Lizzie: I remember the first day of school really well.
This is the kindergarten wing.
All the classes would sit here and line up.
And I would always hide behind these things.
And I would sit here.
And hide.
And then other kids would stare at me or...just not be nice.
The kids I would play with would run,
and I couldn't run that fast or I would get tired really quickly
or I'd start coughing, and I would get frustrated.
And to avoid it, I just stayed sitting there
which secluded me even more.
I would look at everyone and just wish I could be them.
I would just wish that they could understand me.
I never thought it was ever possible for me to be accepted.
And to just think that 20 years later, the world knows who I am,
and it's for something good.
Audience: [Applause]
Woman: Lizzie!
Girl: Grandma! Grandma...
Rita: It was just a normal pregnancy.
Everything was fine every time I went in.
There was no sign of anything different or wrong.
I didn't feel different.
I wasn't sick.
Nothing.
I was gaining weight,
and my stomach was growing.
So everything was meeting
where I was supposed to be at each month.
Dr. Wilson: Things were going well during her pregnancy,
and no big red flags.
Rita's ultrasound done at around 12 weeks
had no real indication of problems
early on in the pregnancy.
Rita: I was way too early to deliver.
We were here at the house,
and we had just spent the day at Zilker Park, walking,
and that night, I started having contractions.
I thought I just overdid myself at the park,
but through the whole night it was just the contractions
over and over and over.
Then the scary part started.
Lupe: I was a little nervous.
I remember driving about 6:30 in the morning on the highway,
still dark, going to the hospital.
Silence really.
Other than your pains.
Rita: We went into the emergency room,
and that's when I was admitted
because I was having contractions, and I was dilated.
Lupe: I remember them saying
we're going to get the superman of sonograms.
And so I remember him sitting there,
and he was saying--
he just kind of looked and he says,
"We gotta get this baby out tonight."
Rita: The doctors had said they had never seen a child like that.
And they didn't know exactly what was going on with her.
Dr. Wilson: Lizzie was small and had the appearance
of a size 4 skin around a size two baby.
But Lizzie did not have a specific chromosomal disorder.
And I can't think of any baby
that has essentially had no diagnosis.
Rita: When I woke up, Lupe was next to me,
and he started telling me, "She's very small.
"She's at ICU.
And we don't know what's gonna happen."
So...
Lizzie: The doctors took a Polaroid picture of me and showed it to mom
because they thought she was going to be
too scared to see me in person.
[Laughs]
I had a giant forehead, and I still do.
If I had bangs, I'd do the side bang when I was a baby, too.
Ha ha!
This picture makes me happy.
Lupe: I loved her.
I was just excited. It didn't matter.
I mean, to me, she was already Lizzie.
She was our daughter.
She's tiny. It doesn't matter.
She's our baby.
And there was never a sense of,
"I can't believe this is happening to us"
or "why did this happen to us?"
It's just like, I can't wait to get her home.
Lizzie: Aw, two pounds, 10 ounces.
I was a real big baby.
That's funny.
Did they write this when I wasn't named yet
since it says "Babygirl Velasquez"?
What if that's what my parents named me?
Baby girl. Ha ha!
Ah...
But it's funny to think, like,
this little card is what, like, started--
This is how I started, through this card.
Lupe: Here she comes.
Rita: Ha ha!
Lupe: Elizabeth!
Rita: Hi, Daddy!
Lizzie: Basically all we had known all my life
was that I had a syndrome where I can't gain weight.
Woman: Hi, Lizzie!
She's too busy! Hi, Lizzie!
It's delicious!
Rita: The doctors' main focus was getting weight onto her.
And it was always a dietician, a nutritionist coming in,
saying she needs to drink these shakes,
add this to her food, you know.
We went through that whole thing with them.
And she still wouldn't gain weight.
Yay!
Lupe: Elizabeth...
Rita: I would get scared.
But we tried not to show her that we were scared,
and a lot of it was when she would be put in the hospital
for different surgeries.
Lizzie: Growing up,
there was always something wrong with me.
I was in and out of the hospitals.
It was one thing after the next.
I used to be able to count how many surgeries I had on one hand.
Appendix, intestines, foot surgery, eye surgery,
ear surgery, studies, panels, MRIs, bone density scans,
dexa scans of my whole body.
It's like a whole other language.
A lot of blood work tests,
a lot of having to start IVs over and over and over
because my veins collapsed.
I had total reconstruction on my foot.
Because all of these toes were stuck like this.
So my doctor put metal plates back here.
He cut whatever this is called back here.
And I had pins that stuck out of every toe to keep them straight.
And we went back into the doctor,
and he pulled out the pins from my toes one by one.
To this day, I'm still being tested.
Until they find a diagnosis, I have to keep going.
I would always convince myself, one more thing is done.
It sucked, but now we're going to do something fun.
Just get through it.
I wanted to make this video today
to speak out about an issue
that has gotten completely out of control.
Bullying.
And no, it's not something new
that we're just now learning about.
Our grandparents, our parents, our friends, our siblings,
even the cool kids we think have a perfect life,
they've been bullied, too.
That's not the same.
That was my classroom right there.
Elia: You know, every child comes in with their parents.
When Lizzie first entered my classroom,
of course she was early because her dad was also a teacher.
So Rita walked her in,
and I remember that, you know, she went to find her desk,
and as the class starts to fill up,
other kids came in and would stare at her.
Lizzie: At the time, I thought everyone looked like me.
I couldn't recognize or tell that they didn't look like me.
Lupe: I was most worried about her making friends,
if people were going to be mean to her or...
not want to play with her.
Or just asking her a lot of questions
that she's young and probably can't answer,
like, "Why do you look like that?"
or "What's wrong with you?"
Yeah, because we never talked to her about that.
No one's really ever asked her that.
And I thought, we're not there.
Yeah.
Lizzie: I remember
going up to groups of kids that were playing,
and they would just walk away, like as if I wasn't there.
You know, me as a teacher,
and if I would be walking down the hall with my class,
and we happen to...their class is walking down,
I'd be watching her just to kind of see
when other kids would be transitioning
and all of them would be, like, poking
and looking and talking.
You know, my choices are you go tell them, "Stop!"
You know, "She's just like you!"
Or I mean, I had to be professional,
and I couldn't say anything.
And in my mind, I'm just--it's breaking my heart.
Lizzie: They weren't actually saying something,
so I couldn't understand them.
I was just going off of their stare
or I could see their mouth moving
and I couldn't hear them.
Or I could see them pointing,
and I didn't know, are they pointing at me or are they not.
I think that was always the worst,
because it was when I was making up the thoughts in my own head
because they weren't actually saying it to my face.
Ugh, I'm scared to open this.
"I'm sad when somebody stares at me because I'm so..."
I don't like that word.
Ugh, I hate that word.
"I'm sad when somebody stares at me because I'm so skinny
"and when some of my friends are not my friends
and when people--" Ha ha!
"And when people make me mad."
My dad and I started having a routine as I got older
to where on the first day of school,
he would go to my classroom,
and we would stand in front of the class,
and he'd introduce me and tell them about my syndrome.
And that started helping a whole lot
and making a huge difference
with the kids that were in my class who saw me every day.
But as soon as we walked out of the classroom doors,
it was back to the stares and the points and the whispers.
Lupe: And so I did it for a couple of years
because kindergarten was real hard as a start.
Second grade, she told me,
"Daddy, you don't have to do that anymore.
I can take care of it."
If I knew something was going on,
I could tell the teacher and just say,
"A little heads up,
"I don't want to get anyone in trouble,
but how can we make it a teaching moment?"
Middle school I couldn't do that,
and I was sick and almost throwing up
on the first day of school because I couldn't be there,
and I was at my own school,
and here she is going on to Middle School.
And I think I called Rita like every 30 minutes,
"Have you heard anything?
"Have they called from school?
Have you heard anything?"
Lori: I had an administrator come in
and tell me that I was going to receive a student
who had some special needs.
I was not told of anything other than she was visually impaired,
and so when she walked into my classroom,
I immediately noticed the reaction of others
making weird faces.
You could just see the questions going on in their heads,
and so Lizzie, being as special as she is,
walked right in, walked right up to me
and said, "My name is Lizzie!"
I can't take credit for that, though.
I have to credit my parents for that
because it wasn't my idea at all.
I thought it was the worst idea ever
to stand in front of the classroom and introduce myself
because, again, that would be something
that would be making me stand out as different
which is weird now because it's something that I fully embrace.
Lori: After a while, there was a line to sit by Lizzie.
People wanted to be next to Lizzie.
Lizzie began to open up.
She became more of who she is today.
So as tough as middle school was for her,
I think it really was a turning point.
[Cheering indistinctly]
Rita: Cheerleading came about in seventh grade
where she wanted to try out.
And I was, "No, no. It's not gonna work Lizzie.
"You can't do any of the stunts.
You can't do this. You can't do that".
Lizzie: She just was questioning me and saying,
"Do you think it's the right thing?"
And that frustrated me because I was like, "I'm gonna do it.
"Stop asking me questions. I know what I'm doing.
I know what I'm signing up for."
Rita: I got her everything she needed,
and she practiced outside in the backyard constantly.
And I just knew she wasn't going to make it.
They weren't going to pick her.
Then I finally said
she's going to have to face
not getting what she wants all the time.
[Cheering indistinctly]
Lizzie: I tried out without any of my friends,
so I didn't know anyone going in.
What am I doing? I'm terrified.
But I did it!
Lizzie: I look back now and everyone made it,
but whatever, I felt like I accomplished something.
Before we being tonight,
I would like to thank everyone for coming
and helping to make today so magical.
First of all, I would like to thank my beautiful parents,
who have loved and supported me through thick and thin.
Can you believe the journey we have taken
just to get to this stage?
It was two years after my sweet 16,
and around that time was the best time
because I had all my friends around me,
all my family around me.
I was on the high road.
When I was 17, everything changed.
It was afternoon,
and I was supposed to be doing homework,
and I decided to go look for music on YouTube instead.
And that's when I found it.
I don't even know why I clicked on it.
But I did, and...
my heart dropped to my stomach just seeing my face.
And then after I saw the picture,
then I looked at the title, then I looked at the views,
then I looked at the comments.
I didn't cry while I was reading them.
I didn't cry when I saw the title.
I didn't cry when I saw 4 million views.
I cried when I looked to my right.
My mom saw it.
And that's when I lost it.
Elia: Rita called and was just crying.
And she said, "You have to come.
"There's something really ugly on the internet.
And they're calling her the ugliest woman in the world."
I mean, How can people be like that?
I'm like, you don't even know the person you're talking about.
Patty: I wanted to just protect her and defend her
and you know, get rid of it for her and take care of it.
Lizzie: I'd say I read hundreds of comments.
I just went page by page by page by page.
You would think one would stop reading them
after the first one or two, but I didn't.
I just read all of them.
Calling me a monster or asking why my parents didn't abort me.
Kill it with fire. I wish you were dead.
Just pick up a gun and end my life.
You shouldn't even have been born.
You're never going to be anything.
Why didn't your parents abort you?
Questioning why are you still alive.
You should go shoot yourself.
When people see your face in public,
they're going to go blind.
So many horrible, horrible comments.
Lupe: How can people be like that?
Lizzie: I didn't talk to anybody about it.
I didn't tell my friends I found it.
I didn't tell anyone.
And I'm pretty sure I cried myself to sleep a few nights after that
just being so shocked that that actually happened.
She goes, "Mom, they're saying such mean things."
So I made her shut it.
I said, "You need to get out and not read that anymore."
But she would not get off the floor.
She was so, so hurt and so sad.
Lizzie: We tried taking it down,
and I think he got an alert that it was flagged
or that someone was trying to take it down,
and then he contacted me.
The subject had in all capital letters, "I won't give up.
"Are you happy now that my video has been removed?
"I'll reload it again and again and again.
It's just information."
That's when I went from being sad
to being really, really angry.
Chris: When they bully Lizzie,
they're also bullying our family
because we have to watch Lizzie go through the pain.
And you could say that about every family
that has a child that's getting bullied.
Marina: I want to just ask those people,
"What is wrong with your life
"that you have to sit here and search through videos like this
and make this ugly comment?"
Lizzie: You called me the world's ugliest woman to be hateful.
I was going to message him back,
but my dad right away was like, "You have to forgive him."
How in the world could I forgive this person?
How in the world can I forgive the people
who told me to kill myself?
And I didn't ever think I would see the reason for it.
Lizzie: I started my YouTube channel
a few years after finding the bad video,
and in my mind, having control of my own channel
and being able to put out what I want
was the best way that I could show people
that they're not holding me back.
It was the quickest way that I could do it.
It took many years for me to really realize
that this was what I want to keep doing.
It was just a side hobby at the beginning.
The numbers didn't matter to me.
My content is what mattered to me.
It has become so easy for people to sit behind their computers
and send hate to other people,
when in reality, all of us can kind of use that easy route
and sit behind our computers and send out love and positivity.
I started my channel as a response to being bullied.
I don't block anybody.
I do it for the bullies, too.
As my dad always says, they might be going through
something worse than what I'm going through.
It took a while to get into a majority of the comments being nice.
But over time, I felt comfortable enough
to be able to leave the comments
and comfortable enough with myself
and strong enough with myself to know
that if I read something bad,
I was going to let it roll off my shoulders.
And my plan is to work as hard as my little body will work with me
so that I can help make this amazing, incredible place
that we call the internet a happier, more supportive,
and more positive community for all of us to hang out.
And I started realizing that the majority of the comments
started being a whole lot positive
and very little negative.
There's some YouTubers that have a specific group that they do--
beauty bloggers, daily bloggers--
I'm all of the above.
Listen, this is going to be real talk.
If I wear high heels out,
I look like a newborn deer learning how to walk.
So today's recipe is going to be a recipe for curing a bad day.
Yay! Yay!
First question is,
"Do you have a boyfriend?"
Well, I guess I'm not gonna tell you.
When I told my parents I wanted to write a book,
my dad was like, "Oh, that's so nice,
but you should probably have a backup plan."
And the first thing I told him was,
"I'm not dedicating the first book to you."
I'm happy that you guys are getting to know me for me
and not me as the ugliest girl in the world. Ugh.
Bye!
Whatever I feel like filming or talking about
when I press record is what I put up on my channel.
Ok, we're going to introduce you to my YouTube people.
Sit down.
Sit right there.
Ok, I need to make--
I need to make it look pretty behind you.
You've never seen me do this, have you?
Nope.
Put it all together?
Uh-uh.
You're in for a real treat, daddio.
Lupe: You gonna center it?
Lizzie: Ugh, this is gonna become an argument.
Don't. No.
You have to look at the camera.
Ok, ready?
Dad, don't look at me.
Look at the lens, and don't look at yourself.
I need to listen to you ask questions.
I like to make eye contact.
We're doing... We're doing--
I have to-- I have to start--
You're looking at me.
Look over there.
Ha ha!
So difficult. I have to start the video.
So to start it, you have to look at the lens.
Ok.
Don't look at me.
Why don't you open it the way I open it?
Just say, "Hey, everyone!"
Say that. That's what I say.
Say, "Hi, everyone!"
Hi, everyone!
Ha!
There.
Love...
So for today's video,
I wanted to introduce all of you to my dad.
Ok, stop spinning.
Why do you have a spinning chair
if you don't want no one to spin?
Go. Ok.
You're gonna make me nauseous
because you're spinning so much.
Sorry. I like it like that.
Ok, ha!
So come on, let's dance.
So we like to dance together.
Lizzie: Ok, I want to say some things
about my good old dad.
He's all about social media.
Hmm?
Facebook. Oh, yeah.
You love Facebook, don't you?
Yeah, I do love Facebook.
I like everything.
He likes everything,
and he likes to actually say that he's liking everything.
I like. I like. I like. I like.
Lizzie: What else do you want to say?
Lupe: I have 5 Twitter accounts.
He does.
He has 5 because he keeps forgetting--
Because I lost the passwords, so--
Have you never tried clicking "forgot password"?
No, because then it asks you for the email,
and I don't know what one I put in there.
It was nice joining you today.
So I think we should do an interview with mom
and all the things that she gets mad at me about.
Ew. That'd be a long one.
We'll need some extra time for that one.
Yeah. Ok.
We're gonna wrap this up.
At the end of every video,
I have to tell them to write something in the comments.
So what do you want them to write in the comments?
You pick a song you want me to dance to,
but it has to be upbeat.
Oh, that's a good one.
I prefer, like, "Drop it like it's hot"
or "Talk dirty to me" or "Baby got back."
Ok, so put in the comments below
what song you want our family of 5 to dance to,
and we'll dance to it.
Mm-hmm.
Thanks for meeting my dad.
Thank you!
Thank you! Thank you. For--Stop spinning!
Ok, you want to count to 3 and say bye?
It's gonna take another 20--
Ready? Wait.
At 3, right?
Yes, at 3. Ok, go.
Ok, 1, 2, 3...
Bye! Bye!
Lupe: I might go ahead
and start my own YouTube channel.
Lizzie: The YouTube channel built my confidence.
I noticed that people were starting to listen.
Then I got a call that put me on a new kind of stage.
I'm in a really, really good mood right now
because I just finished my rehearsal for my big TED talk.
And I'm excited.
And Alysia got to go with me. Say hi.
Hey.
I can't say anything right now
about what's gonna happen, but let me tell you,
I'm excited.
Look how pumped I am.
This is me being pumped.
I'm so happy.
Hello, I'm America Ferrera,
and I'm so sorry to not be there in person.
But I didn't want to miss out on this opportunity
to introduce to you a very special person.
I was touched by her remarkable story,
and I'm inspired by her endless courage.
Please join me in welcoming Lizzie Velasquez.
Audience: [Applause, cheering]
Lizzie: My life was put into my hands
just like your lives were put into yours.
You are the person in the front seat of your car.
You are the one who decides
whether your car goes down a bad path or a good path.
You are the one that decides what defines you.
For so long, I thought what defined me was my outer appearance.
Going to middle school, I hated when I would wake up in the morning
and I was looking in the mirror, getting ready and thinking,
"Can I just scrub this syndrome off?"
It would make my life so much easier
if I could just scrub it off.
But then I started realizing,
am I gonna let the people who called me a monster define me?
Am I gonna let the people who said "Kill it with fire" define me?
No.
I'm gonna let my goals and my success and my accomplishments
be the things that define me, not my outer appearance.
The best way that I could get back at all those people
who made fun of me, who teased me,
who called me ugly, who called me a monster
was to make myself better,
and to show them, you know what,
tell me those negative things, I'm gonna turn them around
and I'm gonna use them as a ladder to climb up to my goals.
Use that negativity that you have in your life
to make yourself better, because I guarantee you,
you will win.
I want you to leave here, but remember, Brave Starts Here.
Thank you.
Audience: [Applause, cheering]
Lizzie: I'm not sure what it was about the TED talk
and what I said in it,
but the energy in the room was different.
There was something special brewing.
But I didn't think that it was with me.
I thought it was just everyone that was there.
It absolutely changed everything.
Katie Couric: In her first television interview
since her incredibly moving TED talk,
please welcome Lizzie Velasquez.
Almost 5 million people have watched it.
What has the response been?
Lizzie: I felt for about a week,
every day, that I was dreaming.
Man: * Keep shining on *
Lizzie: For many years,
I compared myself to absolutely everyone I saw.
Know that you are meant to be in this world for a reason.
Know that you have the power to not only help yourself
and those around you,
but potentially people around the world.
I knew I had struggles,
but I was able to make the best of it,
and you absolutely can do the exact same thing.
[Man singing indistinctly]
Woman: I just really watched your video yesterday.
It's so nice to meet you!
Lizzie: It's so nice to meet you.
What's your name?
Ashley.
Hi. Nice to meet you!
Yeah, you're amazing!
Thank you so much!
TED talk. Was that you?
Yeah.
Really? Oh, my god.
I think it was very inspiring,
and I really-- congratulations.
It was very good.
Hi. Nice to meet you.
This is so amazing, isn't it?
Woman: Actually, it's really coffee,
and I just used different intensities of the coffee
to do the different shades.
Thank you so much.
I'm so happy to meet you in person.
Thank you.
Lizzie: Bye!
Lizzie: Don't let the negativity hold you back.
Be yourself no matter what.
Embrace who you are.
Audience: [Applause]
Man: [Singing indistinctly]
I see your video on the internet...
Lizzie: Really?
and I am so fond of you.
Oh, thank you so much!
You inspire me.
Lizzie: Thank you very much.
Lizzie: When you grow up,
you know that there are so many different cultures and languages,
but until you see it and you hear it
and you smell it and you're around it,
you appreciate it more,
and I think I'm just awe-struck by all of it.
Whoopie Goldberg: True real beauty shines from within.
And no one shines brighter than our next guest.
She did a TED talk that knocked me out.
It made me stand up and cheer,
and so I say, please welcome, Lizzie Velasquez.
Hey, girl.
Lizzie: I have a choice.
I can either sit here and sink down to their level...
Right.
Or I can fight back with my accomplishments
in making myself better,
and I've kinda decided to do that.
Lizzie: And it clicked in my mind
that even though the people who I was talking to
don't have my syndrome, we can somehow relate.
And in that moment, I had never felt more confident in my own skin.
And I knew, this is my purpose,
this is what I'm meant to do for the rest of my life.
Because I'd like to think that I'm not only telling my story,
I'm telling everyone's story.
For so long my face has been synonymous as a victim of bullying.
But now I'm ready to be synonymous with bullying in a new way,
as an activist with a loud voice to make it better.
With that, I'm going to Washington, D.C.,
in hopes I can lobby for the Safe Schools Improvement Act.
My voice isn't the only one that needs to be heard
because it's going to take all of ours.
So let's be heard together.
Tina, on phone: Lizzie?
Lizzie: Yes.
Hi, it's Tina Meier.
How are you?
Hi, Tina!
I absolutely have to tell you
how excited I am to talk to you.
I know I sent you that email,
and I can't even put into words
how much I admire what you're doing.
So I'm really, really, really appreciative
for you working with us.
Oh, well, thank you.
And I think what you're doing is amazing.
We had watched your TED talk
and were just so impressed,
and I think what you're doing is amazing.
Hearing you from your experiences
is something that's really, really helping me.
I think one of my biggest questions is
as I think about doing all of these things
and of course it's something that I really want to do,
but at the same time, it can be intimidating.
And I've always--
I've always ran away from conflict or controversy.
Do you have any advice?
You know, I think in the beginning,
after Megan passed away,
it was more of... I just wanted justice.
I wanted something to be done.
And there weren't the laws in place,
and everybody wanted to just say
this happened, I'm really sorry,
it's horrible, but let's move on with life.
I wasn't going to keep quiet
about something that makes people uncomfortable
but needs to be talked about.
Tina: Megan was born on November 6 of 1992.
She had two huge dimples, brown curly hair, just adorable.
And Megan was this girl that could be really goofy
and laugh a lot.
But then, she also was different from the other kids.
In kindergarten, she would come home and say,
"Mom, my legs are bigger than the other girls' legs,"
or, "Mom, they say I'm a giant," because she was taller
or "Mom," you know, they don't want me to sit next to them.
They say I'll crush them."
As a mom, I would always say, "Honey, you're beautiful.
From the inside and out, we're all different."
But the older that she got,
I could definitely see more of the struggles
of trying to fit in and trying to be a part
of what she thought everybody else was.
Megan had switched from seventh grade to eighth grade to a new school
because she was going through just horrendous bullying.
And going into this new eighth grade,
she was feeling better about herself,
and she started the volleyball team and making friends.
So she was going to be turning 14,
and she came home one day from school and said,
"Mom, can I have a MySpace, please."
And I was like "Meg, honey, no.
Sexual predators. No way."
I was one of those crazy moms.
And she was like "Mom, please.
Everybody's got it, please."
So I let her have a MySpace, but I had rules.
She was befriended by this boy by the name of Josh Evans.
So I said, "Ok, Meg, I will let you add him,
"but anything negative, anything sexual,
he's deleted immediately."
So Megan and Josh started talking.
Josh told Megan she had a beautiful smile,
and Megan thought he was cute.
And they talked back and forth and liked each other.
It was a Sunday, October 15, 2006.
She said, "Mom, can I get into MySpace?"
So I signed her on.
And when she saw this message, it was from Josh Evans.
"No one likes you.
No one wants to be friends with you."
Megan was like, "What are you talking about?
"Who's saying this?
Where are you getting this from?"
Now Josh got two other girls involved.
And these messages that went back and forth
were not just, "Megan, we don't like you.
Megan, you're not very nice."
Those escalated very quickly to "Megan Meier's a fat ass.
Megan Meier's a whore."
All of these things.
She took off running upstairs to her room.
It was probably 20 minutes went by.
And I just stopped in mid-sentence
and had this horrible feeling.
It was like all I heard was-- was complete silence.
And I took off running upstairs to Megan's room.
I opened the door, and I found her hanging in her closet.
It was like this whole entire feeling of like this is it.
I mean, there's no more chance.
There's nothing, and...
And she was gone.
And...I miss her every single minute of every day.
Lizzie: I feel like I'm growing into this big role
in front of so many,
but at the end of the day, to me,
it's just about helping one person at a time.
Lizzie: Hi!
Oh, my gosh!
I have read so much about you.
Really?
I've seen so much about you.
I'm so honored to meet you!
Can I give you a hug?
Yes!
It's so nice to meet you.
I'm gonna cry! You're such an inspiration!
Lizzie: Look at how cool these colors are!
That's exciting!
WOMAN: Can you say hi to her?
Aw... We're all shy.
Hi! How cool.
What a cool room!
WOMAN: I saw you downstairs.
Lizzie: Hi. Nice to meet you.
WOMAN: He has a genetic blood issue called Factor Five.
It basically just gives him more of a risk for blood clotting.
As he gets older and has to advocate for himself,
he needs to...
Lizzie: Yeah, we're in the same boat.
My parents would do everything for me
and do all of the appointments for me,
but now I'm having to do it
and ask my own questions at doctor's appointments
and do all that stuff.
So it's good that you're starting to do it.
It must feel good to start getting some answers.
WOMAN: Here's Princess and her mom.
Lizzie: Hi! Nice to meet you!
How are you?
Hi. How are you?
Can I sit here?
Yes, please.
This is so nice and comfortable.
You have the coolest name.
You like irradiate happiness.
Like I feel it.
Thank you. You continue on.
I wish you well in all your endeavors.
Thank you so much. Yes.
I know some days it can seem frustrating.
And like, ugh.
But it's a new day.
You gotta keep going.
The sun will come up again.
GIRL: I have sickle cell anemia, and I was born with it.
Then I had two strokes when I was like 4,
and then when I was 5, I had a repeat stroke at 5.
Then I've had brain surgery.
But I'm totally healthy.
That is amazing.
I'm so amazed by you.
That's so inspiring.
Like you're so strong.
Lizzie: We've been trying to solve the mystery
around my health for a long, long time now.
To me, it's just not as important anymore.
But it is important to the people I care about.
Lizzie: Dr. Chopra in Houston
said that he found basically my diagnosis,
and he's gonna sit down with me, mom, and dad, and Dr. Cortez
and after we find out, everything's gonna change.
Marina: You wouldn't be the undiagnosed syndrome.
No. I won't be like one of 3.
I'll be one of whatever he tells us.
Whatever they find.
It's not gonna change who I am.
It's not gonna change what I do. It's just...
It's gonna be different to you.
But to us, nothing's changing,
except you're just putting a name to it.
You know?
Yeah, I know, but when you don't think
you'll ever have a name for something for, like...
25 years?
And then you get a phone call that's like,
now you have one.
Which will be a good feeling though.
After all those tests.
After all the blood work.
After all the doctor visits.
Do you think it might be something
where like they tell us and then he says,
"This could... This could happen.
Do you want to know what could happen?"
Do I want to know?
Or do I not want to know?
I don't want you to live your life
knowing that certain things will happen to you.
Like if you get there
and you feel like you want to know
what's gonna happen, then do it.
Yeah.
I'm just-- I'm not saying don't do it.
I'm saying whatever you feel comfortable with at that time.
Like don't make your mind up now.
Lizzie: It's for real this time.
Rita: Dr. Chopra called.
He was the doctor that was doing some genetic testing on Lizzie.
He didn't really specifically go into everything,
so we're going to be driving over there
to see what he has to talk to us about.
Lupe: All right, little young lady.
Let me get the booster seat.
Rita: So right now, it's just a matter of waiting
to see what's going to happen.
Lupe: Have a safe trip.
Lizzie: Ok.
Lizzie: So Marina texted me today,
and she said, "Good luck today.
"Remember that whatever happens
"doesn't change who you are in any way.
"You're still Lizzie no matter what.
"We're all in this together.
Love you."
That's so nice!
Lupe: Lot of things are going through my mind at least.
Wondering what it could possibly be
and what it means for the rest of her life.
Lupe: So what do you think?
Lizzie: About what?
Lupe: About what they might say.
Lizzie: I don't know.
I've just been dreading this for so long
that I just want to get it over with.
And I want to know if he does have a diagnosis,
does that mean I'm done doing tests.
Lupe: Are you getting teary eyed?
Rita: Yes.
Lizzie: Why?
Lupe: Because you wanna know something?
Lizzie: Or because you didn't think this day would come?
Rita: Both.
Lizzie: Are they happy tears or sad tears?
Rita: Worried.
Lupe: The scariest is finding out what is the lifespan.
Lizzie: Just the meaning behind not being undiagnosed is scary.
And until I hear it for myself,
I can't say if it'll change my life or not.
I would like to say it won't.
It's not gonna change who I am.
It's not gonna change my personality.
It's not gonna change my values.
But at the same time,
I can't put into words what it's like personally just to know.
Lizzie: Hi, good to see you.
Chopra: It's been a while.
I know. How are you?
Good.
Ok, have a seat.
Rita: Hello, hello.
How are you? Good to see you.
Chopra: As you can imagine with genetic diagnoses,
things are complicated.
So I'll use the white board.
So all of us have about 20,000 genes.
All genes are made up of DNA.
One of those genes, the name is FBN1.
And that's the gene in question for Lizzie.
So what we did was we sequenced all 20,000 genes
trying to look for what we call mutations,
genes that shouldn't be there, ok?
And we compared Lizzie's genome.
20,000 genes that Lizzie has
with the 20,000 genes that you guys have.
The change that we found was just in Lizzie.
We did not find the change in the parents, ok?
So we don't have the gene?
Chopra: No, you guys all have the gene.
All of us in this room have the gene.
Lizzie has a bad copy of the FBN1 gene.
And Lizzie's the only one in the family that has it.
The condition that has been associated with this gene
is Marfan syndrome.
Marfan syndrome affects 3 systems.
It affects the eyes.
It affects the heart.
And it affects the bones.
But Lizzie has one additional feature,
which is the inability to gain weight.
And that is called lipodystrophy.
And what it means is a reduction in fat.
So Lizzie has these two things.
And this thing has been called neonatalprogeroid syndrome.
I'm gonna give you guys some reports
because these 4 or 5 other people have been described in the literature
with mutations in the same region of FBN1,
and that is actually the critical part here.
They look like Lizzie.
They have mutations in the same region of FBN1
to where I feel very confident
that this is what is causing Lizzie's condition.
So what Lizzie has is a combination.
But I want you to take home this message that she has Marfan syndrome.
Because it means that we have some implications.
So what we'll be doing is getting Lizzie to see a cardiologist.
She would need to get imaging of her heart.
And what we'll be looking at there is the aorta.
That's the blood vessel, the big blood vessel
that arises from the top of the heart
and supplies blood to the rest of the body.
There can be problems with rupture.
Lizzie: What would happen if it ruptured?
Chopra: Uh, that would be a bad thing.
You would need immediate surgery,
and it can-- it can often times be fatal
before patients get to the hospital
because it's a very-- it's a very serious condition.
Lizzie: Are there signs of it?
Of like...
Chopra: Usually by the time you're having signs
of aortic dilatation, it's late.
Lizzie: Too late.
Chopra: It's late in the process.
Lizzie: There's still a possibility that...
Chopra: Well, the good thing is that--
Worst-case scenario that that would happen?
Cortez: They usually do do medication
to help make sure it stays...
To stabilize it? Yeah.
Chopra: So what we can do
is try to reduce some of your blood pressure,
prevent the progression of the enlargement, ok?
Lupe: Is Lizzie the oldest person that you know of?
Chopra: I think where you're going with this is life expectancy.
This is a relatively unique condition,
so I can't say anything with absolute certainty,
but as long as we keep a close eye on the dilatation of the aorta,
life expectancy would be expected to be normal.
Does that answer your question? Ok.
Lizzie: For so long I just let her deal with it,
and now that I know,
I want to be more involved in the results of things.
Rita: I think it was me pushing her to all these doctors...
Lizzie: It was.
Rita: ...and testing and all that other stuff,
because I always thought it was my fault.
Chopra: It wasn't.
How could you guys control any of it?
How could anybody control any of it?
It's a random process.
None of us are in control of the genes that we pass along.
And in your case, you didn't even pass on this.
I didn't know that.
Lizzie: Does that make you feel relieved?
Rita: Yeah.
Lizzie: I never knew you felt that.
Chopra: All of us are prisoners of the genes that we've inherited
and the genes that we have.
And your mutation makes you unique.
Lizzie: Let's just call it my difference.
Chopra: We can call it that.
Lizzie: It kinda makes me feel good.
Like I was really, really meant to have it
because y'all didn't give it to me.
Thank you so much for everything.
I really appreciate it even when I wasn't nice.
Chopra: You were always nice.
Lizzie: My dad has always told me,
when it's your time to go, it's your time to go.
Until then, I'm just going to hope
that my heart is as strong as I think it is.
I want my heart to be strong, faithful,
and I want it to be brave
because we're about to fight a whole new chapter.
And I literally can't do this without my heart.
Lizzie: I'm so excited at the fact
that I'll be in a room with 10,000 people,
but the fact that, like,
I don't even know how many are gonna be watching online.
It's very exciting.
All the other events I've been doing
have been like drinking water,
and then this big one is going to be like drinking coffee.
It's gonna make me so pumped.
I'm excited.
Lizzie: Ah! That's my name!
Look, that's me!
Lizzie: This is what I've been waiting for.
To see the stage.
Oh, my god.
I just want to, like, feel the room tomorrow,
like, with people in here.
I'm gonna look like this big.
Lizzie: Thank you. Thank you.
I like it.
I feel good. I'm ready.
I'm glad the TVs are over here
because that's gonna remind me where to stop.
And it's gonna start, and I'm gonna say, "Hola todos!
Bienvenido!" Ha ha!
Rita: My mom was involved in church.
She made sure we went.
My dad went every so often.
Lupe's parents went to church,
but they didn't make Lupe go.
He went on his own.
It was his thing to do.
Rita: When we had Lizzie,
Lupe's promise was that he would continue to serve him
as long as she stayed healthy.
That's why he keeps doing religious ed.
He won't leave it because that was his promise.
I've asked him before, "Do you want to take a break?
Do you want to get away."
But he says, "I can't.
That's the promise I made when Lizzie was born."
And so he's kept it.
And I've never asked him again.
Lizzie: Hi! Ha ha!
Rita: He's all in the bathroom with us.
Lizzie: Riveting stuff watching me do my hair.
Ok, bye. Have a good day.
Love you!
Lupe: Bye. Love you.
Lizzie: Thank you. Bye.
Lizzie: Bye.
Lizzie: How are people ok with, like,
sending out such hate first thing in the morning?
You know, not something a girl wants to hear
when she's trying to get ready.
Oh...
They're trying to tell me that I still have a job to do
and there's people that are still needing to hear me.
It's just making me want to, like, do really well today.
Lizzie: As I was getting ready,
I started realizing, like, how big of a deal this is.
I've just been really thinking about how much of an honor it is
for me to even just be in the same room as these people.
How am I gonna live up to that standard?
How in the world do I even prep for something like this?
Lizzie: Hi. Nice to meet you.
Hillary Clinton: Hi, how are you?
Hi. It's such an honor to meet you.
Thank you for your wonderful work.
Aw, thank you very much.
Oh, it's so important.
It's so nice to meet you.
I'm going to DC tomorrow
to lobby for the first anti-bullying bill.
So you're going to DC tomorrow?
Yes. We head out tomorrow.
And who will you be seeing?
We're gonna do briefings and one-on-one meetings
with different congress people.
I don't think anything works better
than personal testimony.
I think so, too.
Hearing from somebody who can tell the story
and inspire others.
Yeah. It makes all the hard days I've had worth it.
It does.
Because it's like I know what you've been through,
and now together let's make a difference.
That's right.
Good luck tomorrow.
It was so nice to meet you.
Take care. Thank you.
That was exciting!
[Applause]
Go, Lizzie, please.
Audience: [Cheering]
Lizzie: Hola todos!
Como esta?
Audience: Bien!
Lizzie: That's all the Spanish I know.
We all have our own journey.
My journey started in Texas.
My journey started 25 years ago.
The start to your journey might be positive.
The start to your journey might be negative.
But we were all meant to be put on this earth for a reason.
People have called me the ugliest woman in the world.
But am I gonna believe them? No.
Because I believe in my journey and my purpose.
Audience: [Applause]
I am a girl from Texas who had a wild dream,
a wild dream to inspire people.
It's funny to say this now.
I would say if I could speak to a room of 1,000 people
and I change the life of person, that's all that matters.
[Applause]
You can decide right now,
I'm going to be brave, and I'm going to find my purpose,
and I'm going to succeed.
That's all you have to say.
I decided I could do it.
And I learned that I am beautiful, I am smart,
and I can do the things that I put my mind to
because I believed it first.
You are the biggest influence in your life.
Not anyone else.
[Applause]
I want to leave you with a quote that I read recently.
When you know who you are and what you stand for,
you stand in wisdom.
Gracias, Mexico.
[Applause]
Woman: [Singing indistinctly]
* I want to see you be brave *
* It's what you want to say *
* Let the words fall out *
* Honestly, I want to see you be brave *
* I want to see you be brave *
Tina: I wanted to meet you
because being around somebody else
who out of something that's been hard
is trying to make it better
and knowing that it's really good
to be able to be in the same place with somebody like that
that can understand the pressures
of putting yourself out there every day.
Lizzie: Yes.
Having, like, this pressure
of having to turn it on and turn it off
and still trying to stay sane between everything
and feeling like you have to be strong for everyone else
but knowing the truth is
you really have to be strong for yourself first,
and it can be hard sometimes.
But so worth it.
Tina: When you get done speaking,
afterwards, 'cause you many times have,
people come up that are really struggling.
You walk away and sometimes I'll, you know,
I'll sit in the plane, I'll, like, all of a sudden
just have tears start rolling down my face.
It's a lot sometimes, and it'll just hit me all at once.
Like, I have to--
I feel like I put the pressure on myself
to live up to everything
and be the person that people are so inspired by
and looking up to you,
and it's like, I'm having a weak moment,
but am I allowed to have that weak moment?
Tina: When you have self doubt,
I think it's important for us to reset and then move forward.
To be able to, like, connect with someone
that knows exactly what it's like.
Tina: Right. It is.
Like I told you on the phone,
there are times that we sit there and think, "Can I do this?
"Can I... Is--
What if I'm not that? What if--"
Lizzie: What if I can't live up to it?
Right. What if you can't live up to that?
Ugh!
I just can't believe we're here!
I know, but it's gonna be...
I just need to not put so much pressure on myself.
If you can just be you,
just you,
they will see through
all of the other stuff to just see you.
If you just show, "I'm here because I want to make this difference.
"I want--I've gone through it.
"I've lived it.
"I want to be able to now help the kids
that don't feel like they have a voice."
And that's why we need your support,
that we're trying to get bullying defined,
giving the schools the tools to be able to now know
what they can do to help the students.
If you just go with your heart,
I think you're gonna be amazing.
You're gonna make a difference regardless.
Lizzie: I read a comment yesterday.
All it said was, "You're unstoppable,"
and I thought, you know, we kinda are.
This is really... like...surreal,
and all I can do is eat bacon.
That makes me very comfortable.
I put a status on Facebook this morning
for all my internet friends.
I said, "Today, I will take every story, every tear,
"every time someone was bullied with me
"into each meeting I have on Capitol Hill.
"I will proudly take my experiences and yours
"to the people who can make a change
"and do my absolute best to show them
"that it's time to do more than just talk about bullying,
but to do something about it."
Here we go.
Linda: I'm pleased to be here talking about the critical issue of bullying
because when I was first elected to Congress,
I held a series of meetings with local school superintendents
and law enforcement leaders
to learn more about the challenges that they face
in keeping kids in school and on the right track
to becoming productive citizens.
And unfortunately, I heard a reoccurring theme during this series of meetings,
and that was that bullying isn't a harmless prank
or some kind of rite of passage,
it's dangerous both physically and mentally for students.
Bullying leads to things like poor school performance,
absences from school,
or even dropping out of school altogether.
The prospect of assault and harassment will lead a child
to join a gang for protection.
That's why I've been working to change federal laws
so that schools can use federal funds
to address and prevent bullying and harassment.
Linda Sanchez: The Safe Schools Improvement Act
is meant to provide national standard
across every school district in every state
that says that bullying will not be tolerated on school campuses.
Robert: We may be in the midst of a culture of meanness.
There's research that shows
that if you ask kids to define what bullying means,
they think it means getting beat up on the playground.
They don't think of it as what's going on on Facebook.
You know, at it's heart,
bullying is really intended to harm.
Linda Sanchez: There is that dynamic
that prior generations experienced
that bullying is character building or, you know,
it's important for the victim to stand up to the bully.
And it's hard when you grew up with that mindset
to understand that there's a new phenomenon going on.
Robert: There are indications that online
is often an extension of what's going on at school,
and so when the kids go home, there's no break.
They're still immersed in the drama,
the cycle of drama amongst their classmates.
Linda Sanchez: Most of the members that are here
who are of a certain generation
don't understand how kids can be harassed 24/7
and how just devastating that could be for those kids.
And I think if they were to understand
that times have changed and that it's a far more pervasive problem now,
probably their mindset might change.
But it's hard to explain that to somebody
who hasn't experienced that personally,
and that's why sharing those personal stories
with these members is really important.
I can't tell you how touched I am by your story
And how amazed I am at the work that you do
and just keep going and keep up the great work.
Linda Sanchez: The legislative process is a slow one,
but to see a bill like this not get the support it deserves
despite 8 years of advocacy and work on it
is a little bit frustrating.
Lizzie: Congresswoman Sanchez is fighting the same fight that I am.
We're in this together,
and knowing that it was meant for both of us
to be sitting there side by side
was just something that was very, very powerful.
Lizzie: Mom, I don't feel good.
My body just doesn't feel right.
Man: Hello.
Lizzie: Hi. Nice to meet you.
Hi, I'm Rita Velasquez.
Juan Sanchez.
Come into the conference room.
Lizzie: Myself doing the research,
I found myself getting really angry
that there's not enough support for it.
I'm very proud of you for being so brave and positive.
Lizzie: Thank you.
And I have to say
that I saw your TED talk maybe a year ago.
Wow. Wow.
And it left an impact on me, so I wanted to tell you that.
Oh, thank you so much.
We've sponsored a couple of anti-bullying programs
in our district.
Right.
I'm hoping you can help us
continue that impact for kids in every school.
My story is only one.
There's so many others.
Hi. Lizzie. Nice to meet you.
Linda Sanchez: It's a non-partisan issue
because it affects constituents in every member's district.
Little better?
Rita: Wow, this is a big room.
Lizzie: I wanted to come here
because I feel like this is the place where change happens,
and unfortunately the change hasn't been made.
We're fully aware that bullying is never gonna stop.
There's never gonna be a cure.
But we are just doing whatever we can to help get the support.
Rita: It affects the whole family,
not just the person being bullied.
It affects everybody.
Mickeala: Exactly.
Yeah.
Lizzie: My stomach is too upset.
Lizzie: Sitting in there, it just hit me like a wave of heat,
and I had to run to the bathroom to throw up again,
and then I went back outside and I just sat in the wheelchair,
and he came out, and he looked at me,
and I thought, "Ok, I have to turn it on."
All right, well, we're glad you're here
and we're going to try to help you if we can.
And stay in touch, and you can call me any time.
Thank you. I really, really appreciate it.
Ok, good. Good to see you.
You, too.
Bye-bye.
Lizzie: Mom.
I think you should call him.
Huh?
I think you should call home.
Call home?
No. What?
Dr. Perez.
Ok.
Lizzie: I'm powering through.
I'm gonna do it.
I'm not getting sick. I'm not getting sick.
Nope. I'm not.
Lizzie: Coming here is a once in a lifetime experience.
As awful as I felt,
there's way in the world
that I would let my body make me come home.
There's no way. There's no way.
100 Massachusetts Avenue.
Lizzie: And plus my outfits have been really cute,
even though I was throwing up,
there was people in the bathrooms
every time I would go in there,
so they would get to see the dress too.
So it counted.
Lizzie: Throw up, eat a mint,
and then get back on the wheelchair
and do it all over again.
Just gotta get through one more thing.
One more thing.
Lizzie: For those of you who don't know my story,
I was born with a very rare syndrome
that doesn't allow me to gain weight,
and unfortunately when I started school,
I had to encounter bullying at a very early age.
I will go back every single day
and deal with every harsh word, every awful comment,
whatever it takes, over and over again
because of the fact that the outcome
is me being able to sit here and be the voice
for every child that has been bullied.
The importance of this bill being passed
can easily go without saying.
We see so many stories in the media of children killing themselves.
What's being done?
Nothing.
It's taken 8 years, and it's still not passed.
What is it gonna take?
It blows my mind to think that there's adults here
who have the power to simply co-sign their name.
That's it.
I don't think they realize how many lives they can save every single day.
It has to stop. It has to stop.
I'm years 25 old,
and I still remember being picked on in elementary school.
Those scars will never go away.
I don't want you to leave here feeling sorry for me
because I've become much stronger than that.
I want you to leave and rather than feeling like you need to stand up for me,
I want you to stand beside me and stand beside every child that's ever been bullied.
Lizzie: If I ever somehow, someway meet the person
who sent me that message or who first posted it,
I would thank him.
Thank him for making me as strong as I am today.
It's just crazy to look back and see the progression that I made.
I think the biggest difference is having people just talk to me as a human being.
If I hadn't have been able to embrace the body that I'm in,
there's no way that I could've been the champion for so many other people.
I know good and well that bullying will never ever, ever stop.
But what can continue is someone being the leader
to show the best way that we can deal with it.
Lizzie: All I know is being knocked down and getting back up.
I've been in and out of doctors' offices
and n and out of hospitals, in and out of surgeries.
But really all I know is that you get better,
and you keep going, and if something else comes up,
you pick yourself back up and you deal with it.
I think I realized that this is something that means a lot to me
and I'm not gonna go away until they listen. Ha ha!
Woman: [Vocalizing]
* I want to walk to the room like that other girl does *
* The one that's always making everybody fall in love *
* Is she *
* Girl, you're a lot like me *
* She rearranges all the light in the room *
* So you're always in the shadows *
* Well, that's what it feels like to you *
* Baby, I've been there, too *
* And I know how much it kills sometimes her *
* You feel like the whole world has made you the ugly girl *
* Take it from me that you have to see it first *
* So before you trade in your summer skin *
* For those high-heeled shoes
* To make them want to be with you *
* Let me remind you one more time *
* That just maybe you're beautiful *
* But you just can't see *
* So why don't you trust me *
* They'll see it, too, you beautiful girl, you *
[Vocalizing]
* And I know how much you've been dying to say *
* Look how much everybody loves me *
* Guess who gets left when everyone else fades away *
* So before you trade in your summer skin *
* For those high-heeled shoes *
* You make 'em want to be with you *
* Let me remind you one more time *
* That just maybe you're beautiful *
* But you just can't see *
* So why don't you trust me *
* They'll see it, too, you beautiful girl, you *
* Beautiful girl, you *
* You beautiful girl, you *
[Vocalizing]