5 Reasons Why It's Important the Doctor is Female

I remember sitting on a panel at a Doctor Who convention in 2013 when the question was asked: “How would you feel about the 13th Doctor being a woman?” At the time, I hadn’t given it much thought. I answered something to the effect of, “I’d prefer the Doctor to be a man. But, I would be fine with it if it happened.”

As I thought more and more about the question, it became important to me to figure out exactly why I preferred the Doctor to be a male. The answer that I eventually settled on was that I preferred the Doctor being a white male because it was important to me to see this character going off on adventures and doing amazing things while, at least on the outside, resembling me. I could indirectly live vicariously through the Doctor more easily because he and I had something in common. I didn’t want to give that up.

It’s a great feeling to see a fictional character with a high moral stance saving the universe that shares even the most basic of characteristics with me. I had never really thought about it because that was the norm for me. Most fictional heroes are cisgender, white males. I wanted my favorite hero to always be relatable on the simplest of levels. It was as simple as that. That’s when it clicked. It was a simple as that.

The reasons that I wanted the Doctor to remain a white male are exactly why it was important that the 13th Doctor be something, anything other than a white male.

It is so easy for even the most well-intending, progressive, white guy to space out on this very basic concept. Because we have never faced the struggle of looking at our favorite heroes and not seeing ourselves in them. It’s a privilege that we have taken for granted, and it is time for that to change. It’s time for everyone else to have the opportunity to look at their favorite characters and see more of themselves reflecting back. We’ve had a long time guys. So, let’s share the feeling. The truth is, we will still see some of ourselves in a female character or a person of color. Odds are it’ll be far more important than just the color of our skin or being the same gender. The Doctor isn’t about how they look, it’s about what they do.

For me, time and perspective had shifted, and by the time Capaldi’s end was near I was beating the drum for the Doctor to be a woman or a person of color. On July 16, 2017, Jodie Whittaker was revealed to be the next Doctor. In a mirror to the changes we are seeing in our culture and society that have been so sorely delayed, we knew that our show was never going to be the same. Nor should it be.

At Gallifrey One 29 in Los Angeles the weekend of President’s Day, there were a sea of 13th Doctors ranging from toddlers to giant legos to puppets. There was one quote that kept resurfacing in my head: This is why it’s important the Doctor is a female.