The Death of Captain America

The United States of America has changed drastically in the last twenty years. What was once a country of hope and dreams following the end of the Cold War has once again become a nation of fear and mistrust like it was during the heights of the Red Scare. We see people who are threats and people who are different around every corner. What was once “the melting pot” and “the land of opportunity” is now starkly divided and the land of fearing the other. Cynicism and intolerance are running unchecked through the country, overrunning tolerance and hope. You can see it everywhere; in the frightened glances of people at the airport, the reactions of school administrations to the slightest thing out of the norm and even inside our own classrooms where it seems students have been taught that the United States can do no right. I think the perfect metaphor for the situation is oddly enough, found in a comic book.

If you never read comic books like I did as a child, you may not be familiar with Steve Rodgers a.k.a. Captain America (trust me, this will make sense, just bear with me). In the early days of World War Two, Marvel Comics introduced the world to Steve Rodgers. Rodgers was a frail, 18-year-old kid who wanted desperately to serve his country in the war. Unfortunately, he was deemed physically unfit for service, and told he could not join. But then, he was given the chance to take part in an experiment that would make him the ultimate in human performance, the very best that a human could ever be. Thus was born Captain America. Cap was the ultimate American symbol. He fought the Nazis and wore a costume that was almost an exact replica of an American flag. At the end of the war, Captain America seemingly died, killed in an explosion over the North Atlantic.

Twenty years later in the 1960s, Cap was found, revived, and turned into a symbol for the entire world. In late 2006, the entire superhero world in which Marvel Comics exists was engulfed in a civil war over a piece of legislation not unlike the Patriot Act. The superhero community was split down the middle with Captain America leading the anti-legislation side. At the end of all of this, Cap surrendered when he determined he was doing more harm than good. He was arrested and put on trial. As he walked in handcuffs to the courthouse, he was assassinated. After forty years of being the ultimate symbol for the world, and indeed for multiple generations of readers, Captain America was dead.

But the part of all of this that I feel makes it relevant is that Cap was not killed by any super-villain or anything like that. A sniper killed Captain America; just a normal person equipped with a rifle. It was just an everyday person; motivated by the culture of fear created by the government who destroyed one of the greatest symbols America has ever known. I read this whole story arc just a few days ago, and it struck me as extremely relevant. While most people may dismiss the relevance of such an event because it occurs in such a trivial medium like a comic book, I happen to think it is strong social commentary.

Captain America stood for the ideas of America, for tolerance and hope, but was undone by the forces of intolerance, cynicism, and basic fear created by a national tragedy, spurred forward by the government and seized upon by the media and people looking to make a profit. I can think of no better metaphor for the struggle between tolerance and intolerance, and hope and cynicism in our country right now. Captain America is a metaphor for tolerance and hope, cut down in the wake of a national tragedy by the forces of intolerance and cynicism.

But at last, hope has risen again. The election of Obama has shown us that we don't have to be a nation of fear and cynicism. We can come out of this most recent age of darkness back into the light. But Obama won't be able to do it on his own, we have to help. We have to demand more accountability in the news we consume on a daily basis. It needs to be actual coverage and refereeing of a political process, not just poll numbers and sex scandals. It won't happen overnight, and it won't be easy, but it is a responsibility we as a nation must assume.