A message from Malala to the class of 2020 — Assembly

We created Assembly as a platform for girls’ voices — and as we all fight to end racism and police violence against the Black community, your voices are more important than ever.

In the coming weeks and months, we’ll be publishing girls’ thoughts, experiences and work on racial justice. If you want to share your story, we would love to hear it. In the meantime, check out our list of young Black women who are using their social media platforms to speak out against racism around the world.

Creating a more just and equal world requires sustained commitment from every one of us. We need to remain focused on the work ahead. The class of 2020 is graduating in a time of great uncertainty, but also enormous potential. We have the chance to rebuild the world into the one we want to live in, where every Black life matters.

Today’s issue is all about celebrating this year’s graduates. Like many of you, the pandemic has changed a lot about my final year of university. When I pictured these last few months at Oxford, I saw myself studying in the library, cheering for my friends as they finish their exams and celebrating our achievements together after years of late nights and early mornings.

I didn’t see myself spending my final months as an Oxford student in my parents’ house, trying to study as my brothers interrupted me to the point that I had to put a sign on my bedroom door to keep them out.

“While we might not have all the usual graduation festivities, the knowledge and skills we gained will last longer than any party or ceremony. And we must rally together now to use those talents to be the leaders our world needs us to be.”

— Malala Yousafzai

It’s hard not to think about all the moments we’re missing. But we didn’t miss out on the most important thing: our education. While we might not have all the usual graduation festivities, the knowledge and skills we gained will last longer than any party or ceremony. And we must rally together now to use those talents to be the leaders our world needs us to be.

In this issue, students from India, Colombia, Japan and Mexico reflect on graduating and their plans for the future. Daisy Garcia-Castro writes about becoming the first woman in her family to graduate from university. Leaders like Ugandan conservationist Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka, Japan’s first female astronaut in space Dr. Chiaki Mukai and period poverty activist Amika George share what they wish they had known when they finished high school. And Priya Biju tells us about spending her last months as a medical student volunteering for the U.K. National Health Service (NHS).

If you are graduating this year, congratulations! Our graduations might not look like what we imagined, but we can still celebrate our achievements.