INDIANAPOLIS, Sept. 19, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The youngest
Nobel Peace Prize recipient dared to stand up to the Taliban in a
fight for education and equal rights and now serves as inspiration
to others in The Power of Children: Making a Difference®
experience, which opens at The Children's Museum of Indianapolis on September 18, 2021. It is the only permanent
exhibit in the world to feature Malala
Yousafzai's story and the experiences that shaped her.
The Museum worked directly with the Yousafzai family and Malala
Fund to tell the story of how an intense desire for education was
so strong that Malala attended school in secret and used henna to
decorate her hands with mathematical equations instead of patterns.
Her dream of obtaining an education could have ended when she was
attacked by the Taliban for daring to speak up about the rights of
girls and young women to receive an education. But Malala refused
to be silenced. "Nothing changed in my life except that weakness,
fear and hopelessness died. Strength, power and courage were
born."
Malala shared a special video message about the exhibit and what
she hopes to accomplish. You can find it on YouTube at
https://youtu.be/GuKCREG8Gc0
Malala's inspiring story began long before she was shot in 2012.
Visitors discover how Malala's family treated her as an equal from
birth. She became the first girl to be listed on the family tree in
300 years and the value of education was stressed before she could
walk. Families explore a recreation of her home in the beautiful
Swat Valley of Pakistan, where the
local Taliban banned girls from attending school and she spoke out
for four years. The exhibit showcases Malala's family life, the
challenges she faced as she attempted to get an education and the
positive impact she continues to have around the world.
"I wish that people will see the power of family like Toor Pekai
(Malala's mother) and me and how we grew up in a patriarchal
family; but together, we were able to create an egalitarian
family—a family that believes in equality," said Ziauddin Yousafzai. "I hope people come here and
see this exhibit and see how one family, with great values of
equality, justice, love, respect and empathy can change their lives
at home and can also change their communities and their countries
as well. Discover what the CEO of Malala Fund has to say about it
here: https://youtu.be/BE9prLygRVk and media can receive a full
video interview with her father, Ziauddin
Yousafzai, by contacting us.
Malala has often talked about how it's vital that others realize
they're not alone. "Malala serves as a positive role model to help
those who are afraid to speak up and to help them understand that
they can create a world in which all girls can live, learn and lead
without fear," said Jennifer Pace
Robinson, president and CEO, The Children's Museum of
Indianapolis. "We hope that
sharing the stories of extraordinary children in history can
inspire children today to fight discrimination and intolerance and
make a positive difference in the world."
In this powerful exhibit, museum visitors discover the brutal
realities four amazing children experienced. Families learn about
Anne Frank and reflect upon what it
must have been like to hide in a cramped attic for two years from
Nazi soldiers during World War II. She used the power of WORDS in
her diary. Children and adults visualize how 6-year-old
Ruby Bridges, who was surrounded by
Federal Marshals as she walked through an angry mob to be the first
student to integrate her elementary school used the power of
ACTION. Visitors imagine what it was like to be Ryan White—the
teenager who contracted a deadly disease that struck fear into a
nation. He used the power of VOICE. Malala
Yousafzai is using the power of EDUCATION to empower girls
to change the world. The first letters of each of those
words—Words, Action, Voice and Education create the acronym WAVE
and demonstrate how young people can create positive waves of
change that have a powerful impact on the world.
High resolution photos are available upon request. To download
high resolution video, please click on:
https://vimeo.com/childrensmuseum/review/603289616/d475d7b03b
The Power of Children: Making a Difference® exhibit is made
possible by lead gifts from Deborah
Simon, Efroymson Family Fund, Chase, National Endowment for
the Humanities, Duke Energy Foundation, Mr. and Mrs. Jerome P. Martin, U.S. Institute of Museum and
Library Services, The Cummins Foundation, and The Anne Frank House
in Amsterdam. The addition of
Malala Yousafzai's story has been
made possible in part by a major grant from the National Endowment
for the Humanities: Democracy demands wisdom. It was also made
possible in part by the Allen Whitehill Clowes Charitable
Foundation, the Institute of Museum and Library Services, Corteva
Agriscience, Mike and Kristin
Sherman, and Lauren Sparkman.
Opening day is presented by Corteva Agriscience. The Children's
Museum of Indianapolis is proud to
partner with Riley Children's at Indiana
University Health, Old National Bank and Ice Miller LLP.
About the Malala Fund
Malala Fund is working for a world where all girls can learn and
lead. Malala Fund advocates for resources and policy changes needed
to give all girls a secondary education, invests in local education
leaders and amplifies the voices of girls fighting for change.
Learn more at malala.org
About The Children's Museum of Indianapolis
The Children's Museum of Indianapolis is a nonprofit institution
committed to creating extraordinary learning experiences across the
arts, sciences, and humanities that have the power to transform the
lives of children and families. For more information about The
Children's Museum, visit http://www.childrensmuseum.org, follow us
on Twitter @TCMIndy, Instagram@childrensmuseum,
YouTube.com/IndyTCM, and Facebook.
Media Contact
Kim Harms Robinson, The
Children's Museum of Indianapolis,
317-809-5203, kimh@childrensmuseum.org
Twitter
SOURCE The Children's Museum of Indianapolis