with the character, gotten some letters from those who have disabilities of one stripe or another and all have been very supportive. I feel very proud for my part in creating Oracle." Supporters of Oracle argue that the Barbara Gordon character provides a greater service to DC Comics and its readers as a disabled character, regardless of the events that caused her paralysis. In her persona as Oracle, Barbara Gordon is not limited to the Batman Family, serving a unique and universal role in the DC universe. DC Senior Vice President Dan DiDio comments, "Some stories ... are so strong that undoing them would be a crime. The DCU would be a lesser place without Barry's sacrifice or the crippling of Barbara at the hands of the Joker." The character went through possible restoration during Birds of Prey when she is infected with microscopic machines known as nanites by the supervillain Brainiac, which attempted to repair her DNA. Marc Dipaolo, author of War, Politics and Superheroes: Ethics and Propaganda in Comics and Film (2011) commented that DC writers and editors would not allow her to recover completely, and that "[t]he decision was made because there were not enough handicapped superheroes in the DC Universe to justify 'curing' one, and because it would have been odd to see Barbara Gordon escape from her wheelchair in the world of fiction when Christopher Reeve never had that opportunity." Restoration of the character's mobility and aftermath In June 2011, DC announced that Barbara Gordon would be returning to the role of Batgirl in September 2011, in her own eponymous monthly comic, as part of a company-wide relaunch of all of their titles. In addition, former Birds of Prey writer Gail Simone would be writing the series. This announcement became one of the most controversial aspects of the DC Comics relaunch. Supporters of Barbara Gordon in her persona as Oracle expressed dismay over losing an iconic character for the disabled community. Journalist and blogger Jill Pantozzi, who is diagnosed with muscular dystrophy, stated that "people being disabled is part of the real world, it is essential it be part of the fictional world as well... Writer Kevin Van Hook did a great job showing what disabled individuals have to go through in the mini-series Oracle: The Cure. It's that type of honesty I expect more of ... While some diverse characters were mishandled over the