Born in 1997 to a Pakistani family, Malala's family was ready to raise her as the equivalent of any male who would grow up in their society. Her father, also a teacher, made sure that she attended school and also learned through the teachings of the world. In 2007, at the age of ten, Malala's home in the Swat Valley was occupied by Taliban forces who have banned girls from attending school since 2008. In early 2009 Malala began writing for the BBC under the pseudonym Gul Makai, where she described her life as a woman in her society and her feelings towards the school closure. The Pakistani army then entered the Swat Valley in an attempt to drive out the Taliban. During this period between May and October 2009, over one million people fled the valley to other areas of Pakistan. In 2011 the Taliban reluctantly retreated but not too far from the area. Malala and her father's school are allowed to reopen and Malala is using this time to campaign for more women to attend school despite fears of speaking out against the Taliban. At the age of fourteen Malala received Pakistan's first National Youth Peace Prize. Because of her active role in the campaign against the Taliban's ideas, Malala is targeted and subsequently shot in the head, neck and shoulder on her school bus. After being flown to the UK, Malala receives months of rehabilitation, including surgery and therapy. Within two months of her discharge from hospital Malala returned to school. Since then, the United Nations has proclaimed July 12, Malala's birthday, Malala Day, the day she works every year with girls in need of assistance. After years of working and meeting with global leaders, in 2014 Malala and a group of girls from Syria, Nigeria and Pakistan flew to Oslo where Malala became the youngest person to win the Nobel Peace Prize. Malala now attends Oxford University but still works for women's rights in all forms. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay. As a young adult woman in a society built on the actions of adult men, I have often felt helpless and almost dejected. What Malala did, at the age she did it, is something we are all capable of doing if we dedicate our minds to a cause that concerns us. While we can't necessarily relate to having to protest a war in our country, Malala's message is simply to do what's good for others. My favorite thing about Malala's work is that she doesn't dive headfirst into a concept she can't understand, but into something she's experiencing firsthand. In a way she fought for others but also for herself on the sidelines. My passion for Malala's cause is bolstered by the lengths she has gone to to fight for something that people care about every single day. He was only about twelve years old when he began writing against the Taliban. She wasn't writing about a small rebel group or something that was happening around the world, but she was touching her personally in her hometown. Malala pushes boundaries every day as she continues her fight for women around the world.