Representation matters.
Farida Bedwei, a software engineer and entrepreneur from Ghana, is the creator behind Karmzah, a crime fighting archaeologist with Cerebral Palsy who uses assistive devices to fight bad guys.
Karmzah, who is Morowa Adjei when she is not fighting crime, is the first superhero with Cerebral Palsy, which is a welcome change in a world that is full of able bodied (and mostly men) individuals. Because of an unfortunate accident during one of her archaeological projects, Morowa gains some special powers that enable her to tele transport to any location and speak any language in existence. Her crutches, though inanimate objects, also gain some really amazing capabilities of their own to assist Karmzah in her quests. The powers are not just limited to the crutches though – her mask comes with built-in technology that helps her hack into electronic device and networks, and control them!
The first Karmzah issue, which is available in the US on Amazon Kindle for $3.99 and on Afrocomix app on the Google Play Store, is a great start to a promising series not just because Karmzah is a super hero but also because her story encourages and promotes inclusion. For children with disabilities, these are the types of stories that excite them about using assistive technology!
We hope Farida continues to write more Karmzah comics! Watch the video below to learn more about Farida and Karmzah.