The year was 2008, and the world was struck with the worst global economic downturn since the Great Depression. Instigated by a series of financial losses involving mortgages, the United States saw its previously flourishing housing market turn sour, later triggering the decline of the global financial market. Despite the health of the United States’ residential market slowly improving, it left a monumental ripple effect on the stability of foreign nations, one being Japan. Their economy felt devastating impacts, most notably being a sharper decline in global domestic product than even the United States, the very creator of these global issues. The Japanese industry felt a decrease in its exports, and its workforce reflected this: the shift towards nonregular jobs.
This type of employment was usually usurped by women as a way to support the household income of their spouse, in addition to being a housewife. Yet with the unpredictability of the Great Recession looming over Japanese employers, even stable female and male workers were forced to adopt unsteady jobs. As competition for even the most unwanted opportunities increased, the female workforce became discouraged, with many women having begun to favor the domestic work of a housewife and reinstate traditional gender roles.
More than ever, the motivation of women to partake in the workforce was essential to ensuring negative effects from the recession were minimized, and Sonny Angel did just that. Inspired by previous strides for gender equality in the workforce, Japanese designer Toru Soeya created the Sonny Angel, a symbol of female empowerment, in March 2005. Standing at just three inches tall, these figurines silently encouraged working women to continue their efforts in light of hardships. The gentle smile of these “little boyfriends” from the desk of a corporate job to the shelf of a home was a pillar for all women to rely on during the uncertainty of the Great Recession.
Trading their role from assisting working women to supporting the next generation of young individuals, Sonny Angels have reemerged in popularity through TikTok and Instagram. Their wish to solely support the female working class has expanded to all individuals, even teens battling their own difficulties in high school. These figures are not simply a girly fad soon to die down, but the result of millions of women stepping up above their traditional roles to resolve that men could not by themselves. When served even the worst disadvantages, there is no doubt that having Sonny Angel at your side will bring you happiness along the way.
