United Nations Appoints Wonder Woman ‘Honorary Ambassador for the Empowerment of Women and Girls’

Wonder Woman's comic book role as an ambassador for peace and equality to the whole world is becoming more literal than would have seemed possible, as she has been named an honorary ambassador by the United Nations.

A ceremony will be held on October 21 in which United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, alongside DC Entertainment president Diane Nelson, will name Wonder Woman the Honorary Ambassador for the Empowerment of Women and Girls. This will also mark the launch of a campaign to "achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls," which is one of the UN's 17 goals to transform the world.

As a fictional character, it feels silly to even point out that Wonder Woman can't do any ambassadorial work, and can only ever be a figurehead. However, when it comes to female empowerment, you couldn't ask for a better figurehead than her. As the most famous and important female superhero in history, she's as literal a symbol for women's power as you could hope for.

In fact William Moulton Marston, who created the character along with Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Olive Byrne and Harry G. Peter, spoke often about how Wonder Woman was intended to set a positive example for young girls and provide a vision for a better world. So there's a real sense in which this honor from the UN marks a culmination of the character's purpose, and it's impossible to imagine her creators being anything but thrilled if they were alive to see it happen.

2016 marks the 75th anniversary of Wonder Woman's first appearance in All-Star Comics #8, and she's already received other honors for the occasion, including a set of US postage stamps.

[via Wired]