Happy Friday! As I sit here typing this post this morning, my daughters are sitting in their homerooms at their respective schools ready to learn. I’m betting they are feeling a sense of privilege to be doing something so ordinary after watching He named me Malala last night. As their Mom, I felt honored to have the ability to share this special pre-screening movie with them, all because I work in this great digital industry in this great country, where women and girls and their educations have value.
This is a sponsored post on behalf of Review Wire Media for 20th Century Fox. I received information to facilitate my review as well as a promotional item to thank me for my participation.
Global Broadcast of He Named Me Malala Monday, February 29th, 8 pm EST/7 pm CST on National Geographic Channel.
About the Movie:
“HE NAMED ME MALALA is an intimate portrait of Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Malala Yousafzai, who was targeted by the Taliban and severely wounded by a gunshot when returning home on her school bus in Pakistan’s Swat Valley. The then 15-year-old was singled out, along with her father, for advocating for girls’ education, and the attack on her sparked an outcry from supporters around the world. She miraculously survived and is now a leading campaigner for girls’ education globally as co-founder of the Malala Fund.
Acclaimed documentary filmmaker Davis Guggenheim (An Inconvenient Truth, Waiting for Superman) shows us how Malala, her father Zia and her family are committed to fighting for education for all girls worldwide. The film gives us an inside glimpse into this extraordinary young girl’s life – from her close relationship with her father who inspired her love for education, to her impassioned speeches at the UN, to her everyday life with her parents and brothers.”
My Thoughts:
Watching this movie with my teen daughters was an amazing opportunity! I was moved by Malala’s love of learning, her sweet and funny interactions with her brothers, her adoration for her father and her respect for her mother. But what moved me most, was how my daughters reacted to this powerful movie. Upon learning that today over 60 million girls are out of school globally, we all shook our heads and asked how can that be? How can this type of discrimination be allowed to continue?
It was not okay for one girl from Pakistan, so she raised her voice for herself, for the girls in her village and now- for all girls around the world.
Malala said at one point in the movie that if she had not been shot by the Taliban, she would probably have 3 children and a husband by now. She is 17 years old! I cannot fathom this! My oldest daughter will turn 17 next month and she is thinking of exams and spring break with friends and in the near future; college. She certainly isn’t thinking about being a wife and a Mom.
He named me Malala takes us on a journey of a family living peacefully in a small, beautiful village in Pakistan. We learned about peace and faith and hope from Malala and then, we saw ugliness and oppression of not just women and girls, but those who stood up for them.
The documentary offers a look into the life of Malala Yousafzai both before and after the attack. She was just 15 when she, along with her father was singled out for advocating girls’ education. The shooting sparked an outcry from supporters around the world.
Here is a special movie clip of Malala with her father for you to enjoy:
My daughters and are were moved to action and have
joined our voices in support of the Malala fund and the NGC and 21st
Century Fox social initiative to raise awareness for girls’ education. We Stand #withMalala!
Want to learn more about the movie before watching it? Please visit the movie website here.
Get involved:
Leading up to the television debut, Facebook fans
can show their support by changing their profile picture using a custom animation
found on their Facebook page. On Twitter, users can contribute by tweeting with
hashtag #withMalala and be sure to follow the Malala fund! For ever profile picture change and each tweet sent with
that hashtag, 21st Century Fox will donate $1 to the Malala fund,
for a total of up to $50,000.
Free
Education Resources Available:
There
is a robust education program on National Geographic’s website for the film
that includes free education resources, discussion guides, a service learning
toolkit, books for change, a map maker interactive and more here.
If you believe in education, in girl power, in hope for the future- please join us and stand #withMalala!
Please share in comments: What
was the last movie or TV show you watched that moved you to take action?