Everyone is familiar with the universal restroom signs, found worldwide, that point bathroom-goers to their respective lavatories. The men’s room dons a generic silhouette, who could either be naked or wearing very tight clothing. The ladies’ room figure, meanwhile, is very obviously sporting a dress. Well, as it turns out, it was never a dress.

Software developer Axosoft, along with their newly hired curator of code, Tania Katan, are using those universally known restroom signs as a means of empowering women by changing the world’s perceptions about them. In short, “It Was Never a Dress” is aiming to change our views of those signs by showing us that it’s not actually a dress found on ladies’ rooms signs, but is rather a superhero cape.

The purpose of “It Was Never A Dress” is to encourage more young girls to areas of industry where women are often gravely underrepresented, such as science and technology, among others, says the campaign’s official website.

“It Was Never a Dress is an invitation to shift perceptions and assumptions about women and the audacious, sensitive, and powerful gestures they make every single day. In science, technology, arts, mathematics, politics, houses of worship, on the streets, and in our homes, insightful women are often uninvited, overlooked, or just plain dismissed. Through storytelling, community building, innovation and creative disruptions, It Was Never a Dress will foster necessary conversations, vital voices, and images from around the world that honor ALL women. When we see women differently… we see the world differently! Stay tuned and keep disrupting.”

The “It Was Never a Dress” campaign had its inaugural debut at Monday’s Girls in Tech conference, where Tania Katan delivered a speech addressing the conference.

“They wanted an evangelist,” she said of her recent hiring at Axosoft, “as a creative artist, I’m used to breaking barriers.”

In a recent video, Katan explains the campaign further.

“This lady, well we’ve been looking at her the wrong way. We’re launching a campaign that shows you what’s really on the other side. It was never a dress. It’s to challenge assumptions and perceptions about women in technology, and to offer up the truth.”

“It Was Never a Dress” is just one step in Axosoft’s mission to promote and nurture a love of all things tech for young girls. They were a main sponsor for the Girls In Tech event and are also involved with CodaKid, a Scottsdale, Arizona-based coding school for children in kindergarten through eighth grade that will begin teaching out of Axosoft’s offices in May.

[Image Credit: Bored Panda]