About

Growing up in Afghanistan, Zahra Joya had to disguise herself as a boy to go to school. When her country was under US occupation, she was able to study law and become a journalist, founding Rukhshana Media, Afghanistan's first news agency dedicated to the stories of women. When the Taliban reclaimed power in 2021 all hope of further progress was gone: overnight, women were silenced. Now living in exile in London, Joya tells not just her own story, but the fight for women’s rights across the world.

Part of Ilkley Literature Festival