Star Wars Fans Rally In Support Of Bullied Girl

With a controversy finally starting to blow over regarding big box retailer Target’s decision to remove gender-specific signage from many of its toy and children’s aisles, CNN has picked up a two-week-old story of a girl who has been dealing with the real ramifications of bullying for liking “boy’s” toys.

A Virginia girl who was starting to feel pressure to conform after other girls teased her for liking “boy things” like Guardians of the Galaxy and Star Wars got support from the 501st Legion, a Star Wars-themed nonprofit that does a wide variety of charitable work.

You can see their post below, including the photo above of the girl, named Layla, meeting with “Weird Al” Yankovic.

“A lot of the Star Wars community and fans are supportive, and a lot of the females can relate and had similar experiences in their own childhoods,”Nicolette Molina,Layla’s mother, told CNN, adding that “A lot of people outside the community immediately attack our parenting, saying we should have instilled more confidence in her on our own. I even had one man suggest I teach her to fight.”

After receiving thousands of comments, messages and even some gifts, Layla is feeling happier and more comfortable in being herself at school.