Why Padmé Amidala Inspires Me…

Queen, Senator, Fighter, Mother

I was a prequel kid, I was born in 1994. I saw the original trilogy on VHS but my first Star Wars experience in cinemas was with The Phantom Menace in 1999. Thus, it’s these movies that had a bigger impact on my childhood than the original trilogy, and to me Padmé Amidala is the most inspiring female character of Star Wars. Lucas has been great at giving us characters like this and thanks to Kathleen Kennedy and the Lucasfilm team we’re getting a lot more strong female characters now. They are important, they inspire people, not just girls but everyone.

Padmé is a multi-layered character who has done so many things, throughout the prequels and The Clone Wars. We were introduced to her in The Phantom Menace, where she was Queen of Naboo in a desperate situation as the Trade Federation was invading her planet. She never gave up hope, she kept fighting for her people. The scene where she reveals herself to Boss Nass is probably one of her best scenes in my opinion. She put herself and the humans on the same level as the Gungans, showing that they were equal and they both needed each other to win. It’s deeply inspiring. During the battle of Theed, she went on the battlefield, she led the fight. It’s the sign of a great leader, someone who cares deeply about her people and about what’s right.

In Attack of the Clones, The Clone Wars and Revenge of the Sith, we see Padmé as a Senator and it’s just as inspiring. The trilogy “Heroes on Both Sides,” “Pursuit of Peace,” “Senate Murders” showed her determination to end the war, and in “Pursuit of Peace” I think she has the best speech you can ever get in Star Wars.

Teckla Minnau. Teckla is one of my aides. Like so many of the people that we tell ourselves we’re here to serve, Teckla lives in a district that rarely has electricity and running water, as a result of the war. Her children can now only bathe every two weeks, and they have no light in which to read or study at night. The Republic has always funded these basic services, but now, there are those who would divert the money to the war with no thought for what the people need to survive. If not for people like Teckla and her children, who are we fighting for? My people, your people, all of our people. This war is meant to save them from suffering, not increase it. I support our brave soldiers, whether they come from the clone factories or from any of the thousands of systems loyal to the Republic, but if we continue to impoverish our people, it is not on the battlefield where Dooku will defeat us, but in our own homes. Therefore, it is our duty and our responsibility to preserve the lives of those around us by defeating this bill.

This speech demonstrates the kind of politician Padmé was in the prequels, the kind of person who does everything for the people she represents. She stands for the people who can’t stand for themselves. I’m not here to do politics but Padmé is exactly the kind of politician the world needs more of. She represents everything that’s good. She didn’t want the clone wars and she did everything she could to stop it. Even though it didn’t work, what is important is that she did her best. In the deleted scenes of Revenge of the Sith, she started what would become the Rebellion, along with Bail Organa and Mon Mothma.

Padmé is so many things — she’s a Queen, a Senator, a fighter and a mother too. She gave birth to Leia and Luke. She’s a constant reminder of why it’s important to fight for what’s right and why you have to stand up for it.

I can’t wait to see her again in Forces of Destiny, showing even more heroism and inspiring kids all around the world. I think what Gandalf said to Galadriel in The Hobbit An Unexpected Journey is very much what this microseries is about and that’s exactly why we need this show and why it matters.