A Wonder Woman UN staff petition claims that real women deserve real role models. Friday, DC Entertainment took part in a special event at the UN where Wonder Woman, aka Princess Diana of Themyscira, was named an honorary ambassador for the empowerment of women and girls.
Actresses Gal Gadot and Lynda Carter, who have both portrayed Wonder Woman since she was created in 1941, were present at the event. During the ceremony, it was revealed that Wonder Woman was made a temporary ambassador “in support of the UN’s sustainable development goal number five – to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.”
The goals were announced in 2015, and the UN said at the time that they hoped to accomplish them by 2030. Everyone at the UN did not welcome the idea of making Wonder Woman an ambassador. Three female staff members stood with their fists up in the air as a sign of protest against the decision to honor the superhero.
While they were not willing to reveal their identity, they did speak to the media and explained why they decided to take a stand. One of the UN staff said the Secretary General Ban Ki-moon should have picked one of the many real women, who are heroes for dedicating their lives to helping others. One woman said:
“On every imaginable level, we think she is a poor choice.”
Another protester explained that one of the reasons why she is against Wonder Woman being honored is because she is oversexualized in the movies. She added:
“There are enough credible living models, we don’t need a mascot or a cartoon.”
Immediately after the event, a petition was launched asking Wonder Woman be replaced with a real person. It read:
“The bottom line appears to be that the United Nations was unable to find a real-life woman that would be able to champion the rights of ALL women on the issue of gender equality and the fight for their empowerment. The United Nations has decided that Wonder Woman is the role model that women and girls all around the world should look up to.”
More than 2000 people have signed the petition thus far. Wonder Woman is not the first fictional character honored at the UN, Winnie the Pooh and Friendship from Angry Birds and Tinker Bell have been made honorary ambassadors.