Angelina Jolie throws her support behind Malala Yousafzai

July 31, 2016

By Talia Ralph

Actress Angelina Jolie speaks ahead of a screening of her new film ‘In the Land of Blood and Honey’ at the Foreign Commonwealth Office (FCO) on May 29, 2012 in London, England.
Dan Kitwood

Angelina Jolie has thrown her support behind 14-year-old activist Malala Yousafzai, who continues to recover in the UK from a bullet wound by Taliban members in Pakistan.

Jolie, a mother of six and Goodwill Ambassador for the UN's High Commission for Refugees, wrote a piece on The Daily Beast Tuesday about discussing Malala's plight with her children. On Wednesday, she donated $50,000 to the Women in the World Foundation in Malala's honor.

"Still trying to understand, my children asked, 'Why did those men think they needed to kill Malala?' Jolie wrote. "I answered, 'because an education is a powerful thing.'"

"This violent and hateful act seems to have accomplished the opposite of its intent, as Pakistanis rally to embrace Malala’s principles and reject the tyranny of fear," Jolie wrote. "A spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban said 'let this be a lesson.' Yes. Let this be a lesson—that an education is a basic human right, a right that Pakistan’s daughters will not be denied."

Jolie, along with Daily Beast editor Tina Brown, has launched a campaign with the Women in the World Foundation to create an award which will donate funds to women like Yousafzai who work to ensure girls' education in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, the Taliban continues to target those associated with Malala, including several Pakistani news organizations, the Express Tribune reported.