ABOUT NILA
Born in Afghanistan, Nila Ibrahimi is a 17-year-old women’s and girls’ rights activist, high school student, and singer currently residing in Vancouver, Canada. Affected deeply by the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021, she became a refugee in Pakistan, where she faced the challenges of being denied access to education for almost a year.
Despite these hardships, Nila’s passion for advocating for Afghan women and girls never wavered. In 2023, she co-founded HerStory with her brother, creating a platform dedicated to supporting Afghan women and amplifying their voices.
Nila’s journey as an activist and changemaker has earned her recognition and admiration at local and international levels.
Nila's Story
Nila was a 9th-grade student at the progressive Marefat High School in Kabul, Afghanistan. A top student, she was involved in various extracurricular activities, including being an active member of the Sound of Afghanistan (SA)—a music band that sang for peace, human rights, gender equality, and democracy.
Standing for Her Right at the Age of 14:
In March 2021, the Kabul Education Directorate issued a discriminatory order banning girls over the age of 12 from singing in public. Facing such discrimination for the first time, Nila, who was 14 at the time, decided to raise her voice against the order. She recorded herself singing a popular song encouraging girls to go to school and get an education, concluding with, "This is my voice and the protesting voice of all schoolgirls against the discriminatory decision of the Kabul Education Directorate. Eliminating our voice is eliminating us. We stand in unison against this decision." Murtaza Ibrahimi, Nila's brother, who had a significant number of followers on social media, posted the video on his pages. Joining the widespread #IAmMySong movement, the video quickly went viral and attracted the attention of international media outlets. Soon after, the order was reversed.
The Taliban's Takeover of Afghanistan and Settling in Canada
On August 15, 2021, while Nila was taking her mid-year school exams, the Taliban regained control of Kabul. This event marked the end of two decades of progressive opportunities for women in Afghanistan's major cities. Due to their activism and their identity as part of the Hazara ethnic group, Nila’s family quickly found themselves targeted by the Taliban. With no options for air travel, they were forced to undertake a dangerous land journey to Pakistan. This fraught escape involved navigating through numerous Taliban checkpoints, where they narrowly avoided detection. Initially living in Quetta and Karachi, Nila, and her family lived in a state of constant uncertainty. Eventually, they moved to Islamabad with support from the 30 Birds Foundation, an organization that helped over 450 Afghans flee Kabul. After a year of moving between safe houses, Nila and her family were finally able to relocate to Saskatoon, Canada, where they sought safety and a fresh start. After living for almost a year in Saskatoon, Nila now resides in Vancouver, British Columbia, where she attends a private high school on a full scholarship and continues her academic and advocacy journey.
Nila Ibrahimi, second from left, is greeted by her old Marefat High School classmates at Saskatoon International Airport on Aug. 27, 2022. PHOTO BY MICHELLE BERG /Saskatoon StarPhoenix