In Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, where girls are prohibited from receiving education beyond the sixth grade, a brave Kabul resident is risking everything to provide them with a chance to learn. Sodaba Nazhand, a 21-year-old Afghan woman whose own educational dreams were thwarted after the Taliban takeover in 2021, is running a secret school for young girls and street children.
Initially teaching in a park, Nazhand’s efforts attracted the attention of Taliban guards when she put up a sign promoting her classes. To evade suspicion, she told them the classes were for street children and focused on religious studies. But her secret school grew, drawing even the daughter of a Taliban commander who had never attended school due to her father’s hardline views. Despite her efforts, Nazhand was soon brought in for questioning by Taliban authorities who suspected foreign involvement. She managed to convince them otherwise, but continues to teach in secret, with her brother maintaining a presence at her classes to appease Taliban demands for male supervision.
Nazhand’s struggle reflects a much broader battle in Afghanistan, where the Taliban’s ban on girls’ education has persisted for over 400 days, sparking condemnation from global leaders. Despite promises made during peace negotiations with the U.S. in 2021 that women’s rights would be respected, the Taliban quickly reversed course, leaving millions of Afghan girls without access to schooling. Even within the Taliban, some leaders have expressed disagreement with the ban, but the regime’s hardline factions continue to hold sway.
Nazhand’s school now serves over 100 girls, as well as street children, offering them science and English lessons. Yet her efforts are a rare exception in a country where the Taliban’s policies systematically strip women of their rights. The regime has banned women from working in many sectors and dismantled institutions like the Ministry of Women’s Affairs. Recent violence, including a suicide bombing at an education center in Kabul, further heightens the risks for those who continue to defy Taliban rule.
Despite the dangers, Nazhand remains determined to fight for education and freedom for Afghan girls. “We shouldn’t remain the women we were 20 years ago,” she says. “We will not remain silent.”
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