Female software engineer Isis Wenger slammed for being 'too pretty' fights back

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OneLogin engineer Isis Wenger, 22, received backlash when people thought she was a model and not a 'real' coder
People commented that she had a 'sexy smirk' and that it wasn't 'remotely plausible' that an engineer could look like her
Wenger fought back with online campaign that is smashing gender stereotypes
Melinda Gates, Katie Couric, and Chelsea Clinton have all weighed in

Published: 09:06 EST, 6 August 2015 | Updated: 11:57 EST, 6 August 2015

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She's not too pretty to be an engineer.

When 22-year-old software engineer Isis Anchalee Wenger appeared in an ad for her San-Francisco based company, OneLogin, there was just one problem. People didn't believe she was 'real.'

Wenger, who has long dark tresses, big brown eyes and slightly resembles Madonna's daughter, Lourdes Leon, is a self-taught full-stack engineer who calls herself a 'genuine introvert' and 'science nerd.'

But when she appeared on a OneLogin ad that was plastered at the BART and MUNI stations at Embarcadero in San Francisco, the backlash began.

Don't mock her because she's beautiful: Isis Wenger was accused of not being a 'real' engineer because she is too good-looking

She appeared in this ad for her company, OneLogin, (above) but some people thought she was just a model

Wenger started the hashtag #ILookLikeAnEngineer to people could see what engineers REALLY look like

One person wrote about the ad on Facebook: 'This is some weird haphazard branding. I think they want to appeal to women, but are probably just appealing to dudes.

Perhaps that’s the intention all along. But I’m curious [if] people with brains find this quote remotely plausible [and] if women in particular buy this image of what a female software engineer looks like.'

Only that was what a female software engineer looked like, because Wenger is a real software engineer.

Another person thought she appeared too 'sexy,' writing: 'If their intention is to attract more women then it would have been a better to choose a picture with a warm, friendly smile rather than a sexy smirk.'

Lauren Budorick is just one of the many people who tweeted their photo to prove that engineers don't fit a stereotype of what people think they look like

Other women have jumped in to share their own snaps and use the trending hashtag

Jolene Hayes wrote that she's a full stack software engineer - and she's also pregnant and likes to wear pink

To help correct the misconception that engineers all have to be nerdy-looking Bill Gates-like dweebs, Wenger has started a campaign to show the world what they really look like.

Participants can upload their photos to Twitter with the hashtag #ILookLikeAnEngineer.

Even Gates' wife, Melinda, has weighted in, tweeting: '#ILookLikeAnEngineer is rightfully challenging the face of engineering.'

'External appearances and the number of X chromosomes a person has is hardly a measure of engineering ability,' Wenger told TechCrunch. 'My goal is to help redefine 'what an engineer should look like' because I think that is a step towards eliminating subconscious bias towards diversity in tech.'

The #ILookLikeAnEngineer hashtag has attacted dozens of people who have uploaded photos showing they may not fit the image of what an enginner is 'supposed' to look like

Kaya Thomas is creator of We Read Too app and an engineer who joined the online movement

Angelina Fabbro is an award-winning robotics engineer who was happy to help out Wenger's movement

Women engineers from all over uploaded their photos to Twitter and Instagram in an attempt to smash stereotypes

So far, dozens of women - and men - have shared photos of themselves 'looking like an engineer.'

On Medium, Wegner wrote about more hazards of being female in a male-dominated industry, saying: 'I’ve had men throw dollar bills at me in a professional office (by an employee who works at that company, during work hours).

I’ve had an engineer on salary at a bootcamp message me to explicitly 'be friends with benefits' while I was in the interview process at the school he worked for.'

Tracy Chou (above) is another engineer whom some might think doesn't look like an engineer is 'supposed' to look like

Paola Maldonado wrote on Twitter that she's a 'proud Latina' and mobile developer

Another woman took her turn to smash stereotypes, sharing a silly picture of herself and noting that she is a cyber engineer

She added: 'The negative opinions about this ad that strangers feel so compelled to share illustrate solid examples of the sexism that plagues tech.'

'It blows my mind that my fully-clothed smiling face with unbrushed hair and minimal makeup on a white wall is seemingly more controversial in some communities than this simply because of my gender.'

The #ILookLikeAnEngineer hashtag has drawn attention from the likes of Katie Couric, Chelsea Clinton and Arianna Huffington.