Her Korean mother left home as a young woman to find a new life in the United States, but an oppressive marriage nearly shattered that dream and destroyed Elizabeth, her only daughter. This senior year, mother and daughter are rebuilding their life, and for Elizabeth a speech at the citywide Academic Decathlon competition becomes her sword against the demons of her past.

Music: Lauren Hill, Mariah Carey

Activists: Martin Luther King Jr., Butterfly "because of her stand on environmental rights."

Magazines: Teen, Seventeen, Glamour, Color

Movies: Ghost