Superman: Illegal Immigrant 🦸
Should we deport the All-American superhero?
Somewhere in the fields of Kansas
A rocket crashed with a baby inside. This child is the last survivor of a failed state, a shithole planet. The boy with the funny name (“Kal-El”) from a place that no one has heard of, was secretly and illegally adopted and raised by two bleeding heart liberals.
With forged adoption papers and a fake name (“Clark Kent”) this stranger from another world hid among us for years, until he decided to go public. In a garish costume that he claimed was his culture’s traditional clothing, he used his strange abilities to interfere in human affairs.
Worse, he lies about his identity by posing as a member of the fake news media and writes stories about himself. All the while deceiving his friends, colleagues and the public at large.
This illegal, who ought to be deported, is known by many names:
The Man of Steel
The Last Son of Krypton
The Man of Tomorrow
But he is best known as Superman.
An Immigrant Story, by Immigrants
Superman is an immigrant fantasy, a sci-fi American Dream dreamed up by two men who were the sons of refugees. Jerome Siegel was the son of Mikhel Iankel Segalovich and Sora Meita Khaikels, Jews who had moved to Cleveland to escape antisemitism in the Russian Empire. Joseph Shuster was born in Toronto, to Julius Shusterowich and Ida Kathaske, both Jewish immigrants from the Netherlands and the Russian empire, respectively.
And it didn’t stop with Superman’s creators. Lois Lane was based on a woman born Jolan Kovacs, the daughter of Hungarian immigrants. This model even went on to marry Siegel, who himself inspired the look of Clark Kent. I guess Superman got the girl after all.
In his early adventures Superman was a social justice warrior, at odds with the police as he battled crooked politicians, slumlords and a physically abusive husband.
Should He Stay or Should He Go?
Now if all that’s convinced you that we should deport Superman, the question has to be asked: where would we deport him to? His home planet of Krypton is gone. He can’t go home.
And if you’re thinking that we should make an exception for him since he’s such an asset, then I have to ask you: why just him?
Superman doesn’t qualify for birthright citizenship, like I did. I’m the son of two immigrants. If Superman is an asset to our country, if he gets to be the All-American icon, then why should any other immigrant from any other place be treated differently?
Refugees like Superman, like the parents of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, are often fleeing for their lives. They’re desperate to fit in, to make a decent living, to pay their taxes and be good neighbors.
So instead of throwing people out and closing the door, consider that maybe, just maybe, the people who are falsely labeled criminals and enemies might just be the heroes we all need.
Maybe undocumented immigrants are a symbol of hope.
