Fresh Air Malala Yousafzai On Breaking Rules & Finding Her Way
Oct 21, 2025
Malala Yousafzai, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate and education activist, opens up about her college years at Oxford, grappling with the weight of her achievements and the trauma from her past. She candidly discusses her journey with PTSD, therapy, and her evolving views on marriage and feminism. Alongside her, TV critic David Bianculli reviews the Apple TV+ docuseries on Martin Scorsese, adding a layer of film critique to the conversation. Malala's insights on the fragility of women's rights and the impact of global policies are both poignant and urgent.
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Fame Can Cage Personal Growth
- Malala felt the Nobel Prize created an expectation to always act differently and live up to it.
- College let her test her identity and discover who she truly was away from labels.
Midnight Roof Climb At Oxford
- Malala snuck onto a roof at midnight with a stranger to try a 'cool college' experience despite 24-hour security.
- Standing by the bell tower she felt a surreal victory and tasted ordinary student life.
Unresolved Trauma Can Resurface Unexpectedly
- A college drug experience triggered suppressed memories of the Taliban attack and revealed unresolved trauma.
- The relapse into those visuals showed she had not fully processed the shooting mentally.
