With the latest update to iOS, Apple has introduced a whole new set of emojis.
With the iOS 17.4 release, the Podcast app received an overhaul, 118 new emojis were added, and iMessage security was significantly revamped.
New gender-neutral family emojis are an attempt to make those who don’t fit neatly into the old gender binary feel like they’re being more appropriately represented in messages.
Apple is expanding the options beyond the male and female variants of famous emojis such as elf, zombie, graduate, detective, and British police officer. New gender-neutral emojis are an attempt to give people who don’t fit the conventional gender binary a chance to feel more appropriately represented in their messages. This is similar to how adding multiple racial options allowed a broader range of users to perceive themselves reflected in their emojis.
Some think of it as an attack on traditional families or an outright endorsement of attacks on traditional families.
Party of Women leader Kellie-Jay Keen has said that Apple is trying to promote controversial transgender ideology with the new emojis. On the other hand, Gendered Intelligence’s Cleo Madeleine thinks that emojis are a step in the right direction as they allow individuals to convey little pieces of information more rapidly.
The goal of Apple’s gender-neutral design is to combine elements that are traditionally associated with men and women. Consumers do have a stake in the choices made by Apple’s designers, who perpetuate harmful notions about “gender-neutral” that can make many people feel erased and ignored despite the supposed visibility of their identity.
Apple’s take on gender-neutral design seeks a happy medium between traditionally masculine and feminine traits.
The outsized backlash to this revision demonstrates that some individuals want to keep non-binary persons out of their conception of family. The Apple family sees the new emojis as a modest yet meaningful way to help bring people all across the globe closer together.
