Every year, the Toronto charity Daughters for Life (DFL) honours individuals who have made significant contributions to promoting the rights of girls and women around the world. This year, at its 4th annual Gala, DFL will be celebrating Malala and presenting her with the Courage and Inspiration Award. Daughters for Life is focused on providing access to education to girls and young women in the Middle East so that they can reach their fullest potential. They share a common mission with Malala and recognize that education will open doors to better lives and hopefully to peace in areas of the world that need it the most.
I am so honoured to have been invited to the Daughters for Life Gala and I have been asked to address the attendees, among them, Malala’s parents, Tor Pekai and Ziauddin. Malala is not able to be there because she is studying and taking her end of year exams, but her parents will be accepting the award on her behalf. I am so excited to meet them and be part of this evening that honours their daughter.
I’ve been asked to speak for a few minutes about Malala and how she has impacted me and my generation. That’s a lot of things to get into what is about one page long. I have shared Malala’s story on the WE Day stage, I have declared that am #StrongerThan and that I stand #WithMalala, I have read her book and have watched He Named Me Malala several times. I have watched her speak at the UN and read news stories of her travels to Kenya and Lebanon to build and open schools and of her meetings with world leaders. I have been inspired by her passion and courage for years and my own journey as a change-maker has been happening at the same time. She is one of my greatest role-models.
So, I have about 2 minutes, one page, about 500 words to honour Malala and her parents. I’m working on it. I’m going to start with what I have learned from her:
You are not too young to understand and empathize. You are not too young to find and use your voice. You are not too young to be heard. You are not too young to make a difference.
I’d also like to talk about some of the other things that inspire me about Malala. There are a few things that always come up for me when I think about Malala that continue to inspire me on my path to creating change. What I’ve learned from her is this – we are all more than one thing – more than a moment in time or a role that we take on.
I had the opportunity to speak with Malala over Facetime a couple of years ago and I asked her a question – you have been known as the girl that was shot by the Taliban, is this how you want to be known? Her answer was, as I expected. She said she wants to be known as an activist for education and the rights of girls. With this statement, her actions, and the Nobel Peace Prize, this has proven to be true. She is so much more than a moment in time.
But she is also more than this important role that she has taken on and for me and other young activists. She is a role model and source of great inspiration. Malala will not be able to be at the Daughters For Life Gala because she has her final exams and as a girl who fights for the right to education, she values her own education. She recognizes that she must find that balance in her life between her activism and her education and this is something that we can all learn from.
I had the opportunity to see the screening of He Named Me Malala at TIFF last year and something that really struck me about her was how ‘real’ she is – we see her teasing her brothers and being teased back by them, we see struggling with science and a grade on a test that was lower than what she hoped for and we even heard her talking about challenges with friends and fitting in.
And then there are her parents – her mother Tor Pekai and her father Ziauddin, who we most often see by Malala’s side. They have raised, supported and empowered Malala. What can I possibly say to them that will really share how we are so grateful for what they have done? We have gotten to know them as we have gotten to know Malala and it is easy to see where Malala gets her values and courage from. I know that one thing is for sure, I’ll tell them “thank you for sharing Malala with us”.
For more information about Daughters for Life and the Gala, please visit their website and check them out on social media – @Daugthers4LifeF on Twitter and Daughters For Life Foundation on Facebook and the hashtag #DFLGala2016. There are still tickets available for the Gala on Wednesday May 25th that will also include awards being presented to Stephen Lewis and Michele Landsberg (Lifetime Achievement Luminary Award) and Maria Campbell (Trailblazer Luminary Award) with additional performances, speakers and an auction. The evening will be MC’d by my friend, Erin Davis from CHFI.
So I have 1 more day to prepare for what will be a very special night. I can’t wait to tell you how it all turns out.
Salina bujosa says
Hannah, I thoroughly enjoyed reading your blog post! I am also a huge fan of Malala is think she is a great role model for our generation for all the work she has done and I am sure you did a wonderful job. We need more people like yourself and Malala in this world and I will continue to follow you on your journey to making this world a better place. Great Job!