Today is Student’s Day. As a computer science student, I should be celebrating, but instead, my heart feels heavy. This day doesn’t bring me joy—it brings pain and reflection.

I think about my daughter—what if, when she grows up, she’s not allowed to study? Will her dreams be stolen from her?

I think about my sister, who wanted to become a doctor but was forced to study physiotherapy because that was all she could do as a girl. Even that option is gone now—closed by a system that punishes women for daring to dream.

I think about my wife, a brilliant mind who wanted to be a software engineer. She had completed four semesters of computer science before the door to her education was slammed shut. Her dreams, like so many others, cut short.

I think about my Afghan sisters, who once aspired to enter fields like computer science but are now silenced, reduced to lives of having a husband and just doing housework.

I think about my own journey—how I’ve studied with amazing teachers who inspired me, but also had to deal with some who lacked respect for their students or passion for teaching. How, when I taught a university class, I asked my students about their dreams, and most could only imagine becoming school math teachers because that’s all they believed was possible.

Today, instead of celebrating, I feel a deep sadness—but also a burning determination.

I want to do everything in my power to change this. I want to fight for a future where education is a right, not a privilege. Where no one’s dreams are crushed by their gender or circumstances. Where every student, everywhere, has the freedom to reach their full potential.

I hope for the day when Student’s Day will be a celebration for everyone—not a reminder of lost opportunities. Until then, I’ll keep doing my best to make a difference.