12, 2018 in Houston.

The competition is held each year at downtown Houston's Antioch Missionary Baptist Church, which was founded in 1866 by emancipated slaves and became the city's first African-American Baptist church. With several hundred people crowded into church pews, including Superintendent Richard Carranza and school board trustees Diana Dávila and Jolanda Jones, the elementary school students delivered their speeches responding to a common prompt: What is your dream for today's world?

This year's question led Tchanori to write a speech about eliminating the poverty she has witnessed across Houston. She argued that King, who died 50 years ago this April, would be disappointed in American efforts to help the poor, and said it's the responsibility of citizens to change that.

"I want all of our top government officials totake poverty, failing schools and health care seriously," Tchanori said during her speech. "The way to do this is through political action and voting."

She said she penned her speech after conversations with her 16-year-old brother and her mother, Tandiwe Kone, who frequently discusses societal issues with her daughter. Utilizing tips she picked up from a couple sessions with the Texas Southern University Debate Team, Tchanori gave a confident and measured speech.

"She has a spirit about her that's really calming," said Kesley Lewis, Tchanori's speech coach and math teacher at Gregory-Lincoln Education Center. "Nothing really excites her outwardly, but she has a passion and a drive and she's really, really focused."

Tchanori emerged victorious from a competition that began with a few hundred students from 24 schools. Caleb Kiteka, of