Superman, the iconic superhero, has been an “illegal alien” for 87 years. This fact was highlighted in a 2013 campaign called Superman Is an Immigrant, which aimed to raise awareness about the struggles of immigrants in America. When filmmaker James Gunn’s new Superman film calls it an immigrant story, critics accused him of politicizing the character.
However, the truth is that Superman represents something larger than politics – the American paradox itself. He embodies the nation’s history of welcoming displaced people and turning them into heroes. From Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, who created Superman as a child of Jewish immigrants, to the many superheroes who followed in their footsteps, Superman has always been about kindness, acceptance, and hope.
The film’s message of kindness is more relevant now than ever, given the current state of immigration policies in America. The real superheroes have always been immigrants, and it’s time we started acting like we believe it. As the character himself once said, “Dreams save us. Dreams lift us up and transform us.”
In choosing fear over hope, walls over welcome, we don’t just betray Superman’s legacy – we abort our own future. The question isn’t whether we’ll continue celebrating our independence, but whether we’ll remember what made us super in the first place.
Superman’s creators understood displacement intimately, creating a hero who embodied their American dream: someone who could protect the vulnerable because he knew what it meant to be cast aside. This outsider status isn’t incidental to his heroism; it’s the source of it. Those who have known rejection become champions of acceptance.
As America approaches its 250th birthday, Superman returns to theaters at a time when deportation machines are accelerating and xenophobia is on the rise. The film is a reminder that our greatest superpower as a nation has always been our ability to welcome the stranger and watch them soar. Like Superman himself, America draws its strength not from what it was born with, but from what it chooses to become.
In choosing hope over fear, we can rediscover our true potential and create a brighter future for ourselves and for generations to come. The real superheroes have always been immigrants, and it’s time we started acting like we believe it.
Source: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-features/james-gunn-politicize-superman-1236312336