Less than two months after she was appointed an Honorary Ambassador for the Empowerment of Women and Girls in a United Nations ceremony, Reuters reports that Wonder Woman has lost her job.
Wonder Woman’s appointment began with an October 21 ceremony (see “Wonder Woman Profile Raised in 75th Year”), but her stint as honorary ambassador comes to an unexpected end this Friday.
With DC’s support, the U.N. had planned to use Wonder Woman in its campaign to promote gender equality and the empowerment of women around the globe. The U.N. did not offer a specific explanation for Wonder Woman’s termination, but the appointment had garnered some controversy.
Dozens of U.N. employees had protested at U.N. headquarters the day of the ceremony, and nearly 45,000 people had signed an online petition opposed to Wonder Woman’s ambassadorship. The opposition focused on the character’s figure and costume, arguing that an overtly sexualized image was inappropriate for a campaign focused on women’s equality and that the character was not culturally encompassing.
DC still intends to release the special edition Wonder Woman comic book focused on the empowerment of women that was planned as part of the campaign for the U.N.
The U.N. ambassadorship coincided with Wonder Woman’s 75th Anniversary, and her termination by the U.N. has no effect on DC’s unafiliated celebration of the character, which includes a number of publications (see “Celebrating 75 Years of Wonder Woman”), commemorative stamps (see “Wonder Woman 75th Anniversary Stamp Sheet”), and a new theatrical film starring Gal Gadot (see “The 'Wonder Woman' Comic-Con Trailer”).