Emojis are by far my favorite way of communicating with other humans, but I'll be the first to admit they definitely have their limitations — which is why I was thrilled to find out that new Facebook emojis are on their way, and that they are way more representative of diverse women. How are the new Facebook Messenger emojis different than the old ones, exactly? If you've ever wanted to send someone a woman police officer emoji, now is your time.
In a message posted on June 1, Facebook Messenger announced that there were huge changes in store for emoji enthusiasts as it prepared to roll out brand new standardized Facebook Messenger emojis that offered up more diversity, as well as more female options for emojis that were previously only available as men. "From skin tones that you can choose to lots of women in great roles, Messenger is beginning to make emojis more representative of the world we live in," it posted on its Facebook page. Among the 1,500 newly designed emojis to drop on June 2? A woman police officer, jogger, pedestrian, swimmer, and surfer. Of course, there are still a zillion emojis that don't include an option for women, but I would say this is definitely a step in the right direction. And, as Facebook Messenger added, there are many more updates to come.
Adding to the excitement is the fact that the new Facebook Messenger emojis are also going to be more representative of different ethnicities and skin tones. Per Facebook Messenger's Facebook post:
In an effort to make the emojis you send a better representation of our world, you will also be able to pick the skin color you prefer. All you have to do is set the color you want your default emojis to be when Messenger launches, and your emojis after that will follow your preference.
I don't want to say it's about time, but guys? It's about time. According to Facebook Messenger, 10 percent of all mobile messages exchanged through the Facebook Messenger app contain emoji, but you don't need fancy statistics to prove to you just how prominent a role emojis play in our day-to-day communication — you just have to scroll through your last couple of texts to see that emojis are everywhere. And knowing that Facebook Messenger is actively trying to make these tiny pictograms more inclusive of all its users is tremendously exciting because, well you know, women of all backgrounds like to run, swim, surf, and be police officers, too.
So to recap: the new Facebook Messenger emojis are different in that they include more representations of women in roles that were previously only available as men, and you're now able to choose between skin tones. I'm psyched to see what other updates are in the works.
