important to know who you are. To make decisions. To show who you are.”
“We must tell girls their voices are important.”
“When the whole world is silent, even one voice becomes powerful.”
“Dear sisters and brothers, we realize the importance of light when we see darkness.”
“There are many problems, but I think there is a solution to all these problems; it’s just one, and it’s education.”
“In many parts of the world, especially Pakistan and Afghanistan, terrorism, war and conflict stop children to go to their schools. We are really tired of these wars. Women and children are suffering.”
“The best way to solve problems and to fight against war is through dialogue.”
“I want poverty to end in tomorrow’s Pakistan. I want every girl in Pakistan to go to school.”
“Honor your daughters. They are honorable.”
“I believe the gun has no power at all.”
“It is true that when there’s a drone attack, those – that the – the terrorists are killed, it’s true. But 500 and 5,000 more people rises against it, and more terrorism occurs, and more – more bomb blasts occurs.”
“Pakistan is a peace-loving, democratic country.”
“I don’t cover my face because I want to show my identity.”
“Islam means peace.”
“Once I had asked God for one or two extra inches in height, but instead, he made me as tall as the sky, so high that I could not measure myself… By giving me this height to reach people, he has also given me great responsibilities.”
“The terrorists thought they would change my aims and stop my ambitions, but nothing changed in my life except this: weakness, fear and hopelessness died. Strength, power and courage were born.”
“If you go anywhere, even paradise, you will miss your home.”
“The important thing to note is that it is not important whether Malala was shot or not – Malala is not asking for personal favors or support. She is asking for support with girls’ education and women’s rights. So don’t support Malala, support her campaign for girls’ education and women’s rights.”
“We should all consider each other as human beings, and we should respect each other.”
“People say Malala’s voice is being sold to the world. But I see it as Malala’s voice reaching the world and resonating globally. You should think about what is behind Malala’s voice. What is she saying? I am only talking about education, women’s rights, and peace.”
“It’s good to fight with your brothers, and it’s good to tease them to give them advice.”
“All I want is an education, and I am afraid of no one.”
“I don’t want to be remembered as the girl who was shot. I want to be remembered as the girl who stood up.”
“We women are going to bring change. We are speaking up for girls’ rights, but we must not behave like men, like they have done in the past.”
“I hope that one day when I’ll go back to Pakistan, I will build a university like Harvard.”
“Any talk of me engaging in a conspiracy against Pakistan is completely baseless.”
“I want people to remember that Pakistan is my country. It is like my mother, and I love it dearly. Even if its people hate me, I will still love it.”
“In some parts of the world, students are going to school every day. It’s their normal life. But in other part of the world, we are starving for education… it’s like a precious gift. It’s like a diamond.”
“In countries other than Pakistan – I won’t necessarily call them ‘Western’ – people support me. This is because people there respect others. They don’t do this because I am a Pashtun or a Punjabi, a Pakistani, or an Iranian, they do it because of one’s words and character. This is why I am being respected and supported there.”
“I am not telling men to step away from speaking for women’s rights; rather, I am focusing on women to be independent to fight for themselves.”
“There are so many figures in our history that did not believe they could make a change, and they did.”
“In many countries, they do not even keep track of how girls are doing in school, or if they are there at all. If we say, ‘Girls count,’ then we must count girls, so we can see if we are really making progress in educating every girl.”
“Terrorism will spill over if you don’t speak up.”
“I was a girl in a land where rifles are fired in celebration of a son, while daughters are hidden away behind a curtain, their role in life simply to prepare food and give birth to children.”
“I need to complete my homework on time.”
“Books can capture injustices in a way that stays with you and makes you want to do something about them. That’s why they are so powerful.”
“I discovered Deborah Ellis’s books in the school library after my head teacher encouraged me to go beyond the school curriculum and look for books I might enjoy.”
“I believe in peace. I believe in mercy.”
“If you hit a Talib with your shoe, then there would be no difference between you and the Talib. You must not treat others with cruelty and that much harshly, you must fight others but through peace and through dialogue and through education.”
“I think life is always dangerous. Some people get afraid of it. Some people don’t go forward. But some people, if they want to achieve their goal, they have to go. They have to move… We have seen the barbaric situation of the 21st century in Swat. So why should I be afraid now?”
“I believe it’s a woman’s right to decide what she wants to wear and if a woman can go to the beach and wear nothing, then why can’t she also wear everything?”
“In India, innocent and poor children are victims of child labor.”
“I have learned so much from Nelson Mandela, and he has been my leader. He is a perpetual inspiration for me and millions of others around the world.”
“My father always says that heroism is in the Pashtun DNA.”
“On the day when I was shot, and on the next day, people raised the banners of ‘I am Malala’. They did not say ‘I am Taliban.’”
“My father always said, ‘Malala will be free as a bird.’”
“When I was born, some of our relatives came to our house and told my mother, ‘Don’t worry, next time you will have a son.’”
“When God created man and woman, he was thinking, ‘Who shall I give the power to, to give birth to the next human being?’ And God chose woman. And this is the big evidence that women are powerful.”
“Nelson Mandela is physically separated from us, but his soul and spirit will never die. He belongs to the whole world because he is an icon of equality, freedom and love, the values we need all the time everywhere.”
“Sometimes I play cricket, and I play badminton.”
“I thanked President Obama for the United States’ work in supporting education in Pakistan and Afghanistan and for Syrian refugees.”
“I don’t have a phone, but I do have an iPad.”
“I enjoy science, and I’m a very curious person. I always want to know the reason behind everything, big or small.”
“Thank you to the children whose innocent words encouraged me.”
“A doctor can only treat patients. A doctor can only help the people who are shot or who are injured. But a politician can stop people from injuries. A politician can take a step so that no person is scared tomorrow.”
“In Kenya, I met wonderful girls; girls who wanted to help their communities. I was with them in their school, listening to their dreams. They still have hope. They want to be doctor and teachers and engineers.”
“If you kill someone, it shows that you are afraid of that person.”
“I know now that what countries do at summits has the power to help girls in Pakistan, Nigeria or Afghanistan.”
“I fully support U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in his Global Education First Initiative and the work of U.N. Special Envoy for Global Education Gordon Brown and the respectful president of the U.N. General Assembly Vuk Jeremic. I thank them for the leadership they continue to give.”
“I do not even hate the Talib who shot me. Even if there was a gun in my hand and he stands in front of me, I would not shoot him.”
“Pakistanis can’t trust. They’ve seen in history that people, particularly politicians, are corrupt. And they’re misguided by people in the name of Islam. They’re told: ‘Malala is not a Muslim, she’s not in purdah, she’s working for America.’”
“Islam tells us every girl and boy should be educated. I don’t know why the Taliban have forgotten it.”
“There’s no place like home. And I do miss my home.”
“At night when I used to sleep, I was thinking all the time that shall I put a knife under my pillow.”
“I only get angry at my brothers and at my father.”
“I’m not becoming western; I am still following my Pashtun culture, and I’m wearing a shalvar kamiz, a dupatta on my head.”
“I was excited when King’s College announced a scholarship for students who are in developing countries.”
“It gets quite difficult for me when I listen to pop music. I don’t often understand the words, but when someone translates them to me, I think, ‘What is this song representing? That women are just there to be treated like objects?’”
“When I was young I used to listen to other people and to try and understand what they thought and where they were coming from. I listened and didn’t speak.”
“I say I am stronger than fear.”
“Some people only ask others to do something. I believe that, why should I wait for someone else? Why don’t I take a step and move forward.”
“When someone tells me about Malala, the girl who was shot by the Taliban – that’s my definition for her – I don’t think she’s me. Now I don’t even feel as if I was shot. Even my life in Swat feels like a part of history or a movie I watched. Things change. God has given us a brain and a heart which tell us how to live.”
“I don’t know why people have divided the whole world into two groups, west and east. Education is neither eastern nor western. Education is education and it’s the right of every human being.”
“I will get my education – if it is in home, school, or anyplace.”
“For my brothers it was easy to think about the future. They can be anything they want. But for me it was hard and for that reason I wanted to become educated and empower myself with knowledge.”
“And also I didn’t want my future to be just sitting in a room and be imprisoned in my four walls and just cooking and giving birth to children. I didn’t want to see my life in that way.”
“I have already seen death, and I know that death is supporting me in my cause of education. Death does not want to kill me.”
“Outside of my home, I look like a very obedient, very serious, very good kind of girl, but nobody knows what happens inside the house.”
“I want to make this world perfect.”
“I don’t know what would I do in future; I’ll decide it later.”
“Many girls do not go to school because of poverty.”
“Some parents do not send their children to school because they don’t know its importance at all.”
“On the day when I was shot, all of my friends’ faces were covered, except mine.”
“I realized that becoming a doctor, I can only help a small community. But by becoming a politician, I can help my whole country.”
“The real Malala is gone somewhere, and I can’t find her.”
“I haven’t chosen any party yet because people choose parties when they get older. When it’s time, I’ll look, and if I can’t find one to join, I’ll make another party.”
“Education is neither eastern nor western.”
“It’s an honor to be awarded the Liberty Medal.”
“I want to serve the people.”
“My story is the story of thousands of children from around the world. I hope it inspires others to stand up for their rights.”
“A talib fires three shots at point-blank range at three girls in a van and doesn’t kill any of them. This seems an unlikely story.”
“I distracted myself from the fear and terrorism by thinking about things like how the universe began and whether time travel is possible.”
“I cannot believe how much love people have shown me.”
“Dear sisters and brothers, I am not against anyone.”
“I want education for the sons and the daughters of all the extremists, especially the Taliban.”
“I was born a proud daughter of Pakistan, though like all Swatis I thought of myself first as a Swati and Pashtun, before Pakistani.”
“Even we schoolchildren know that ordinary diplomats don’t drive around in unmarked cars carrying Glock pistols.”
“It’s quite difficult for a parent to know that their daughter is in great danger.”
“I might be afraid of ghosts and like dragons and those things, but I’m not afraid of the Taliban.”
“There’s no one who has been living for centuries.”
“I want to have fun, but I don’t quite know how.”
“I’m often in the company of adults, so it’s nice to meet girls my age or younger.”
“I’m not a character like Rapunzel or Cinderella; my story looks like any other.”
“Girls are going to school again in Swat Valley. And that is great.”
“I am a daughter. My father is an example for me.”
“We need to increase education budgets.”
“What I get a bit angry about is the image of women.”
“If you don’t focus on the future generation, it means you are destroying your country.”
“Benazir Bhutto was an inspirational leader and an inspirational woman.”
“I will only miss school for an engagement if it is going to bring real change.”
“In Swat, there are two jobs a woman’s going to do: a teacher or a doctor. If not, then become a housewife.”
“In every country, politics is considered to be a waste of time.”
“You cannot rely on other people’s support.”
“I think I have a right to live my life the way I like.”
“I like writers who can show me worlds I know nothing about, but my favorites are those who create characters or worlds which feel realistic and familiar to me, or who can make me feel inspired.”
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