The following is a clip I watched today that literally blew me away. It is of a Pakistani actress by the name of Veena Malik, who in the face of harsh criticism by cleric, Mufti Abdul Qavi, stands up for herself in a profoundly courageous and inspirational way. I don’t want to comment on the substance of their heated conversation (I’ll leave that to others). Instead, I want to focus on the courage, integrity and strength of character displayed by Ms. Malik.
This is not something I can show in the classroom because of cultural sensitivities, but I strongly urge parents to watch this video. The message that this clip sends to young girls in particular is potentially very powerful. Here is a woman who refuses to be degraded, dictated to and walked over. That is exactly the message we should be sending to our youth – be honest, courageous, proud and compassionate, and never let others manipulate, bully or belittle you.
Again I want to stipulate that I am not commenting on the substance of the disagreement between Ms. Malik and the cleric because that is not the purpose of this blog. This blog is about education, and I can think of no better education for a young impressionable child than to see a model of self-respect, courage and integrity first hand.
Thank you Ms. Malik for standing up not only for yourself but for all people who feel downtrodden and unappreciated!
Tags: Big Brother, Bullying, Cleric, Courage, Education, Indian, life, Mufti Abdul Qavi, Pakistan, Parenting, Role Model, Rolemodels, Self Respect, Veena, Veena Malik, YouTube
Topical Teaching 
April 12, 2011 at 11:40 pm |
Good to see an actress like her showing that she has courage and self-respect. And showing people that it is okay to speak out