Attending the seminar was a very eye-opening experience. Americans fail to realize how progressive we are politically. The seminar was broken into a couple of different parts. It started with a couple speakers talking about the religious and political landscape in Pakistan. The first speaker, Sidra Kind talked a lot about equality and education for girls. She was the first girl to be going for her PhD from her tribe. She detailed the rallies and protests going on in Pakistan to allow girls to be educated. She said every girls' dream is to be educated and empowered and yet they're forced to stay home. It is sad to hear that the United Nations doesn't even intervene with these issues that cause so much turmoil in Pakistan. Religious extremist groups are against education reform for equality for girls as well.
The second speaker talked more about the Mallala Phenomenon that helped start these movements. Another girl named Naveila was also recognized for her service but in different ways than Mallala. Mallala got to go to the White House and receive recognition from the United States. Naveila was less recognized because she did not get personally signaled out like Mallala did. He finally discussed the relationship between religion and violence and how the nation state of Pakistan does little to ease tension. Overall, this was a very interesting seminar and I learned a lot about cultures and problems overseas.
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