As for the other Black Amazons—who are only seen within the first 20 minutes of the film, as the story moves away from Themyscira—their physical strength is marveled at and highlighted, as it is with the other Amazons on the island, but this emphasis on physical strength left a bad taste in my mouth. Connecting Black people to brute strength dates back to slave-selling auctions, where a
Black person’s value was directly linked to how physically fit they were. Later, this racist rationale justified the
assumption that Black people were physically stronger than other races because of genetic differences. Today, Black women athletes like Serena Williams are
endlessly ridiculed, their physical strength mocked in anti-Black insults which demean their womanhood.
Wonder Woman's emphasis on the Black Amazons’ physical strength and little else—they’re barely named and only have a handful of speaking roles—is a reflection of these same, tired Black stereotypes.
The only other mention of race in the entire movie comes from an offhand joke between Diana and Steve Trevor's (Chris Pine) secretary, Etta (Lucy Davis). When Etta defines her job, Diana responds, “Where I come from, we call that slavery.” This exchange, which implies one would never choose slavery (ignoring that for Black and other people of color, it was
not a choice, and is still a painful part of history with repercussions still felt today),
reads as tone-deaf and insensitive and solidifies the film's disregard for race and intersectionality within its feminism.