Bahara Rustam, 13, took her last class at Bibi Razia School in Kabul on Dec. 11 knowing it was the end of her education. Under Taliban rule, she is unlikely to step foot in a classroom again.
In September 2021, a month after U.S. and NATO troops withdrew from Afghanistan following two decades of war, the Taliban announced that girls were barred from studying beyond sixth grade.
They extended this education ban to universities in December 2022. The Taliban have defied global condemnation and warnings that the restrictions will make it almost impossible for them to gain recognition as the country’s legitimate rulers.
Last week, U.N. special envoy Roza Otunbayeva expressed concern that a generation of Afghan girls is falling behind with each day that passes.
The more I look at it the more I see that conservatism is based on what’s best for me, not what’s best for us.
It isn’t even that. It’s based on a stupid and short sighted version of “what’s best for me.”
It ignores the significant improvements progress and advancement has on one’s own life in order to espouse denying opportunities to others whose efforts and successes would largely end up improving one’s own life.
It’s “what’s best for me today” at the cost of “what’s best for me and everyone else tomorrow.”