Print-Friendly Version |
FREEDOM HERO:
IQBAL MASIH
by Kelly Frost from North Carolina
Iqbal Masih was born in Pakistan in 1982. He lived in Muridke, near Lahore. Iqbal was sold into slavery at a carpet factory at age four, and worked on looms until the age of 10, when he ran away from the factory and was eventually freed by Ehsan Ulla Khan, of the Bonded Labor Liberation Front, (BLLF). He started attending the BLLF's school.
Iqbal refused to go back to the carpet mill where he had worked because he knew his rights as a citizen. Although a child labor law existed in Pakistan, it was not enforced. Soon, speaking out against the mills, he gained international attention. Iqbal eventually started making speeches around the world, talking about child labor and his life experiences.
Soon after receiving the award, Iqbal returned to Pakistan, where he was murdered, on April 16, 1995. He was 12 years old. No one really knows who did it, but there are assumptions that the "Carpet Mafia", was responsible, because many carpet industries were losing a lot of business due to Iqbal's speeches.
Iqbal is one of my heroes because it takes a lot of courage to stand up to such powerful people, and to speak out against evil.
|
Iqbal won many awards. He was honored by the International Labor Organization in Sweden, received Reebok's 1994 Human Rights Youth Action Award, and while in the United States accepting the award, was nominated for ABC's "Person of the Week."
|
Written by
Kelly Frost from North Carolina
|
|
View a SHORT FILM about Iqbal The film 'Courage' shows how Iqbal decided to fight to end the plight of his fellow children. Iqbal's courage inspired others around the world. Children's World.org This site has information on Iqbal Masih Children's World Congress on Child Labor A global meeting of children to discuss child labor. Free the Children An organization dedicated to empowering children to become leaders who make a positive difference in their world. |
RECOMMENDED
READING | |
 Iqbal Masih and the Crusaders Against Child Slavery by Susan Kuklin |
 |  |  |  |
| Alexandra Scott raised money for cancer research through her nationwide lemonade stands. | Alicia O'Brien was the inspiration for Cherie Bennett's novel, Zink. | Ana Dodson formed Peruvian Hearts to provide Peruvian orphans an education. | Anne Frank : 'When I write, I can shake off all my cares.' |
 |  |  |  |
| Anthony D. Leanna started the 'Heavenly Hats Foundation' at the age of 10. | Ashley Rhodes-Courter is an advocate for foster children and adoption rights. | Austin Gutwein founded Hoops of Hope. | Bethany Hamilton survived a shark attack and inspired the world |
 |  |  |  |
| Brandon Keefe provides books to underfunded libraries in his hometown. | Calista M. Pierce makes and sells crafts to raise money for the Special Olympics. | Catherine Malonza saved her brother's life. | Connie O'Connell was a hero and inspiration to her family. |
 |  |  |  |
| Craig Kielburger believes kids can change the world. | Deland Chan started an environmental group at the YMCA in New York City. | Elizabeth Cline is a hero to her sister, Hallie. | Film Festival 2005 Ellie Wen created a website to help people learn to speak English. |
 |  |  |  |
| Gerson Andres Florez Perez was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize at age 16. | Gina Gallant is an inventor whose passion is protecting the environment. | Global Kids Leaders volunteer to help their schools and communities. | Hannah Taylor started the Ladybug Foundation to help the homeless in her community. |
 |  |  |  |
| Ibrahim Alex Bangura makes music that sends a message of peace and tolerance. | iEARN connects the globe through technology. | Iqbal Masih was a brave advocate for child labor laws in Pakistan. | Jason Crowe received the UN's Global Peace & Tolerance Award. |
 |  |  |  |
| Jason XV: Argonaut Maria Victoria Ferrara participated in 'Rainforests at the Crossroads' in Panama. | Jason XV: Panamanian Argonaut: Andrea Kam participated in the 'Rainforests at the Crossroads' expedition. | John Tacket is remembered as a courageous, fun-loving boy. | Joneice proved how strong a kid can be to her sister, Kia. |
 |  |  |  |
| Julia inspires her older cousin with her courage and spirited ability to overcome obstacles. | Kristianne is an amputee who encourages other young amputees with her positive approach to living. | Mattie Stepanek is a hero to people of all ages around the world. | Melinda Rose Hathaway used the Internet to encourage other children with cancer, too. |
 |  |  |  |
| Mory Sanberg makes bag lunches for the homeless people in her city. | Nickole Evans is using technology for peace. | Nicole Beal inspires her friend, Ashley, with her courage and positive outlook on life. | Nkosi Johnson , an orphan infected by HIV who spoke out on behalf of children with AIDS. |
 |  |  |  |
| Peace Children voted overwhelmingly for peace and change. | Postpessimists is working for change in the Balkans. | Ruby Bridges bravely led the way to desegregation of schools as a child. | Rudy wanted to run before he could walk. |
 |  |  |  |
| Ryan Hreljac helps build wells for clean water in Africa. | Ryan Wayne White devoted his life to educating the public about AIDS. | Sadako Sasaki inspired an international peace movement. | Samantha Marie Rowlands learned to read when others said she couldn't. |
 |  |  |  |
| SLATER is a student reporter who exudes peace and goodness everywhere she goes. | Sophie Delezio is an ambassador for 2008 World Youth Day. | The Little Rock Nine bravely fought discrimination to attend an all white high school in Little Rock, Arkansas. | Tori Degen is a two-time cancer survivor who shares her story to help others in need. |
 |  |  |  |
| Tori Degen is a cancer survivor who helps others with MAKE A WISH Foundation | Wang Yani has been painting since she was three years old. | William Kamkwamba designed and built a windmill, at the age of 14, for his family in Malawi, Africa. | XIV Argonauts broadcasted their explorations of the Channel Islands. |
 |  |  |  |
| Abraham Lincoln was a U.S president who fought for the abolition of slavery while keeping the country united. | Alexander Solzhenitsyn was a Russian novelist and dissident who won the Nobel Prize for Literature. | Angela Davis is a leader, author, and professor who has fought for decades for human rights. | Art Miki founded the National Association for Japanese Canadians to help redress Japanese rights lost during WWII. |
 |  |  |  |
| Aung San Suu Kyi has dedicated her life to freeing Burma from a repressive dictatorship and creating democracy without violence. | Bill Bradley once a pro-basketball player now is a politician who advocates reform to make America better for all. | Cesar Chavez was a tireless advocate for migrant farm workers. | Chief Joseph led the Nez Perce tribe in an effort to keep its homeland. |
 |  | |  |
| Clara Shortridge Foltz was the first woman to practice law in California. | Constance Motley became the first African-American woman judge on the largest federal trial bench in the US. | Craig Kielburger believes kids can change the world. | Crazy Horse bravely fought for the freedom of the Sioux Nation. |
 |  |  |  |
| Daniel Pearl was a Wall Street Journal reporter who reported the news with courage, integrity, and intelligence. | Deborah Sampson dressed as a man so that she could fight in America's Revolutionary War. | Declaration of Human Rights established the basis for human rights beliefs and practices all over the world. | Desmond Tutu worked to end apartheid in South Africa. |
 |  |  |  |
| Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. "I Have a Dream" was the civil rights speech that moved the world | Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Congressman John Lewis talks about how Martin Luther King, Jr. inspired him as a young man during the Civil Rights Movement | Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet is known as the 'Mandela of Cuba' because he bravely defends the rights of Cuban citizens. | Eleanor Roosevelt was a champion for freedom and devoted her life to gaining rights for others |
|  |  |  |
| Eleanor Roosevelt was a dedicated and strong voice for her husband, FDR, and for the United States. | Elizabeth Cady Stanton was a pioneer in the movement for women's rights. | Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf is a leader who is bringing change and hope to Liberia. | Emmeline Pankhurst fought tirelessly for women's suffrage, and succeeded. |
 |  |  |  |
| Fadela Amara is recognized throughout France as a champion of women's rights. | Frances Ellen Watkins was a prolific author and poet who devoted her life to speaking out against slavery. | Fred Korematsu bravely protested the Japanese-American internment. | Frederick Douglass courageously spoke out against slavery and became a trusted advisor to Abraham Lincoln. |
 |  |  |  |
| George Washington was the first President of the United States. | Harriet Tubman organized the Underground Railroad and helped lead slaves to freedom. | Inez Milholland Boissevain : a brief but spectacular life dedicated to women's suffrage. | Inge Sargent is a Burmese princess devoted to human rights for all. |
|  |  |  |
| Iqbal Masih was a brave advocate for child labor laws in Pakistan. | James Reeb risked his own life as a brave civil rights crusader. | Jane Akre & Steve Wilson won the 2001 Goldman Environmental Prize for their courageous journalism. | Janet Jagan was the first female president of Guyana and dedicated her life to building the independence of a nation. |
 |  |  |  |
| Jessie Daniel Ames worked openly and actively on behalf of racial justice. | John Adams worked as hard for peace for the United States as he did for its independence. | John Lewis has worked for civil rights for all for over 40 years. | Jose Manuel Ramos-Horta is Kerry Kennedy's hero because of his human rights work in East Timor. |
 |  |  |  |
| Jose Marti is considered the father of Cuba's battle for independence. | Joseph Ki-Zerbo works to help Africans retain control of their country's agriculture. | Joséphine Baker , popular African American dancer in France, fought for civil rights and freedom against the Nazis. | Judy Feld Carr secretly helped thousands of Jews escape from Syria. |
 |  |  |  |
| Kailash Satyarthi is determined to end child labor practices around the world. | Kofi Annan is an honored freedom and peacemaker hero. | Lyndon B. Johnson was John's great grandfather and the 36th President of the United States. | Malcolm Little known as Malcom X, was a warrior in the fight against racism. |
 |  |  |  |
| Marian Wright Edelman is one of the country's leading advocates for children. | Martin Luther King, Jr. Peaceful freedom fighter and civil rights activist | Mary Harris Jones worked to free men, women, and children from industrial slavery. | Medgar Wiley Evers worked to end racism in America |
 |  |  |  |
| Mohammad Hatta was a central figure in Indonesia's fight for independence. | Mohandas K. Gandhi used non-violence to free India from British rule. | Morris Seligman Dees is the co-founder of the Southern Poverty Law Center. | Moses led the Jews from slavery and gave them religious laws. |
 |  |  |  |
| Nellie McClung believed in equal rights for all women | Nelson Mandela is a peacemaker and a freedom hero. | Nelson Mandela is Muhammad Ali's hero because he understands what it means to fight against enormous odds | Osceola led the Seminoles in their battle for independence. |
 |  |  |  |
| Paul Revere risked his life for the freedom of the American colonies. | Qasim Amin was a forerunner in the fight for women’s liberation in the Islamic world. | Quaid-E-Azam helped to create the nation of Pakistan and obtain significant political rights for Muslims | RAWA promotes women's rights through non-violent action. |
 |  |  |  |
| Rev. James Reeb worked for equal rights for all | Reverend Peter Nguyen Van Hung works to end human trafficking of Vietnamese women workers and brides. | Robert F. Kennedy was a voice for the powerless and advocate for human rights. | Roger Nash Baldwin A pioneer in the struggle for civil justice. |
 | |  |  |
| Rosa Parks made history when she refused to sit in the back of the bus. | Ruby Bridges bravely led the way to desegregation of schools as a child. | Sir William Wallace was a freedom-fighter for the Scottish people in the early 1300s. | Sojourner Truth born into slavery, worked for the freedom of all. |
 |  |  |  |
| Susan B. Anthony led the early Women's Suffrage Movement. | Susie King Taylor was a pioneer in the struggle for African American women's rights. | The Dalai Lama is the religious leader of Tibet and an emblem of Tibet's hopes for freedom. | The Greensboro Four protested segregation with a sit-in at Woolworth's lunch counter. |
|  |  |  |
| The Little Rock Nine bravely fought discrimination to attend an all white high school in Little Rock, Arkansas. | Thomas Jefferson helped the American Colonies achieve independence from Britain. | Thurgood Marshall was the first African-American to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court. | Tiananmen Square discuss freedom and democracy at Tian An Min Square. |
 |  |  |  |
| Vaclav Havel despite censorship, wrote plays that helped keep the hope of freedom alive.... | Varian Fry helped thousands of refugees escape from France during WWII. | W.E.B. Dubois was a leading 19th century writer and scholar. | William Wallace was a late 13th century freedom fighter for Scotland and Ireland |
 | |||
| Winston Churchill was one of the first to recognize and warn others of Hitler's danger to freedom and human rights. |
Last changed on:7/20/2007 12:02:15 PM
|
