*With creating a new superhero comic book, Natalie McGriff is out to prove that loving your hair and who you are is great mind state to be in.
The 7-year-old Florida girl’s creation, titled “The Adventures of Moxie Girl,” centers on a young black superhero named “Moxie Girl.” According to ABC News, Moxie gets her superpowers after her grandmother gives her a magical shampoo. With her new powers, Moxie sets out to save her local library from destruction.
The inspiration for the comic book came from McGriff’s mother Angela Nixon, who mentioned that Natalie told her that she hated reading and her natural hair. From there, Nixon set out to change her daughter’s feelings by working with Natalie to create “The Adventures of Moxie Girl.”
“I used to get picked on in school for my natural hair, and I didn’t want that to happen to my daughter,” Nixon told ABC News. “I wanted to step in, boost her self-esteem and foster a love of reading in her.”
The pair’s work resulted in them entering the comic book in a local festival, where it won first prize in the education category as well as $15,000 in prize money. That total plus the money they previously crowdfunded through OneSpark.com to get the comic book published resulted in Nixon and McGriff receiving a check for $16,423.69, ABC News reports.
With her achievement, Natalie is looking towards spreading her positive hair imagery and message to young Black girls everywhere with plans to publish “The Adventures of Moxie Girl” this summer.
For Angela Nixon, the book is a vehicle for promoting self-appreciation.
“We want girls of color to know they’re awesome, that they have moxie and that they’re young queens who should be proud of who they are and who they represent,” she told ABC News. “Love yourselves, love your hair, your skin color. You’re beautiful and awesome.”
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