JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A local girl's creation won her some top honors at Jacksonville’s One Spark festival. Natalie McGriff's comic book, “The Adventures of Moxie Girl,” carries a message about being true to who you are.
But despite that positive message, Action News has learned the 7-year-old has become a target. Her family is now facing a new challenge of staying positive in the face of racist cyberbullying.
Natalie is a 7-year-old with superhero alter ego Moxie Girl.
“I have super powers in my hair and it's fire, ice and water,” she said.
Moxie Girl’s powers come from her afro-puff hair style. The hero’s adventures of saving Jacksonville’s library from monsters are all inside the comic.
“I’m just happy, I’m excited,” Natalie said.
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Moxie Girl’s origin story is more than the character getting her powers from magic shampoo. Natalie and her mom, Angie Nixon, developed the comic to teach some important real-life lessons.
“Natalie was having issues with her hair and natural skin color, and she also hated to read,” said Nixon.
The comic became a hit at this year’s One Spark. Natalie took home more than $16,000 after Moxie Girl won in the education project’s category.
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Moxie Girl has gone viral, but some of the anonymous online posts about the comic were not so super. Nixon hasn’t told her daughter about them.
"They're saying things like we're monkey, we have fur, we're not going to use the money to publish the book, we're going to use the money to eat watermelon, and drink Kool-Aid and go to KFC," Nixon said. "This is driving me to get Natalie's message out there further."
Those racist posts aren't stopping Moxie Girl or her creators.
“Love their hair the way it is, natural, and they should love to read,” Natalie said. “It’s really about overcoming insecurities and being proud of who you are.”
The comic is due out in June, thanks to a little girl’s creativity and a little moxie.
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