2012 Year in Review: The Most Inspirational Stories of the Year

Once called "The World's Ugliest Woman," Lizzie Velasquez was born with a medical condition so rare that just two other people in the world are thought to have it: She weighs just 60 pounds and has no adipose tissue, and cannot create muscle, store energy, or gain weight. She inspired women the world over earlier this year when, during an interview with CNN, she said that people "should stop staring and start learning." Since then, she told Yahoo! Shine, she's been flooded with speaking requests and supportive emails. In 2013 she's hoping write her third book (her second, "Be Beautiful, Be You" came out in September), continue her work as a motivational speaker, and meet as many people as possible in 2013.

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Photo by: The Chaifetz Family
When his 10-year-old son, Akian, who has autism, was having problems in class, Stuart Chaifetz knew there was more going on than he was being told. So he rigged a recording device for his son and sent him to school. What he heard was appalling. Angry adults yelling at kids to "shut up," having inappropriate personal conversations in front of the children, and goading Akian to the point of tears -- and then laughing ... more
Photo by: The Chaifetz Family
When his 10-year-old son, Akian, who has autism, was having problems in class, Stuart Chaifetz knew there was more going on than he was being told. So he rigged a recording device for his son and sent him to school. What he heard was appalling. Angry adults yelling at kids to "shut up," having inappropriate personal conversations in front of the children, and goading Akian to the point of tears -- and then laughing at him. After he couldn't get the school to fix the problem completely, Chaifetz put the recordings online and demanded that the teachers apologize to the boy they had abused. "I want an apology, not for me, but so one day I can play this video back for my son and say Akian, you didn't deserve anything that happened to you," he said. "It's not about money. It's about dignity." (Read his story: Dad Secretly Tapes Autistic Son at School.)
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