Last week, the entire nation was fixated on the verdict in the George Zimmerman trial. Seventeen year old Trayvon Martin was shot and killed during a scuffle with Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch captain.
We can all agree that being a teenager is no walk in the park. It is, for good or bad, a transformative time in life.
But while we were all bemoaning the lack of "justice" that Trayvon did not receive in his life cut short so tragically, there was another teenager who was making news of her own. If only the media had seen fit to actually recognize that it was in fact, news.
Sixteen year old Malala Yousefzai spoke at the United Nations last week. For those unfamiliar with her story, Malala, is an advocate in her native Pakistan for education for girls. A view not very popular in the Middle East. In October of 2012, while getting off a school bus, Malala was shot in the head and neck in an assignation attempt by the Taliban. She has endured additional surgeries and extensive rehabilitation since the attack.
These are two very different teen agers from opposite sides of the world, from cultures that could not be more different.
Living less than a stellar life is certainly no justification for Trayvon Martin's untimely death. However, it has been widely reported that Martin was a known burglar, with pictures of stolen jewelry on his cell phone. It was also reported that there were traces of marijuana in his backpack and in his system at the time of the shooting. Was Trayvon Martin headed down a destructive path? Could be. He was also suspended from school a few times. We could only hope that if this was the case, that a teacher, coach, or his parents would have recognized it
There stood Malala, on her sixteenth birthday, in front of the U.N. General Assembly. So petite in front of that giant crowd. Clad in a beautiful pink sari and headscarf of her native land. So poised and dignified, in a manner far beyond her years. From this tiny girl came a voice that filled the hall. She said she forgave the Talib who shot her. Quite a departure from "creepy ass cracka". Her only desire, to see children everywhere, girls and boys, get an education. She said that the Taliban thought the bullets would silence her. They almost did. But they only made her stronger, more courageous, more determined.
While Americans marched, beat up, destroyed, and even killed in the name of "justice for Trayvon", Malala Yousefzai stood before the world, including her enemies, asking, no demanding a basic human right. A right quite frankly, Trayvon Martin did not seem to care too much about.
Perhaps if America is looking for a hero for teenagers, they should look beyond a dope-smoking would be burglar.
If I had a daughter, she would look like Malala.
We can all agree that being a teenager is no walk in the park. It is, for good or bad, a transformative time in life.
But while we were all bemoaning the lack of "justice" that Trayvon did not receive in his life cut short so tragically, there was another teenager who was making news of her own. If only the media had seen fit to actually recognize that it was in fact, news.
Sixteen year old Malala Yousefzai spoke at the United Nations last week. For those unfamiliar with her story, Malala, is an advocate in her native Pakistan for education for girls. A view not very popular in the Middle East. In October of 2012, while getting off a school bus, Malala was shot in the head and neck in an assignation attempt by the Taliban. She has endured additional surgeries and extensive rehabilitation since the attack.
These are two very different teen agers from opposite sides of the world, from cultures that could not be more different.
Living less than a stellar life is certainly no justification for Trayvon Martin's untimely death. However, it has been widely reported that Martin was a known burglar, with pictures of stolen jewelry on his cell phone. It was also reported that there were traces of marijuana in his backpack and in his system at the time of the shooting. Was Trayvon Martin headed down a destructive path? Could be. He was also suspended from school a few times. We could only hope that if this was the case, that a teacher, coach, or his parents would have recognized it
There stood Malala, on her sixteenth birthday, in front of the U.N. General Assembly. So petite in front of that giant crowd. Clad in a beautiful pink sari and headscarf of her native land. So poised and dignified, in a manner far beyond her years. From this tiny girl came a voice that filled the hall. She said she forgave the Talib who shot her. Quite a departure from "creepy ass cracka". Her only desire, to see children everywhere, girls and boys, get an education. She said that the Taliban thought the bullets would silence her. They almost did. But they only made her stronger, more courageous, more determined.
While Americans marched, beat up, destroyed, and even killed in the name of "justice for Trayvon", Malala Yousefzai stood before the world, including her enemies, asking, no demanding a basic human right. A right quite frankly, Trayvon Martin did not seem to care too much about.
If I had a daughter, she would look like Malala.
I am so PROUD of these true youths (not Trayvon...), making a difference, hoping for change... This young Lady nearly paid with her life doing it. Becky, thank you for the full You Tube video.
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