A Few Things, Primarily Malala Yousafzai
One, I know it's been ages since I posted. I'm really awful at this blogging thing, but I am trying. This format is a little weird to me. At some point, I might just go fully on tumblr, but I'm not there yet, and for the time being, I will continue to try.
Two, I just want it to be known that I appreciate Emma Gonzalez. A lot. She's just amazing and resilient, and I want everyone to appreciate her.
Speaking of women I appreciate, let's talk about Malala Yousafzai for a sec. For anyone who's been living under a rock for five years, she's the woman who was shot at age fifteen for advocating for women's education. She won a Nobel Peace Prize at the age of seventeen and is now studying at Oxford University. She is twenty years old, and she's already changed the world.
I've been researching her lately, watching interviews and such, and... wow. Malala is only a few years older than me, but her wisdom and poise are incredible. She speaks three languages and has opened multiple schools. She was literally shot for standing up for what she believes in. If that had happened to me, I'd probably be bitter and combative. Heck, I haven't been shot and I'm already bitter and combative. But she is such a wonderful person. She is humble and kind and believes in people and nonviolence.
I've gotten harder. I've gotten colder. I've learned to not apologize for my thoughts and feelings and the space I take up. I've gotten bolder. But Malala has learned to be kind, and that takes a kind of courage I can't even imagine. American feminists are fighting right now-- poised to strike back, ready with a sharp response or anything to defend ourselves. But Malala fights in a softer way.
I think we could all use some of that. I think we could all use a little compassion. There are people who deserve our fury, but there are others who simply have not yet learned. I remember being thirteen, in my middle-school-republican-phase, and thinking I had the world figured out. I was intolerant then, judgmental. But I learned. And I think anyone can. I think our first response, when possible, should be to extend an olive branch and try to help others understand.
There is a time to fight. It's an important part of what we do as activists. But sometimes I think in our desperation to survive and win, we've lost something. We've developed hard corners and sharp edges. But this loss isn't irreparable. We can sand off our hard corners. We can learn to be like Malala Yousafzai: we can fight and be kind. We can change the world through love.
Two, I just want it to be known that I appreciate Emma Gonzalez. A lot. She's just amazing and resilient, and I want everyone to appreciate her.
Speaking of women I appreciate, let's talk about Malala Yousafzai for a sec. For anyone who's been living under a rock for five years, she's the woman who was shot at age fifteen for advocating for women's education. She won a Nobel Peace Prize at the age of seventeen and is now studying at Oxford University. She is twenty years old, and she's already changed the world.
I've been researching her lately, watching interviews and such, and... wow. Malala is only a few years older than me, but her wisdom and poise are incredible. She speaks three languages and has opened multiple schools. She was literally shot for standing up for what she believes in. If that had happened to me, I'd probably be bitter and combative. Heck, I haven't been shot and I'm already bitter and combative. But she is such a wonderful person. She is humble and kind and believes in people and nonviolence.
I've gotten harder. I've gotten colder. I've learned to not apologize for my thoughts and feelings and the space I take up. I've gotten bolder. But Malala has learned to be kind, and that takes a kind of courage I can't even imagine. American feminists are fighting right now-- poised to strike back, ready with a sharp response or anything to defend ourselves. But Malala fights in a softer way.
I think we could all use some of that. I think we could all use a little compassion. There are people who deserve our fury, but there are others who simply have not yet learned. I remember being thirteen, in my middle-school-republican-phase, and thinking I had the world figured out. I was intolerant then, judgmental. But I learned. And I think anyone can. I think our first response, when possible, should be to extend an olive branch and try to help others understand.
There is a time to fight. It's an important part of what we do as activists. But sometimes I think in our desperation to survive and win, we've lost something. We've developed hard corners and sharp edges. But this loss isn't irreparable. We can sand off our hard corners. We can learn to be like Malala Yousafzai: we can fight and be kind. We can change the world through love.
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