In this episode of The Afghan Times Podcast, we welcome Adila Akhlaqi, a passionate young woman from Kabul, Afghanistan, who refuses to let oppression silence her dreams.
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We do not need your apologies. We need action.
Adila Akhlaqi
These powerful words come from Adila Akhlaqi, an aspiring singer, educator, and advocate for Afghan women’s rights.
Born and raised in Kabul, Adila was a 10th-grade student when the Taliban banned women from attending school. “Education means everything to me,” she says. “When they closed our schools, I felt lost—like my dreams had been taken away.”
But Adila refused to accept a life without learning. Searching for opportunities, she discovered Classroom Without Walls (CWW), an online education initiative, where she is now working towards her GED certificate to one day apply for university.
Beyond her studies, she has taken on leadership roles—serving as an assistant teacher, leading the Wings of Change (WOC) program, and managing CWW’s YouTube project. “Helping Afghan women get an education gives me purpose,” she shares. “It makes me proud to be their voice.”
Through her art, music, and global outreach, Adila tells the stories of Afghan women who are fighting for their right to learn. But she has a message for the world:
Do not forget us. We need more than words. We need action.
To her fellow Afghan women, her message is one of resilience:
“They want us to give up. They want us to disappear. But we will not. We have each other, and we will win this fight.”
From the silence of shuttered classrooms to the voices rising in protest, Adila Akhlaqi is a testament to courage, determination, and the unbreakable spirit of Afghan women.
Follow your dreams. Never give up. Our time will come.
Adila Akhlaqi
Open Mic is The Afghan Times podcast, where Afghan women share their stories in their own voices, on their own terms—open to every Afghan woman.
