Malala Yousafzai Quotes & Sayings

Only learn what God says. His words are divine messages, which you are free and independent to interpret. — Malala Yousafzai

I believe in peace. I believe in mercy. — Malala Yousafzai

My mother had no education and perhaps that was the reason that she always encouraged us to go to school. 'Don't wake up like me and realise what you missed years later,' she says. She — Malala Yousafzai

Some parents do not send their children to school because they don't know its importance at all. — Malala Yousafzai

Isn't it a miracle you all happened to be here when Malala was shot?" said my father. "It is my belief God sends the solution first and the problem later," replied Dr. Javid. My — Malala Yousafzai

I am proud to be a girl, and I know that girls can change the world, — Malala Yousafzai

It is true that when there's a drone attack, those - that the - the terrorists are killed, it's true. But 500 and 5,000 more people rises against it, and more terrorism occurs, and more - more bomb blasts occurs. — Malala Yousafzai

If we want to end terrorism we need to bring quality education so we defeat the mindset of terrorism mentality and of hatred. — Malala Yousafzai

The Taliban should keep it in mind that one of us has to die one day. And if I die early, it does not matter. I will continue my campaign and I'm going back to Pakistan as soon as possible. And I want to be a politician. And, through politics, I am going to serve my mission, and I'm going to work for education for every child. — Malala Yousafzai

My mother always told me,"hide your face-people are looking at you".I would reply,"it does not matter;I am also looking at them — Malala Yousafzai

We can sit by and hope the government will help, but they won't. If I can help support one or two children and another family supports one or two, then between us we can help them all. — Malala Yousafzai

Pakistan is a peace-loving, democratic country. — Malala Yousafzai

In the future, women, rather than men, will be the ones to change the world. — Malala Yousafzai

I fully support U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in his Global Education First Initiative and the work of U.N. Special Envoy for Global Education Gordon Brown and the respectful president of the U.N. General Assembly Vuk Jeremic. I thank them for the leadership they continue to give. — Malala Yousafzai

Why should I lose character for a few metal trinkets? — Malala Yousafzai

I was excited when King's College announced a scholarship for students who are in developing countries. — Malala Yousafzai

I might have been calm, but my dear father was near tears. 'Are you all right, jani?' he said. 'Aba,' I said, trying to reassure him. 'Everybody knows they will die someday. No one can stop death. It doesn't matter if it comes from a Talib or from cancer. — Malala Yousafzai

You cannot rely on other people's support. — Malala Yousafzai

They are afraid of educated women. They are afraid of the power of knowledge. — Malala Yousafzai

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 — Malala Yousafzai

I haven't chosen any party yet because people choose parties when they get older. When it's time, I'll look, and if I can't find one to join, I'll make another party. — Malala Yousafzai

I discovered Deborah Ellis's books in the school library after my head teacher encouraged me to go beyond the school curriculum and look for books I might enjoy. — Malala Yousafzai

What I get a bit angry about is the image of women. — Malala Yousafzai

We felt like the Taliban saw us as little dolls to control, telling us what to do and how to dress. I thought if God wanted us to be like that He wouldn't have made us all different. — Malala Yousafzai

For my brothers it was easy to think about the future. They can be anything they want. But for me it was hard and for that reason I wanted to become educated and empower myself with knowledge. — Malala Yousafzai

Education is the best weapon through which we can fight poverty, ignorance and terrorism. — Malala Yousafzai

If Christians, Hindus or Jews are really our enemies, as so many say, why are we Muslims fighting with each other? — Malala Yousafzai

It's good to fight with your brothers, and it's good to tease them to give them advice. — Malala Yousafzai

We have to change this idea that women are only supposed to work in the house ... Women should go out and be what they want — Malala Yousafzai

Its as if you planted a tree and nurtured it - you have the right to sit in its shade. — Malala Yousafzai

I need to complete my homework on time. — Malala Yousafzai

I want poverty to end in tomorrow's Pakistan. I want every girl in Pakistan to go to school. — Malala Yousafzai

Terrorism will spill over if you don't speak up. — Malala Yousafzai

I also stopped wearing jewelry because I asked myself, What are these baubles which tempt me? Why should I lose my character for a few metal trinkets? — Malala Yousafzai

Back home I was considered a bookish girl because I had read eight or nine books. But when I came to the UK I met girls who had read hundreds. Now I realize I've read hardly anything at all, and I want to read all those hundreds of books. — Malala Yousafzai

I would take responsibility for the fight. (I seemed to always take the blame!) — Malala Yousafzai

For us girls that doorway was like a magical entrance to our own special world. As we skipped through, we cast off our headscarves like winds puffing away clouds to make way for the sun then ran helter-skelter up the steps. At the top of the steps was an open courtyard with doors to all the classrooms. — Malala Yousafzai

Like my father I've always been a daydreamer, and sometimes I'd imagine that on the way home a terrorist might jump out and shoot me on those steps. I wondered what I would do. Maybe I'd take off my shoes and hit him, but then I'd think if I did that there would be no difference between me and a terrorist. It would be better to plead, OK, shoot me, but first listen to me. What you are doing is wrong. I'm not against you personally, I just want every girl to go to school. — Malala Yousafzai

I have already seen death, and I know that death is supporting me in my cause of education. Death does not want to kill me. — Malala Yousafzai

Honor your daughters. They are honorable. — Malala Yousafzai

Books can capture injustices in a way that stays with you and makes you want to do something about them. That's why they are so powerful. — Malala Yousafzai

I believe in the power of the voice of women. — Malala Yousafzai

When someone tells me about Malala, the girl who was shot by the Taliban - that's my definition for her - I don't think she's me. Now I don't even feel as if I was shot. Even my life in Swat feels like a part of history or a movie I watched. Things change. God has given us a brain and a heart which tell us how to live. — Malala Yousafzai

Many girls do not go to school because of poverty. — Malala Yousafzai

I was reminded of our history lessons, in which we learned about the loot or bounty an army enjoys when a battle is won. I began to see the awards and recognition just like that. They were little jewels without much meaning. I needed to concentrate on winning the war. — Malala Yousafzai

Which we believe should be part of Pakistan not India as its population is mostly Muslim. — Malala Yousafzai

The best way to solve problems and to fight against war is through dialogue. — Malala Yousafzai

It seemed to me that everyone knows they will die one day. My feeling was nobody can stop death; it doesn't matter if it comes from a Talib or cancer. So I should do whatever I want to do. — Malala Yousafzai

Amazingly threequarters of all the IDPs were put up by the people of Mardan and the nearby town of Swabi. — Malala Yousafzai

Even we schoolchildren know that ordinary diplomats don't drive around in unmarked cars carrying Glock pistols. — Malala Yousafzai

I am not against anyone, neither am I here to speak in terms of personal revenge against the Taliban or any other terrorist group. I'm here to speak up for the right of education for every child. I want education for the sons and daughters of the Taliban and all terrorists and extremists. — Malala Yousafzai

Wearing a burqa is like walking inside a big fabric shuttlecock with only a grille to see through and on hot days it's like an oven. — Malala Yousafzai

Islam means peace. — Malala Yousafzai

If you go anywhere, even paradise, you will miss your home. — Malala Yousafzai

I do not even hate the Talib who shot me. Even if there was a gun in my hand and he stands in front of me, I would not shoot him. — Malala Yousafzai

General Zia brought in Islamic laws which reduced a woman's evidence in court to count for only half that of a man's. — Malala Yousafzai

I raise up my voice-not so I can shout but so that those without a voice can be heard ... we cannot succeed when half of us are held back. — Malala Yousafzai

We should all consider each other as human beings, and we should respect each other. — Malala Yousafzai

As I watched my brothers run up to the roof to launch their kites, I wondered how free I could ever really be. — Malala Yousafzai

Is Islam such a weak religion that it cannot tolerate a book written against it? Not my Islam! — Malala Yousafzai

I tell my story, not because its unique, but because its not, it is the story of many girls — Malala Yousafzai

We need to increase education budgets. — Malala Yousafzai

Khairey ba waley darta na kram Toora topaka woranawey wadan korona Guns of Darkness! Why would I not curse you? You turned love-filled homes into broken debris — Malala Yousafzai

If one man can destroy everything, why can't one girl change it? — Malala Yousafzai

It's quite difficult for a parent to know that their daughter is in great danger. — Malala Yousafzai

Education is the power terrorists fear most. — Malala Yousafzai

My world has changed but I have not. — Malala Yousafzai

Let us make our future now, and let us make our dreams tomorrow's reality. — Malala Yousafzai

We realize the importance of light when we see darkness. We realize the importance of our voice when we are silenced. In the same way when we were in Swat, we realized the importance of pens and books when we saw the guns. — Malala Yousafzai

Thank you to the children whose innocent words encouraged me. — Malala Yousafzai

In every country, politics is considered to be a waste of time. — Malala Yousafzai

I tell my story, not because it is unique, but because it is not. It is the story of many girls. — Malala Yousafzai

When the whole world is silent, even one voice becomes powerful. — Malala Yousafzai

I love physics because it is about truth, a world determined by principles and laws - no messing around or twisting things like in politics, particularly those in my country. — Malala Yousafzai

Sometimes I play cricket, and I play badminton. — Malala Yousafzai

Though we loved school, we hadn't realized how important education was until the Taliban tried to stop us. Going to school, reading and doing our homework wasn't just a way of passing time, it was our future. — Malala Yousafzai

If people volunteered in the same way to construct schools or roads or even clear the river of plastic wrappers, by God, Pakistan would become a paradise within a year. — Malala Yousafzai

I cannot believe how much love people have shown me. — Malala Yousafzai

I raise up my voice-not so that I can shout, but so those without a voice can be heard. — Malala Yousafzai

Sometimes Fazlullah appeared galloping in on a black horse. His men stopped health workers giving polio drops, saying the vaccinations were an American plot to make Muslim women infertile so that the people of Swat would die out. — Malala Yousafzai

I'm not becoming western; I am still following my Pashtun culture, and I'm wearing a shalvar kamiz, a dupatta on my head. — Malala Yousafzai

I only get angry at my brothers and at my father. — Malala Yousafzai

Told him that instead of focusing on eradicating terrorism through war, he should focus on eradicating it through education. — Malala Yousafzai

Once I had asked God for one or two extra inches in height, but instead he made me as tall as the sky, so high that I could not measure myself. — Malala Yousafzai

Education had been a great gift for him [Ziauddin]. He believed that lack of education was the root of all the Pakistan's problems. Ignorance allowed politicians to fool people and bad administrators to be reelected. He believed schooling should be available for all, rich and poor, boys and girls. — Malala Yousafzai

Why send a daughter to school?" the men often say. "She doesn't need an education to run a house. — Malala Yousafzai

We are human behind and this part of our human nature that we don't learn the importance of anything until it's snatched from our hands. In Pakistan, when we were stopped from going to school, and that time I realized that education is very important, and education is the power for women. And that's why the terrorists are afraid of education. They do not want women to get education because then women will become more powerful. — Malala Yousafzai

I want to have fun, but I don't quite know how. — Malala Yousafzai

It is the woman who controls the whole house ... it's her job, that's what she's supposed to do ... We have to change this idea that women are not only supposed to work in the house ... but she also has the ability to go outside and do business, to be a doctor, to be a teacher, to be an engineer, she should be allowed to have any job she likes. She should be treated equally, as men are. — Malala Yousafzai

We thought speaking in English meant you were more intelligent. We were wrong of course. It does not matter what language you choose, the important thing is the words you use to express yourself. — Malala Yousafzai

In 2008 alone, the Taliban bombed two hundred schools. Suicide bombings and targeted killings were regular occurrences. — Malala Yousafzai

My mother was always trying to think up plans for what she would do if the Taliban came. She thought of sleeping with a knife under her pillow. I said I could sneak into the toilet and call the police. My brothers and I thought of digging a tunnel. Once again I prayed for a magic wand to make the Taliban disappear. — Malala Yousafzai

[Rahmat Shah Sayel] described what was happening in Afghanistan as a 'war between two elephants' -the US and the Soviet Union- not our war, and said that we Pashtuns were 'like the grass crushed by the hooves of two fierce beasts — Malala Yousafzai

I want to make this world perfect. — Malala Yousafzai

The Pashton took revenge after twenty years and another said it was taken too soon. — Malala Yousafzai

In many countries, they do not even keep track of how girls are doing in school, or if they are there at all. If we say, 'Girls count,' then we must count girls, so we can see if we are really making progress in educating every girl. — Malala Yousafzai

Rather I receive your bullet riddled body with honor that us of your cowardliness on the battlefield. — Malala Yousafzai

I think everyone makes a mistake at least once in their life. The important thing is what you learn from it. — Malala Yousafzai

I don't know why people have divided the whole world into two groups, west and east. Education is neither eastern nor western. Education is education and it's the right of every human being. — Malala Yousafzai

We are human beings, and this is the part of our human nature, that we don't learn the importance of anything until it's snatched from our hands. — Malala Yousafzai