Let's not kid ourselves: the primary goal of any commercial is to sell a product. But sometimes a commercial also happens to entertain and inspire, which is why you'll definitely be sharing the new GoldieBlox #BeLikeHer campaign with your friends all day. The ad inspires girls to be like Princess Leia, as well as Simone Biles, the new Ghostbusters, the mathematicians portrayed in Hidden Figures, and more. Basically, if you have a daughter, you've got the blueprint for her next few Halloween costumes on lock. And no matter what, you're going to be shouting "YAS QUEEN!" at a toy commercial today or crying happy tears along with most of Twitter.
The current political and social climate may have left some women and girls feeling rather downtrodden. Reproductive rights are being chipped away, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was robbed of the presidency by a man who openly joked about grabbing women's genitals, and even Dr. Who isn't immune from whiny man-babies complaining that their childhoods were retroactively ruined by women demanding equal screen time. But there have actually been plenty of gains over the past year, as the ad aims to highlight. Rosie the Riveter and Wonder Woman aren't the only role models anymore, and hey, side note, maybe your daughter would like some STEM toys?
In case you're unable to spare a couple of minutes, a synopsis: the ad opens with girls recreating the Women's March, complete with those pink hats (keeping it clean in case your kid's reading over your shoulder). "Girls can't run the world" is splashed across the scene... Followed by, "Until someone shows them how." Oh, those sneaky advertisers! The message continues: "Now more than ever, they need a role model who inspires them to #BeLikeHer." The following scenes show girls portraying said role models.
First up in the ad is Serena Williams, and a nod to Nike's September 2016 spot, which named her the "greatest female athlete ever," then dropped the F-word (to be clear, Williams, Margaret Court, and Steffi Graf all hold more Grand Slam titles than the top male record-holder, Roger Federer).
The ad's getting some positive reactions from the Strong Female Role Models of Twitter™, as well. Business executives, activists, scientists and entertainers are all happy to spread the GoldieBlox message.
A tiny Dorothy Vaughn, Mary Jackson, and Katherine Johnson remind viewers that rocket scientists "aren't all old white men", followed by kid versions of the 2016 Ghostbusters (while not actually use that word, proving that GoldieBlox learned something from that Beastie Boys lawsuit).
Best of all, the ad recognizes Star Wars' Leia as a not just a princess, but a general (in case you don't have a pedantic feminist nerd in your life already: Leia Organa was a princess by birth, but she was also a senator and founder of the Resistance).
After noting that Simone Biles has won more medals than any other American gymnast, the girls break it down for a dance party. GoldieBlox encourages viewers to share their female role models on social media with the #BeLikeHer hashtag, but please don't #BeLikeKellyanne and pose with a sheet of paper, because that's just asking for trouble.
