Go Big Read- Shiza Shahid

     Tonight I attended one of the Go Big Read events at Union South’s Varsity Hall. Shiza Shahid was the keynote speaker for the event and shared her motivations her book, “I Am Malala.” She is an entrepreneur and social activist from Pakistan. Throughout her lecture, Shahid hits on four lessons/intentions for her presentation. The first intention was about growth and discovery. She shared her belief that every person who wants to pursue their dreams should be able to do so. She attributes the fulfillment of her dream to her parents who were born into poor families in Pakistan. Shiza Shahid thanks them for making education their number one priority. Shiza was able to leave Pakistan and attend Stanford University thanks to her parents. She was thrilled to be offered this opportunity because at the time, Pakistan had the second highest rate of kids out of school.

     Her second lesson was about power. She repeated over and over how we have the power to change what we cannot accept. She then shares her experience of being in her dorm room as a sophomore when something happened on the news. An 11-year-old girl from a town three miles away from hers was shot in the head for speaking up about education. The young girl, Malala, expressed how the Taliban had shut down her school and her right to an education. This news report resonated with Shiza because that could’ve easily been her.

     Shiza Shahid then speaks of her third intention living a life of passion. She talked about how the video would not stop playing in her head and she felt inclined to act. She was so passionate about the belief that women should have the right to an education that she began the Malala Fund.

     She then moved onto her fourth intention about the power of innovating and creating. Shiza implemented the Malala fund, which empowers girls to raise their voices and unlock their potential to an education, just as Malala did. She worked with grassroots leader so they could fund the program in an appropriate way. Her ultimate goal is for every girl to reach her true potential, just as Shiza was given the opportunity to do.

    She ends the presentation by saying “you are strong. Remember that.” She tells us to remember that we are all Malala in some way and have the power to change the world around us if we speak up.   

     I found this event to be very empowering and informative. We hear about the Taliban in the news and its effects on the Middle East, but do not hear personal accounts very often. Witnessing someone with first-hand experience on the issue made me very appreciative of our access to education in the United States. Her talk inspired me to speak up when I feel strongly about something, just as Malala did.