Examples Of Teen Activists

Teen Activists are teenagers that have a goal in mind. They want to make a difference in the world and they have challenges to overcome. Examples of these types of teens are Malala Yousafzai who advocated for girl's education by writing blogs, journals, Alex Lin, he refurbished computers and reduced the amount of E-waste in the world, and Iqbal Masih a child slave who spoke up for children labor rights. These teenagers speak up for what they think is right. Teen activists are brave, conscientious, and adaptable. They also do what they know is right and don’t give up on that. Lastly they speak up for people without a voice.
Firstly, Malala Yousafzai is from Northern Pakistan. The Taliban shut down Malala’s school in Northern Pakistan
when she was 12 years old. She spoke up for women’s rights, as well as how they should go to school. Malala’s word began to spread, therefore the Taliban had to silence her before the word could spread. A gunman came inside the school bus and shot Malala in the head from close range. The bullet had gone` through her skull, out her cheek, and hit her shoulder. Malala was taken to a hospital in England, and was treated there. Instead of the Taliban silencing Malala, they spread the world even more. Malala became famous for speaking up for women’s rights. She then started journals about how people should fight against terrorists. Malala won “Time For Kids” person of the year, and made an appearance on the late show with Jimmy Kimmel. Malala states in the YouTube “Malala speaks out”, “You must fight for peace. I used to worry about the Taliban coming to my front door. I told myself I will tell the Taliban education is important, now do what you want to me.” This quote prove Malala is conscientious because no matter what she knows she does what's right. Malala states in the YouTube “The DailyShow-Malala Yousafzai extended interview”, “My father supported me throughout the whole thing, I couldn't have done it without him.” She gave her father credit for supporting her father made an appearance on a YouTube I watched.
Furthermore, Alex Lin heard about the amount of E-waste (electronic waste) in an article he read when he was ten years old.
Electronic waste makes up to 70% of toxic waste. When Alex Lin heard this he wanted to reduce the amount of E-waste in the world. In takepart.com Alex states, “I don’t see anything uncommon of it, My friends and I have been doing this since fifth grade. It’s become part of our life style.” This quote proves Alex Lin is a teen activist because he is doing what he thinks is right and will not stop until he fixes the E-waste problem. Alex Lin held a Metech International to hold an E-waste recycling drive that collected over 21,000 pounds of electronics to have the daily E-waste and recycle it properly. However, once Lin and his team discovered that reusing computers was much more efficient than recycling, they decided to create a computer-refurbishing program. “To make this sustainable,” says Lin in takepart.com, “we worked with the Westerly School System to incorporate A+ Certified Computer Repair class’s curriculum.” He has used refurbished computers to create media centers in developing countries like Cameroon and Sri Lanka to foster computer literacy. E-waste, or electronics garbage, is the fastest growing section of the U.S. trash stream. In 2007, Americans discarded more than 112,000 computers daily, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Alex and his team tried to pass a bill to stop E-waste but The bill didn't pass. “We are disappointed; we had put in all this time and they didn’t listen to us.” says Brodie in takepart.com. Though there's no federal law banning E-waste, although 20 states have passed legislation mandating statewide E-waste recycling. The state of Rhode Island, were Alex lives, has passed a law of dumping electronics thanks to Alex Lin. This shows Alex Lin has made a difference because without him nobody would have tried to cause a federal law stopping E-waste in many states and countries. Since
Alex Lin and his friends have started in the fifth grade, they have recycled more than 300,000 pounds of E-Waste.
Altogether, Iqbal Masih was a child who spoke up for children’s labor. He started campaigning against forced labor by children to pay off debts. Iqbal was sold away when he was four years to work off a loan for about 12 U.S. dollars. In the factory they worked six days a week, 14 or so hours in rooms with poor light. They also didn't have ventilation even though it was hot. Open windows weren't aloud because it was bad for the carpets. If you made a mistake you would be fined and as well as interest was added to the loan balance. The employer also costed them for food and tools you used. When you were “paid” you didn't receive money it was subtracted from your debt. Children in the factory spent four-six months tying thousands of knots in a rug. By the time Iqbal was ten years old, the loan had grown to $200. A four by six rug like the one Iqbal was working on, has more than a million knots and takes four to six months to complete. It’s retail value is $2,000 U.S.-more than a worker could make in ten years. Iqbal states in the PDF, “I had to sit in the same position for many hours. I couldn't even move during work.” Unlike most such children, he was free at the age of ten with the help of the BLLF. Like many rug making children, after years of forward to tie knots, Iqbal was sick and looked frail. They said he was half the height he should have been at the age of ten, less than four feet tall, and weighed only 60 pounds. By the age of 13 he was killed but his message reached the hearts of many people.
In conclusion Malala Yousafzai a teen who spoke up for women’s rights; Alex Lin a teen who passed a law on electronic waste: Iqbal Masih a teen who spoke up for children’s labor all have something in common, they are teen activists. They speak up for what they think is right. Finally, they made a difference in the world.