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Wonder Woman Nixed as UN Symbol of Female Empowerment

Nearly 45,000 people signed a petition to protest ‘a large breasted, white woman of impossible proportions’ as a worthwhile ambassador of women’s empowerment

by
Jonathan Zalman
December 14, 2016
Facebook / Gal Gadot
Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman in a still from the upcoming 'Justice League' movie.Facebook / Gal Gadot
Facebook / Gal Gadot
Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman in a still from the upcoming 'Justice League' movie.Facebook / Gal Gadot

Back in October, the U.N. selected Wonder Woman as “an honorary ambassador for ‘the empowerment of women and girls,’” reported The New York Times. From the U.N.: “The campaign is about women and girls everywhere, who are wonder women in their own right, and the men and boys who support their struggle for gender equality, bringing about positive change in their homes, workplace, communities, countries and the world together.”

Gal Gadot is currently in the role of DC Comics’ Wonder Woman, with a solo picture coming out next summer.

The appointment sparked outrage, with protests occurring almost immediately; a petition began to circulate online, which objected in part because of the character’s “overtly sexual image” and because “[its] current iteration is that of a large-breasted white woman of impossible proportions, scantily clad in a shimmery, thigh-baring bodysuit with an American flag motif and knee-high boots–the epitome of a ‘pinup’ girl.”

The petition has received nearly 45,000 votes. The U.N. announced Tuesday it would end the campaign Friday.

This isn’t the first time the U.N. has celebrated a fictional character. Others include Winnie the Pooh (Ambassador of Friendship), Tinker Bell (Ambassador of Green), and last year, reported the Times, “Angry Birds dared fans on Twitter … to make the game’s characters happy by conserving water and energy.”

Jonathan Zalman is a writer and teacher based in Brooklyn.