Afghan Girls Return To School Despite Acid Attack

Nytimes.com:

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan -- One morning two months ago, Shamsia Husseini and her sister were walking through the muddy streets to the local girls school when a man pulled alongside Shamsia on a motorcycle and posed what seemed like an ordinary question.

"Are you going to school?"

Then the man pulled Shamsia's burqa from her head and sprayed her face with burning acid. Scars, jagged and discolored, spread across Shamsia's eyelids and most of her left cheek. These days, her vision goes blurry, making it hard for her to read.

Read the whole story: Nytimes.com

Comments

[Hawka]

Good for them honestly, it's these types of actions that will be the ones that win out in the end, not the crimes committed against them in turn.

[rzan1]

These girls have real courage. The Taliban are cowards.

[lacrosse]

Those animals should be caught and sent to Guantanamo

[JulieSA]

This is what the Taliban did to a brave young woman who grew up in my neighborhood and was working in Afghanistan:

http://www.michaelyon-online.com/godspeed-to-paula-lloyd.htm

They poured fuel on her and lit her on fire. She died later. That's what they do to uppity women--acid, or fire.

The girls at that school are incredibly courageous.

[SteadyOn]

Julie? do we know each other? Have you worked with Afghan children?

[JulieSA]

No. I haven't worked there. I saw this story on the internet, and then I saw her obituary in my local newspaper. Until I saw the obit, I didn't know she was from my neighborhood.

Thank you for the important and courageous work you've done.

[MsMadame]

This is utterly tragic and I am very sorry that these women are so preyed upon.

[commonsense2]

They are brave - that much is for sure.

Wonderful state of the world we are in - so advanced when in the year 2009 women are in danger of having their eyes burned out for getting an education.

[MsMadame]

Why are men so threaten by educated women? The fragile male ego...

[hopefull2008]

You want to use this story to attack all men ? ... shame on you. What about all the fathers in the world whose proudest day is the day their daughters graduate ?

[Ty90]

Yes men are threatened by educated women and women who are secure in their sexuality
and women that do a whole bunch of other things.

[MissKaren]

The fact that they are returning to school is a kind of victory over the hatred of women that led to the attack.

[tailgateshirts]

Man thats a great religion to follow

[rbspickles]

Yes, it was muslim fundamentalists who did this, I agree. But all my life I've had christians telling me that I must be subserviant to men because I am female and men are to have the power. We have been told that we must stay quiet and OBEY our fathers/husbands because Eve ate an apple! Throughout history men have been threatened by women and our strengths so they created religious dogma to keep us down. Including christianity. Men, why is that? and what is it about women that scares you so much?

[lacrosse]

What wacky religion did you belong to?
I was raised Christian and taught Eve was Adams partner. Husbands honor and obey their wives just as wives honor and obey their husbands.

[leeoakfire]

When I was being raised as a Xtian, I was also taught that women ought to be subservient to their husbands. The wacky religion the other poster belonged to was Christianity. Please don't act so ignore -ant, many Xtian sects teach this

[rbspickles]

This is where all this religious crapola has gotten us. Wars, killings, and making women property less worthy than cattle or dogs. Oh yes, what a wonderful loving "God" you all follow.

[BlackWidowPilot]

I'm not a Wahabbist, so I do not follow any such deity, citizen.

Then again the vast majority of Muslims are not Wahabbists either, so tarring all those who worship God in some form or another do not perpetrate -or condone- crimes such as this.

Leland R. Erickson

Citizen

[BlackWidowPilot]

To correct my typo:

I'm not a Wahabbist, so I do not follow any such deity, citizen.

Then again the vast majority of Muslims are not Wahabbists either, so tarring all those who worship God in some form or another who do *not* perpetrate -or condone- crimes such as this, is anything but reasonable, accurate, or just.

You are free to believe in nothing beyond what your five senses tell you, friend, but I would suggest that you employ reason, and refrain from the very sort of broad, sweeping generalizations you no doubt find so deplorable in religious fundamentalists, lest you risk becoming what you abhor.

Leland R. Erickson

Citizen

[MissKaren]

Well said.

It's not just Wahhabi Islam, though, but also a tribal overlay. Women are no more human to them than their goats. They are property to be kept stupid. For a woman to defy the male culture is an act of insurrection equivalent to insulting Allah among those Afghani hillbillies.

[ReasonIsMyReligion]

With all due respect to the above attempt to draw distinctions within the Muslim world, or within any other god-fearing religion in general...

I'm still waiting for moderate muslims -- the vast majority -- to decry islamic fundamentalist terrorism, etc. Until then, I'd hate to be a Danish cartoonist.

Any religion -- Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, Shinto, etc., etc., -- that does not preach TOLERANCE of OTHER religions is part of the problem.

Like the bumper sticker says... Coexist.

[MsMadame]

rbspickles,

You are kidding,

Have you studied the political and social history of the U.S.?

This Patriarchal, Conservative, Christian nation has its own problems, domestic violence, r#pe, sexism, women objectified in porn, child molest@tion, unequal pay, a skewed legal system, etc... All are at pandemic level and getting worst.

Yet, all the while claiming 'God bless America.' What a wonderfully loving 'God' as you would say.

Ghandi-'I love your Christ not your Christians.'

[harriscrl3]

This is such a tragic yet inspiring story. These brave young women did their part and its up to the international community to let their stories be told. One of the way to destroy these kinds of practices is to bring them out into the daylight.

Improve the status of women and you change the world. Spread the word

Carol

[slinkerwink]

That is precisely why we must win the war in Afghanistan and stabilize the Afghanistan government. Corruption's rampant in the government, and the Taliban pay off the government officials to look the other way while they move into towns and terrorize the local populace.

[MNmommy]

Bless their hearts.

True bravery.

It needs to stop now.

[RockySoldier]

all the whining malcontents here in the US can take a pretty big clue from this: THIS is what courage looks like. This isn't 'oh, there aren't any female role models on TV!' whining. These girls are facing death to go to school, to learn to read, to empower themselves, and to fight for their freedom.

this is what bravery looks like and it should humble us all.

[SteadyOn]

On behalf of the many Afghan girls I have worked with, thank you. It is humbling. These children are the most incredible examples - as are their families - of bravery, courage, intelligence, drive. I feel so blessed to have had the chance to work with them. They are my heroes.

[RockySoldier]

there are a lot of american servicemen and women who come home feeling the same way. they become our heroes for enduring what they endure.