What is Superman Renouncing?

What exactly is Superman renouncing?

In 2006's Superman Returns, a boring and uninspired sequel to Superman 2, the Man of Steel has been gone for five years on a soul-searching mission back to his home planet hoping to find some sign of Krypton. Upon his return to earth, the editor of The Daily Planet has a meeting with his entire staff and demands each section to devote coverage to Superman, ending his commands with this:

"Does he still stand for truth, justice, all that stuff?" he says.

The New York Times pointed out that so-called right-wing blogs went nuts that the film-makers would dare omit "truth, justice, and the American way," for isn't Superman the ultimate embodiment of Americana?:

The most recent incarnation to use the 1950's phrase was the 1978 Christopher Reeve movie, "Superman." When Lois first interviews the Man of Steel, she asks why he's here, and he responds straight-faced: "I'm here to fight for truth, justice and the American way." It's the first time Superman himself ever uses the phrase — a bold move considering how cynical the country had become after the Vietnam War and Watergate. That cynicism is reflected in Lois's response: "You're going to end up fighting every elected official in this country!


Some people are now objecting to the fact that "Superman Returns" omits the phrase. Perry White asks his reporters to find out more about the Man of Steel after his five-year absence. "Does he still stand for truth, justice, all that stuff?" he says. Right-wing blogs are already red-faced at the slight.

There's no reason to be upset. Superman is right back where he began: fighting a never-ending battle for truth and justice. That should be enough to occupy any man. Even a Superman.

Now comes word that Superman has renounced his citizenship in Action Comics #900:

The key scene takes place in "The Incident," a short story in Action Comics #900 written by David S. Goyer with art by Miguel Sepulveda. In it, Superman consults with the President's national security advisor, who is incensed that Superman appeared in Tehran to non-violently support the protesters demonstrating against the Iranian regime, no doubt an analogue for the recent real-life protests in the Middle East. However, since Superman is viewed as an American icon in the DC Universe as well as our own, the Iranian government has construed his actions as the will of the American President, and indeed, an act of war.

It doesn't seem that he's abandoning those values, however, only trying to implement them on a larger scale and divorce himself from the political complexities of nationalism. Superman also says that he believes he has been thinking "too small," that the world is "too connected" for him to limit himself with a purely national identity. As an alien born on another planet, after all, he "can't help but see the bigger picture."

 Having long been interpreted as a tool of the United States government (see Frank Miller's dystopian Dark Knight Returns where a 50-year-old Batman is considered the number one threat of the USA and Ronald Reagan commands Superman to stop him once and for all), with the so-called "racist" comic scribe Mark Millar even penning Red Son, a version of the Superman story where he lands in the USSR instead of the USA and becomes an agent of the communist state, Superman's repudiation of his citizenship is somehow viewed as troublesome. Salon has a good article here.

When one understands that "the American way" in the 21st century means invading the world and inviting the world (thanks Steve Sailer for that one), why would any superhero distance themselves from this leftist ideology? Knowing that Marvel and DC (the two big comic publishing houses) are incredibly left-wing, what is really going on with this renouncing American citizenship by the illegal alien Kal-el, better known as Clark Kent? 

In the past 10 years, Marvel has published stories where the vigilante The Punisher threatens President George W. Bush in the Oval Office with assassination (not that we defend Bush, but would they even consider doing the same for Obama?); published a fawning Spiderman comic with Barack Obama on the cover and a fist-bump between between the wall-crawler and Mein Obama on the inside; published a Captain America story where the Tea Party (that storyline is called Two Americas) is depicted as a bunch of racists and anyone longing for the old United States is a "Nazi"; and, turned both the Kingpin and Nick Fury characters Black in their movie franchises in a bid to add diversity to a roster full of white guys. We can't forget Heimdall in the movie Thor.

DC comics killed off Batman, brought him back and in his short stint as a corpse, he decided to incorporate the Batman franchise and appoint a Muslim as the guardian of France. Back in the early 2000s, in a move to make up for the lack of Black people in Batman: The Animated Series and a strange attempt at making Lex Luthor, Superman's arch-enemy, Black in the 1997- 2000 Superman cartoon, DC made the Green Lantern character Black in the Justice League cartoon. They did this because it wouldn't "be good to only have white people save the world." More on this below.

It seems superheroes are only fighting for social justice as opposed to some insidious force. Racialicious pointed how diversity in comics seems contrived, but the main point is the majority of the most popular superheroes have been around for more than 40 years and they were created when their actually was an American way to defend. 

People seem to forget, but America was 90 percent white in 1964. That Superman, Batman, Green Lantern and most of the Justice League, plus most of the Marvel Universe characters are white is but a reflection that the idea of being an "American" actually meant something instead of some frivolous and undefinable word like a commitment to freedom. 

In fact, we've reached the point where anyone hoping to defend "America" is obviously the villain in a comic book as reflected in The Punisher storyline with a character called The Hate-Monger:

A new Hate-Monger appeared wearing a version of Captain America's uniform, and is seen murdering illegal immigrants, claiming "America belongs to Americans." This Hate-Monger and his organization were all wiped out by the Punisher, who wore his own version of the Captain America uniform for the occasion.

Is it a "white privilege" to have a bunch of white guys - created when the country was 90 percent white - as superheroes who go around saving the world? Black people have every opportunity to create iconic characters and if they don't garner an audience, is that the fault of white comic book fans?

Back in 2001, Cartoon Network unveiled a Justice League cartoon, complete with a much needed Black character. Instead of the traditional white Green Lantern, the Justice League now had a Black Green Lantern (not online, but published in the November 9, 2001 edition of The Atlanta Journal Constitution):

He becomes the only major black character in the Cartoon Network’s (CN) regular lineup and one of the very few in any animated series.

Executives at CN, which is part of AOL Time Warner’s Atlanta-based Turner Broadcasting System, said they have sought to have more black characters in general but that they never suggested the Green Lantern character to the making “Justice League.”

Create and producer Bruce Timm, a sort of star in the confined world of superhero TV animation, said he chose a black superhero “so it wasn’t just a bunch of white guys saving the universe every day.”

Timm doesn’t think most viewers will give much thought to Green Lantern’s skin color. But, he added, “I would hope black audiences would watch those and say, ‘There is somebody I can relate to.’

More than 20 percent of the CN’s viewers are black. 

It’s an effort that should be undertaken with sensitivity, said Linda Simensky, the network’s senior vice president of original animation. Cartoon characters are by nature extreme personalities, often ripe for mockery. “You don’t want your first lead African-American character on the network to be shown in a negative light,” she said. 

The selection has irritated some superhero fans. “On one hand they are mad we aren’t using their favorite version of the character,” Timm said. “On the other hand they are accusing of us of being hopelessly P.C. (politically correct).”

Timm please guilty to that last one. “It’s is a P.C. kind of move, but I don’t think it hurts anything.”

Isn't it funny that Timm admits the move to make a Black Green Lantern was a purely 'P.C' move and that white people couldn't be seen saving the world alone?

Being an American doesn't mean that much anymore save doing everything possible to save the world while simultaneously doing everything possible to inundate your country with the rest of the world. Why Superman would object to this is beyond us at SBPDL.

Basically, we have become a notion, not a nation. We a proposition nation, governed by a form of tyranny we call Black-Run America (BRA). That Superman has turned his back on this concept makes little sense, because by becoming an agent of the world he is fulfilling the new concept of "truth, justice, and the American way."

As you can tell, comic books are incredible politically correct, constantly trying to create new Black superheroes though "Black books" continue to sell poorly.

The best way to market Black characters is to just change the race of an established character. Samuel L. Jackson plays the white Nick Fury in Iron Man, Iron Man 2 and the upcoming Thor, Captain America and The Avengers.

The Black pimp in 1977's Superman

You see, in this proposition America the continued presence of white people is a huge nuisance and eventually all superheroes will undergo racial alternations. Why invent new characters and new mythologies when making a Black Green Lantern and manufacturing positive images for Black people is a simple, yet P.C. move?

We've argued before that comic book movies saved Hollywood and big studios in the 2000s, yet most of these superheroes were of the white variety.

So goodbye Superman. Renouncing your American citizenship doesn't mean much to us, when the principles you'll fight for have become the primary notions behind what this nation has become.

We'll always remember the 1977 Superman film, which was made when this was still a country. That movie contained the immortal scene when Clark Kent changes into Superman for the first time and a Black pimp is (the only Black resident of Metropolis) is the first to spy the last son of Krypton in his outfit. The Black pimp comments to Superman, "that's a bad outfit," to which Superman politely states, "Excuse me," as he flies off to save Lois Lane. Watch the clip here (starts at the 0:44 mark).

The script for the Superman film explains the scene as such:

150 EXT. ALLEYWAY

An incredibly garish BLACK PIMP exits an alley doorway, stoned, stops in awe as he, sees: SUPERMAN in full costume heading towards him, determined.

PIMP
Say, Jim! That is a bad outfit...

SUPERMAN
Excuse me...

With a burst or energy SUPERMAN rises from the ground, flies up into the night sky. The PIMP watches in wonder.

PIMP
Wait a minute, Jim! Who's your tailor, baby? 
Who cuts your threads?

Before the advent of Black Fictional Images in film (this started in the 1980s), that was the best Hollywood script writers could come up with for Black characters.

That incarnation of Superman actually stood for "Truth, Justice, and the America."