10 quotes from Malala’s UN speech

Last Friday, dressed in a shawl of Benazir Bhutto, Malala Yousafzai gave a speech at the UN that the audience repeatedly interrupted with applause. Here are 10 selected quotes of this young activist:

“…do remember one thing. Malala day is not my day. Today is the day of every woman, every boy and every girl who have raised their voice for their rights… I am just one of them.”

“I raise up my voice – not so that I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard.”

“…on the 9th of October 2012, the Taliban shot me on the left side of my forehead. They shot my friends too. They thought that the bullets would silence us. But they failed. And then, out of that silence came, thousands of voices.”

“…nothing changed in my life except this: Weakness, fear and hopelessness died. Strength, power and courage was born.”

“…I am not against anyone. Neither am I here to speak in terms of personal revenge against the Taliban or any other terrorists group. I am here to speak up for the right of education of every child. I want education for the sons and the daughters of all the extremists especially the Taliban.”

“…we realise the importance of light when we see darkness. We realise the importance of our voice when we are silenced. In the same way, when we were in Swat, the north of Pakistan, we realised the importance of pens and books when we saw the guns.”

“The wise saying, “The pen is mightier than sword” was true. The extremists are afraid of books and pens. The power of education frightens them.”

“…I am focusing on women’s rights and girls’ education because they are suffering the most. There was a time when women social activists asked men to stand up for their rights. But, this time, we will do it by ourselves. 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.”

“…we must not forget that millions of people are suffering from poverty, injustice and ignorance. We must not forget that millions of children are out of schools. We must not forget that our sisters and brothers are waiting for a bright peaceful future.

So let us wage a global struggle against illiteracy, poverty and terrorism and let us pick up our books and pens. They are our most powerful weapons.”

“One child, one teacher, one pen and one book can change the world. “

Malala’s speech can be watched here: