Anti-Bullying Activist Lizzie Velasquez Should Be An Inspiration To Every Single One Of Us
Once called “the world’s ugliest woman”, Velasquez now campaigns to protect others from bullies. [Photo: Instagram/Lizzie Velasquez]
Lizzie Velasquez is an amazing woman, there’s no doubt about it. She’s been the victim of some of the worst online trolling we’ve ever come across and was even once labelled “the world’s ugliest woman” by one cruel YouTube user.
But the 26-year-old refuses to late haters define her. Born blind in one eye and with a rare condition that means she’s unable to gain weight, the Texas native has used her status to empower others – and fight back at bullies.
Velasquez’s brave and moving story has struck a chord with people of all ages around the world. [Photo: Instagram/Lizzie Velasquez]
Velasquez was in senior school when she stumbled across a horrific video ridiculing her. With over four million views, it boasted thousands and thousands of truly hateful comments with some viewers going as far as to say, “kill it with fire” and “why don’t you do everyone a favour and just kill yourself.”
“And each comment I read, I felt like someone was physically putting their fist through the computer screen and punching me,” Velasquez told Fox. “Because each word just felt like I’d been hit with a ton of bricks.”
Actress Octavia Spencer is one of Velasquez’s biggest supporters. [Photo: Instagram/Lizzie Velasquez]
Kylie Jenner is another high profile celeb who’s publically supporting Velasquez. [Photo: Instagram/Lizzie Velasquez]
But despite being the victim of such awful bullying, the campaigner decided to use her story to inspire others and amazingly is one of the most positive people out there. She ran a Ted Talk in 2013, which quickly turned her into a global superstar.
“I always knew I was going to show those people that they don’t define me,” Velasquez said. “I didn’t want the definition of me that they were creating to become my truth. I wanted to make my own truth.”
Nowadays, her campaigning has garnered support globally and she’s even being backed by some of the world’s top stars, including Chris Hemsworth, Kristen Bell and Kylie Jenner.
Velasquez has also released a documentary, titled, “A Brave Heart: The Lizzie Velasquez story” to help others combat cyber bullying.
A true inspiration.
Do you have a story to share? Tweet us at @YahooStyleUK.
