What Makes a Hero?

Do Malala Yousafzai and Edward Snowden Deserve the Title?

North Americans like the word hero. We describe sports stars as heroes. We call people who give money away heroes. We use the word hero to describe movie stars. Yet, are these people heroes?

Our indiscriminate use of such words lessens their impact. Maybe we can chalk this up to the limitations of the English language. Maybe it is just laziness on our part. But it is time to come up with a word other than hero to describe people whose actions catch our attention.

The Oxford English Dictionary says a hero is someone who is “distinguished by extraordinary valour and martial achievements; one who does brave or noble deeds; an illustrious warrior.”

By this definition, a football player who scores a hail-Mary goal is not a hero. An artist whose album goes platinum is not a hero. Call me crazy, but it seems like the pool of candidates for heroism should be much smaller than we are led to believe.

Is it possible that we too often confuse good citizenship with heroism? Citizenship is all of those everyday behaviors that bind us to a larger community. Those like the nurse who gives CPR to a stranger at a hockey game or the man on the street giving money away at Christmas are practicing good citizenship, not heroism.

The more I think about the word hero and what makes a hero, the more questions I have. Do we use the word so frequently because we all secretly desire to be heroes (not a bad goal, by any means)? And why aren’t we as concerned about being good citizens as we are about being heroes? Is our relationship to the greater polity so soured that we can’t imagine participating in behaviour that would publically strengthen those bonds? Are we ashamed to be considered good citizens?

Heroism does not require one to lose one’s life, but it is behaviour that works for the greater good and goes beyond what most citizens would do. Many of us have the capacity to be heroes, but we will never realize that ability unless we are called upon to demonstrate it. However, we can demonstrate good citizenship on a daily basis.

Two recent international events demonstrate my point.

In October 2012, a 15-year-old girl was shot in the head by an extremist group. Her crime? Standing against extremism, even in the face of great personal danger. Young Malala Yousafzai was aware that her fight for the rights of everyone, especially girls, to an education threatened certain groups. Yet,she refused to back down from her message. She refused to hide. She spoke out loudly. In retaliation, she and two schoolmates were shot in the head on their way home.

Malala survived the shooting and turned 16 on Friday. Did she bow down to fear? No. I listened to her speak in front of 500 people at a special youth assembly at the UN. Malala made it clear that she will not hide. She is a tiny person, yet her voice is strong: her message is even stronger. Fear does not need to disempower us. Rather, it can provide us with more strength and power and help us fight tyranny. Her experience proves that “one student, one teacher, one book, and one pen can change the world.” Malala’s convictions are stronger than bullets.

Malala is that rare breed of person who stands up to danger and refuses to back down. Not only is she a remarkable citizen, she is also a true hero.

The second example is Edward Snowden, the ex-CIA contractor who exposed the extreme lengths the American government is willing to go to in the name of national security.

I have heard Edward Snowden referred to as a hero almost daily for several weeks. Yet, he has not stood up in front of anybody. He went into hiding before the NSA leaks were made public. Since then, he has remained in hiding. Not only is he hiding, but he is doing so in a country that has an atrocious human rights record. He is considering offers of asylum from countries with equally bad reputations and poor relations with his country.

I am not arguing that Edward Snowden did something wrong when he exposed the extent of the NSA’s operations. To be perfectly honest, I am not sure where I stand on his actions. Much of what he did seems good. I certainly do not think he is a traitor.

Snowden says he leaked the NSA documents because he did not want to live in a society where his every move was recorded. I can’t help but comment on the irony of this statement juxtaposed with the knowledge that the countries supporting his bids for asylum offer far fewer freedoms than the United States.

I understand the desire to live without constantly wondering whether our most innocent comments are being recorded. In a perfect world we would all live with absolute privacy. However, my pragmatic side says that the same ideology that is behind the shooting of Malala has ensured that our privacy will be curtailed for the foreseeable future.

My point is that calling both Edward Snowden and Malala Yousafzai heroes is insulting to those who, like Malala, truly deserve the title. Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks are heroes. Not only did they fight for the greater good, but they publically stood for what they believed in; they never backed down from the potential consequences of their convictions. As a result, they suffered greatly for their beliefs. Today, we can add a young Pakistani girl to the ranks of those greats who had the courage of their convictions and stood proudly for them.

I know those who call Snowden a hero will disagree with me. John Cassidy at The New Yorker is quite firm in his belief that Snowden is a hero. Yet, he seems to believe the only other option is traitor. Really? Hero or Traitor? That seems a little extreme. Why can’t Snowden be considered a good/concerned citizen who spoke out about something he disagreed with? In some circumstances, he might have been considered heroic. However, by hiding behind people, instead of standing next to them, he is belying the title of hero. Malala, on the other hand, says that when a Taliban bullet entered her skull, “weakness, fear, and hopelessness died. Strength, power, and courage was born.”

Regardless of whether you agree with Snowden’s actions, or you are a football fanatic or a movie star groupie, can we please agree to stop calling these people heroes? Let’s preserve the unique meaning of the word for those to whom it actually applies.