Sarah Belal. “Being an activist in Pakistan is hard but when I men Malala my work seemed validated”. Published in Dawn, Pakistan. 30 March 2018.

1. From the perspective of Sarah Belal, Director of the Justice Project Pakistan, this blog describes what it was like for a group of activists to meet Malala. These twenty activists were all female human rights protectors were invited to meet with her. This is impressive because while all the activists had known about each other through their common works, they had never gotten the chance to be in the same room together. Each was beyond excited to meet someone whom they consider their hero and a pathfinder in an uncommon profession.

2. While this article is mainly about what is was like to meet Malala, underneath it seems like so much more. For these activists, most days are taxing and paved with difficulty. Meeting someone who has impacted the world you’re working in is important and Malala is a hero to these women. The struggle as female rights’ activist in countries like Pakistan is immense. With the need to break stereotypes surrounding the word ‘woman’ and the constant frustration of a government and people forcing inequality on women, there is nothing more vital than these activists. The best way for collective action to not only be formed, but almost more importantly, maintained, is hope. Hope is exactly what these activists got in meeting Malala.

3. https://www.dawn.com/news/1398502/being-an-activist-in-pakistan-is-hard-but-when-i-met-malala-my-work-seemed-validated