CNN: Saving Aesha
CNN
Published May 2012
She came to America after the Taliban hacked off her nose and ears, a symbol of the oppression of women in Afghanistan. Since then, she’s been passed around by well-meaning strangers, showcased like a star and shielded like a fragile child. The fairy-tale ending everyone hoped for has remained elusive.
A striking image of Aesha Mohammadzai’s face was on the cover of Time magazine in August 2010. Reporter Jessica Ravitz and I visited the family who took her in to see how her life had changed since then.
(A year later, we visited Aesha again and produced an update on her progress.)
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- Aesha watches Bollywood films on her computer but also tunes into videos about her past and the torture of other women.
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- Aesha, 22, who couldn’t go to school in Afghanistan, studies English. She wants to go to college and become a police officer.
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- For months, Aesha called Jamila Rasouli-Arsala in the middle of the night, begging to come live with her family.