Young Girl Bullied for Liking STAR WARS Gets Support from the 501st Legion
I absolutely hate bullies. I have three young girls who are into the same kind of geeky stuff that I am, and they have had experiences with bullying that break my heart. I love that they are into the same stuff that I am! I don't want bullies to come around and make them think they are stupid for liking Star Wars, comic books, and superheroes.
A young fangirl named Layla, who is from Virginia, was being teased at school for wearing an R2-D2 jacket and Guardians of the Galaxy shirt. This is something that I've been hearing more and more about recently, which is crazy to me because these things are now a part of pop culture! But there are young impressionable girls out there who are being bullied and attacked for liking these things! These poor kids are being targeted because other people don't believe that Star Wars, Marvel, and DC are things girls should like, which is horseshit. These girls can like whatever the hell they want! Speaking for my own kids, it's part of their personality, it's part of who they are! I imagine it's the same for these other young ladies out there.
As a way to show their support for Layla, the local chapter of the 501st Legion, Garrison Tyranus, came in to help out by issuing her a set of Stormtrooper armor! Apparently the suit of armor has been passed along from other girls who have been bullied over the years. io9 describes it as an "awesome sort of Sisterhood of the Traveling Armor."
That's not all, though! She also got to meet “Weird Al” Yankovic at a local concert. The photo of Layla with Yankovic is above, and here's the full rundown from the 501st Legion's Facebook page:
Layla is yet another young girl who was teased at school for liking Star Wars amongst other "boy" things. As a result of the bullying, Layla began to lose herself. She stopped wanting to wear her R2-D2 jacket and Guardians of the Galaxy shirt out of fear of being ridiculed. 501st Garrison Tyranus led the charge and rallied messages of support from#501st members all over the world to encourage Layla to be herself. Taking it one step further, Layla became the next recipient of the custom Stormtrooper armor originally built for another girl (Katie Goldman) who was in a similar situation. After suiting up, Layla was whisked away to meet "Weird Al" Yankovic at a local concert where 501st members were participating on stage. This excited young #StarWars fan now proudly carries the trading cards of her 501st supporters in a Chewbacca backpack and can't wait for the next opportunity to troop in armor. Her favorite part of wearing the costume? She loves when people say, "What a cute little boy!" only to discover that there's a girl under that helmet!#BadGuysDoingGood #HeartOfTheForce #StopBullying
I love it when people come together to do good geeky deeds. Geeks unite! Stop the bullying!