Malala Yousufzai, a 14-year-old Pakistani girl, has been a symbol of hope and resistance against the Taliban since age 11 when she documented some of her experiences in a blog, but only after her attempted assassination has her voice magnified across the world.
While riding on a school bus in the Swat Valley on Oct. 9 Malala was shot for her resistance against the Taliban and her advocacy of female education. A Taliban gunman shot Malala in the head, and injured two others, after walking up to her bus and asking specifically for the young girl by name.
With no time to spare, the Taliban took credit for the attack and stated they would try to kill her again if she survived. They saw this 14-year-old girl as a threat against them as she became more and more as a symbol of everything they were against. Malala fought for female education rights because she knew the importance of it, and she fought for these rights despite threats to her life.
At the time that Malala wrote the blog at age 11, her father ran one of the last standing schools for girls against the Taliban’s orders to put an end to the education of females.  The school was forced to close, but Malala did not stop her fight.
Many across her country stood behind her as she quickly became a stronger and greater symbol for Taliban resistance through her relentless fight for female education. It was with outrage that many reacted upon hearing that Malala was shot, and it is these powerful emotions that have the power to create the biggest impact of all.
It is all from ministers to army chiefs to teachers to fellow students to those in a multitude of different countries that have felt the pain and anger because of this attack, and it is a good thing.
Yes, maybe it would have been far simpler and less painful if the Taliban never went after Malala and she could continue with her advocacy, but how long would it take to get anywhere?  Would Malala ever have even reached her dream? It is impossible to know, but one thing that is evident is that dramatic unjust situations incite action in others.  
Malala being shot is a terrible thing, but sometimes it takes terrible things for change to happen. This is why the attack can be seen instead as a turning point in Malala’s unending fight. Just as a video of a Taliban beating a girl in 2009 created a public opinion for military action, this could create action that could push the Taliban’s power back even further.
Malala is in a hospital in England and is showing progress.  She has communicated through writing and stood with assistance, but is still very ill.
Although the future is uncertain, hope is resonating throughout Malala’s society. It is a hope for a swift recovery, a hope for the right to female education and a hope to seize the Taliban’s power. This hope is carrying across borders and oceans and falling onto American soil.
We have proven throughout history that all it takes is one idea and a strong willpower that can change the course of events. All, no matter how young, can support Malala’s cause by spreading her story and vision.
Malala is proof to what we, especially the young, are capable of.