MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG) — A 3-year-old girl’s Spider-Man costume has captured the hearts of thousands on social media.
The pictures, which show Demi Rose Jackson overlooking downtown Mobile, Alabama, and dressed as the one and only Spider-Man while styling in her afro-puffs, have gone viral.
Demi Rose Jackson’s mother and eldest sister shared the deeper meaning behind the costume.
Her professional photographer mother Diamond Jackson had the vision to make Demi Rose’s love for the marvel character come to life, saying her daughter’s obsession is fairly new.
“We literally ran across a Spider-Man bookbag or lunch box in Target one night, and she just fell in love,” Diamond said. “Ever since then, when we see things, she is crazy about it. She even has a love for spiders.”
They say the toddler insisted on Spider-Man’s actual costume and not some superhero-inspired dress. It was at that moment that she turned into Spider-Girl.
In true Peter Parker fashion, Demi Rose decided to remain in character and let her family do all the talking.
Her eldest sister Denver helped hold Spider-Girl’s string as she shot her web.
“When I saw the costume, I was so excited, like, ‘Oh my God, it’s so cute,’” said Denver. She also said the three-year-old can be a bit of a handful.
“At home, she’s active. She’s always torturing us. She’s very bad. But she’s sweet,” Denver said.
The pictures have been shared on Facebook more than 75,000 times. They also had actors Viola Davis and Marvel’s own Michael B. Jordan marveling at what many are calling “Black Girl Magic.”
Diamond and Denver say most of that magic comes from Demi Rose’s natural hair.
“I think afros were always kind of big, but long ago it wasn’t,” Denver said. “But I think after the Spider-Man photo, it made a big, big difference and inspired a lot of people.”
“I really want them to embrace their natural hair,” said Diamond. “I think it’s important for them to love every part about themselves, and when I say ‘them’ I mean all three of my daughters. It was to the point where I cut my own hair to go natural, to let them know if I can love myself like this, then you can too.”
Diamond hopes this moment continues to bring joy and inspire inclusion across the world.
“My heart is full. I feel like with everything going on in the world, I feel like it’s perfect to have a little superhero that we can believe in,” Diamond said.