Superman as Immigrant in “Superman Smashes the Klan”
“Superman Smashes the Klan” is inspired by a story from the 1940s #Superman radio show, which also coined the catchphrase saying he stands for “Truth, Justice, and the American Way.” But SStK presents Superman as both a patriot and secret immigrant—a literal illegal alien. 1/12
Superman’s immigrant identity is both textual & historical, given the character’s creators and the time period he was created. Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster were sons of Jewish immigrants, and Superman debuted in 1938, less than a year before the official start of WWII. 2/12
But Danny Fingeroth argues this masking is an element of Superman’s Jewishness. For him, Superman represents: “The fantasy of the totally accepted immigrant… the welcome that the immigrant & the immigrant’s introverted, traumatized, fiction-dwelling son could only imagine.” 4/12
Superman Smashes the Klan bridges these perspectives. On one hand, writer Gene Luen Yang highlights the potential for Superman, who visually represents Aryan ideals and does tend to solve problems with an iron (or steel) fist, to resonate with white supremacy and/or facism. 5/12
In this scene, the leader of the local Ku Klux Klan describes Superman as “one of us” because of his perceived physical perfection, which he associates with ideal Americanism: “That’s why the whole country admires you! You’re living proof of how superior a white man can be!” 6/12
On the other hand, Yang and artist Gurihiru thoughtfully underscore Superman’s alien-ness, both in terms of his sense of self and in terms of how his material difference affects the ways people react to him, which in turn influences how he presents himself. 7/12
Early in the story, an encounter with Kryptonite–a toxic rock from Superman’s destroyed home planet–causes Superman to see visions of himself as a very different type of alien: green-skinned and bug-like. He later has dreams and visions of green-skinned alien parents. 8/12
Eventually, Superman learns about his alien origins & accepts them. But not before Yang explores the consequences of being dislocated from one’s heritage. After accidentally unleashing his powers as a child and being branded a demon, Clark begins to deny aspects of himself. 9/12
Importantly, it is Lan-Shin Lee who notices and articulates this denial–and its potentially deadly consequences. She also says she wishes it was okay for him to fly, i.e., she wishes he could embrace and be embraced for his difference, which is part of his strength. 10/12
To fly, Superman, a refugee from a world destroyed by a holocaust, must access the strength of his difference. And he needs to fly to save American communities, and America itself, and the world, from threats both urgent & existential–including facism & white supremacy. 11/12
Ultimately, then, Superman’s immigrant identity is presented not as a threat to American sovereignty or identity, but rather its savior–fitting for a hero who became deeply associated with American patriotism through years fighting Hitler while disguising his Jewish roots. 12/12