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1-Page Summary of We Are Displaced

Overview

Malala Yousafzai is an international activist and advocate for women. Her story is inspiring, as she was displaced from her home in Pakistan by the violence of Afghani fundamentalists the Taliban. However, despite this setback, she continued to fight for female education.

Malala’s story is one of many. She has met women and girls who have been displaced by violent conflicts, famines, and natural disasters. By sharing their stories, she helps us to understand the complex emotions that they feel. Some are filled with despair while others are defiant in the face of horrific circumstances. However, most people find a way to build new lives for themselves as they dream about brighter futures.

In this passage, you’ll learn about how people who have been displaced from their homes by war or natural disasters can still find success. You’ll also learn about a girl’s efforts to convince other girls to attend school instead of getting married at a young age. Finally, you’ll read about the persecution of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar and Bangladesh.

Big Idea #1: Malala’s happy childhood home was a paradise, but religious extremism changed everything.

Malala Yousafzai has seen paradise. It’s a place full of mountains, pine trees and running rivers in Pakistan. When she was young, Swat Valley (where she lived) was often referred to as “the Switzerland of the East.” Malala’s childhood memories are filled with happiness and playtime with friends and trips to her grandparents’ village in Shangla. Her father is an activist who loves nature and education for girls like his daughter.

Then, in 2005, a devastating earthquake hit Pakistan. It killed 73,000 people and left many more vulnerable to male religious extremists who provided aid for survivors. The men used the disaster as a pretext to preach their views on Islam and demanded that women cover their faces, denounced music and movies from the West, and said that educating girls was un-Islamic.

Islam made no sense to Malala and her family, but they were afraid of the Taliban. They knew about their connection with Islam and how they enforced extreme rules.

Malala first encountered the Taliban in person on a road trip to Shangla. Her cousin was playing music when they saw a group of men with guns at the side of the road. He told Malala’s mom to hide all his tapes and CDs, which she did. When they reached the armed men, her cousin said that there were no cassettes or CDs in their car.

The man outside the car told Malala to cover her face because she was a girl. He wanted to know why, but he had a gun and she didn’t, so she obeyed him. The men waved their car through security, but things changed in Swat after that. They got much worse.

Big Idea #2: Malala’s life in Swat may have ended, but she carried on her work just the same.

Malala was eleven when the Taliban began terrorizing her region. They shut down schools, bombed police stations, and killed those who spoke out against them. In 2008 they ordered that all girls’ schools be closed; any that stayed open would be subject to attack. The situation terrified Malala because she knew without an education her future would be bleak.

In 2009, the government ordered an evacuation of Swat to make room for a military campaign against the Taliban. It was the beginning of Malala’s and her family’s complicated lives as internally displaced people. They shuttled between dirty hotels and relatives’ homes, always on the move and worried about being a burden to others. In 2010, civilians were allowed to return to Mingora.

When the army attacked, the Taliban fled. However, they didn’t go far and continued to carry out killings in secret. Eventually, Malala became a target for them as well.