Why was a Wonder Woman lunchbox banned from this elementary school?
A lunchbox which depicts Wonder Woman flying in all her glory with the phrase “As lovely as Aphrodite, as wise as Athena” below her was banned from an elementary school for being “too violent.” And we’re pretty, uh, confused. Wonder Woman — known for her Lasso of Truth and compassion, while being a feminist icon to many — isn’t exactly the poster child for violence or violent culture.
An anonymous Imgur user uploaded a photo (which has been viewed almost 400,000 times since it was uploaded two days ago) of the letter the female student received from the school administration. In the letter, it states that the Wonder Woman lunchbox violates the school’s dress code: “The dress code we have established requests that children not bring violent images into the building in any fashion —on their clothing (including shoes and socks), backpacks and lunchboxes.”
The letter continued, claiming that characters who “solve problems using violence” fall under this category…which includes Wonder Woman.
The original Imgur user, who is allegedly friends with the parents of the child, dismissed the letter as “hilarious” and the Reddit Court did the same — with one user sarcastically commenting “I bet Halloween is real fun at that school….”
“I really thought that the lunch box would have a picture of Wonder Woman kicking or punching someone. Nope, just Wonder Woman is enough to indicate violence,” another user pointed out. So far, the reddit board has over 2,000 comments in regard to the Wonder Woman lunchbox ban.
Though some brushed the policy off as ridiculous, The Mary Sue took it one step further, saying that the policy shows how off-base administrators are and how little knowledge they have about the nature of superheroes.
“But this lunchbox has a picture of Wonder Woman’s face on one side, and on the other a full-body picture of her flying while extolling her beauty and wisdom. Two very non-violent qualities. What’s more, she’s holding her Lasso of Truth, which she never uses as a weapon,” The Mary Sue pointed out.
Another piece published by The Mirror echoed this opinion, mentioning that this out-of-touch, blanket rule ignores that Wonder Woman is less about violence (if at all) and more about perpetuating a message of empowerment and feminism. While she does fight (and very well), she has a commitment to truth and peace.
We can, for the most part, agree that this “dress code violation” was a bit extreme —but it’s encouraging to see the Internet rally together in very smart, thoughtful ways. Viva la Wonder Woman!
(Images via Imgur)
