The absurdity is calling this kind of thing "progress" or somehow bold.
No. When you swap a sexy female protagonist into a violent game that's driven by male desires of violence, it doesn't empower anyone... it just gives the dudes playing it a new option to watch an attractive rear end in the third person camera. No one identifies with their character anyway, it's more like an on-screen action figure or toy.
I mean, there's nothing wrong with giving the dominantly male player base something better to look at--might be a good idea in general for the game--but it never has anything to do with diversity, and it's tiring when another round of Kotaku-level articles comes up to act as if this is some kind of progressive move.