“Education endows people with the courage to take the right path; education is the power to differentiate between justice and injustice and then stand up for justice. Education is not mere literacy. It is the light by which we distinguish truth from falsehood, it is the consciousness of the wretchedness of slavery and the virtue of the struggle for freedom. Where does this light come from? The light comes from the memory of our struggle for freedom. The light comes from the blinded eyes of our boys and girls. The light comes from the dark dungeons where our youth languish. The light comes from the heavens our martyrs inhabit…. Education is not making one’s self available at the service of a foreign Hindu fascist aggressor against one’s own people. Education doesn’t numb a person’s conscience, but awakens it to the sufferings of people and suffering of the self. It is a shame that those schooled in the art of slavery and collaboration are teaching us the virtues of education.”
–Syed Ali Geelani