parents are illiterate, these girls may not see the value in education at all. Her school, which consists of two buildings funded by CAI in 2008 and 2009, reports an enrollment of 1,005 students, but review of attendance sheets shows only 835 students attend consistently. “There are many people here who don’t let their daughters go to school, or they let them but they don’t try to understand the value of education,” explains Drukhshan. She tries to encourage them to keep learning. She wants them to think beyond themselves to the impact they will create for their future children and their villages. “I feel very frustrated,” she says. “Even if you are not responsible for yourself or your future, what will you say to your children? You are going to be a mother. At least you can improve the lives of your children so that they can be future leaders of Afghanistan.” Drukhshan is inspired by her mother, who has a basic education, and her older sister, Aalam Gul, who attends a university in Kyrgyzstan to study politics and sociology. Aalam is acutely aware of the impact her education will have on her country.
“Being a doctor is very helpful to people who can’t treat their sickness,” she says. “I want to have a foundation so I can treat people without any fees. I am going to be there in the future. I am.”
When asked what she will do when she graduates she emphatically declares, “Fight for women. This is the only thing to say. Because nothing has been done for women. Especially in this environment.”
Drukhshan’s family has faced dangerous obstacles to keep their daughter in school. She was born in 1997, when the Taliban controlled the government in Afghanistan.
Aalam’s observations about the plight of women in her country mimic the plight of women in the US in the early 1800s. The women we celebrate this month were determined to give women a voice outside the home. Now in 2016, Aalam is becoming a hero in the fight for women in Afghanistan.
“My mother said it was a terrible time. We went to Pakistan when I was 1½ years old.” She explains. “I completed nursery school there. When I came back, I was about six years old.”
“When you see women in Afghanistan, you feel very sad for them and for yourself,” she says. “The situation here is miserable and we do not have a voice, we are not listened to.”
Now 18 years old, Drukhshan has always been one of the top students in her class, excelling in math and working to inspire her struggling classmates. Often their families are not as keen on education, and they don’t receive support to continue their studies. If their
The journey facing Drukhshan and Aalam is similar to the one faced by Elizabeth Blackwell in the 1800s. Like Drukhshan’s classmates, Blackwell was expected to stay home and perform women’s
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