notes, to develop a rare muscle: one that allows them to identify with people who don’t in any meaningful way, represent them. In creating a Black girl hero, one loaded with flaws and insecurities and shortcomings, Ava offers an alternative. She shows her young viewers that in spite of any differences or faults, they can, and will, do great things. One day, they might even save the world.Earlier this month, aphoto ’s big screen adaptation. In her world, Meg is biracial, and her hair remains uncompromised throughout the movie. In one scene, we even see Storm Reid with straight hair, as a version of who Meg could be, yet she rejects this beauty ideal, choosing herself instead. This is the magic of Ava — unlike many filmmakers before her, she assigns Black characters the dimensions that allow them to be realized as full human beings, rather than background props in white stories. Like us, you're probably wondering: "Who the heck is in charge of this thing?" According to the brand, its founders are staying anonymous to keep the focus on voter participation. We do know, this, though: "What we can say is it’s a collective of beauty industry insiders supporting the Biden/Harris campaign," a statement from the brand reads. She wasn’t alive when I became old enough to read magazines and watch TV, and yet she was ever-present.Today, 24 years after her death, she still is.