home of the brave.

I recently read a comment by a blogger stating that they "hate, hate, hate that my parents are from Pakistan and I have to be associated with this cowardly, despicable country at all."

Could everyone please take a step back?

There are so many adjectives one can use to describe the current state of Pakistan. Dysfunctional is the first word that comes to mind. But not cowardly. Anything but cowardly. It may be plagued by an apathetic upper-class and an angry lower class, but it's not a nation of cowards. All the pundits and writers have been predicting the balkanization of Pakistan since its birth, a country of multiple ethnicities tied together by a single boundary. But it's still here. Even Yugoslavia broke into pieces, despite being kept together by the iron fist of Tito. Pakistan survived through every transition of governments. All it has to its name is an assortment of leaders who were too afraid of being deposed by the next guy to lead the country properly.

Let's list out some of the things the people of Pakistan have lived through in the last few decades. Four coups, three wars, two of the worst natural disasters seen in recent history, and numerous acts of terrorism. It houses more refugees than any other state in the world. Its democracy is barely a toddler; all eyes are on President Zardari because if he survives the next two years, he will become the first democratically elected Pakistani leader to complete a full term in office. Pakistani troops have sacrificed more to the so-called "War on Terror" than all of NATO combined. Drone strikes in Pakistan take more innocent lives than those of terrorists. Pakistan is a country of survivors. It will get through these dark times.

When you call Pakistan a country of cowards, you are insulting the memory of the martyrs who were killed for standing up against the blasphemy laws. Governor Salmaan Taseer and Minister Shahbaz Bhatti fought for a new Pakistan to their dying breath. Are they cowards? No. Inspired by them, the liberals will raise their voices and be heard over the radicals. This battle isn't against the government, it's against the lingering traces of Zia's regime that still haunt us. As Shehrbano Taseer recently tweeted, "if you believe in a progressive Pakistan, you must be willing to die for it.” You see, the people of Pakistan are fighting its revolution right now as we speak. It may not be as fast-paced, loud, or as visible as the revolutions in North Africa and the Middle East, but it's there. Our war is against ignorance and hate. There are people who have given their lives for a progressive Pakistan and we fight in their memory today for reform. We will fight for the white stripe of the flag, representing the country's minorities. Progressive reform will happen. Education, minority rights, women's rights, removal of the blasphemy laws are just some of the reforms that must occur. Despite the bloodshed, we are not daunted. We will fight in the name of our martyrrs.

It took years for Bhutto Sr. and Zia to destroy the institutions of the country. Years. We can’t fix everything immediately. The damage was done and it will take a while, perhaps a generation, to fix. I promise you, you will see Jinnah’s Pakistan.

Never, ever, ever call Pakistan a country of cowards.