# Why Aren't There More Black Superheroes? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 20, 2009, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682 "2009-07-20T22:08:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Jolly\_Roger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/91b2a8/32.png) [@Jolly\_Roger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jolly_Roger)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/61 "2009-07-22T00:52:31Z")
> [@SmashTheState](#): > > It’s simple. The fanboys who read comic books are the same white, angry, overprivileged, undersocialized, suburban neckbeards who populate Internet message boards, and they don’t want to see black people in their comic books. I remember the outrage and blatantly racist griping by the same fanboys when it was announced that GTA:San Andreas would have a black protagonist. Mainstream comic books are, by and large, made by Angry White Males for Angry White Males. They like their male superheroes authoritarian and mesomorphic, their female superheroes underdressed and overmammaried, and their black superheroes… absent. Yeah, it has nothing to do with stuff like demographics. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/62 "2009-07-22T00:56:29Z")
> [@Jolly\_Roger](#): > > Has anyone mentioned [ICON](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icon_(comics)) yet? Yes. CRTL+F generally allows you to find text within a document, including webpages. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/63 "2009-07-22T00:57:20Z")
I agree with **Chronos** about names. Black Panther Black Vulcan Black Lightning Black Goliath What I want to know is, where are the Hebrews? As a kid I asked myself that. I found Sabra, Marvel’s official Israeli hero The Seraph, A DC hero and member of the everybody is a token Global Guardians Kitty Pride- I only learned this when she fails to ward off Dracula with a huge cross and he grabs her by the throat, burning himself on her star of David. It has since been revealed(apparently after much editorial debate) that Erik Lenshier is not Magneto’s real name and he is not a Sinte. He is a Jew. The Thing (who was originally supposed to be a Jew, to the point that Kirby proudly displayed drawings of him wearing a yarmulke and tallis and holding the torah. BUT who has been shown in various instances to be a Christian of unspecified sect) was retconned to have always been Jewish. ---
**Author:** ![davidw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c4cdca/32.png) [@davidw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidw)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/64 "2009-07-22T01:00:45Z")
You have mostly white writers and mostly white artists, they’ll create mostly white characters. When you have mostly black writers and mostly black artists, they’ll create mostly black characters (see [Milestone](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milestone_Media)). Does it really need to be more complicated than that? ---
**Author:** ![SmashTheState](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@SmashTheState](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmashTheState)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/65 "2009-07-22T01:08:28Z")
> [@DocCathode](#): > > What I want to know is, where are the Hebrews? The [Ragman](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ragman) comic was based entirely around Jewish folklore. And there is an entire team of Israeli superheroes called the [Hayoth](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hayoth) who first appeared in Suicide Squad. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/66 "2009-07-22T01:14:39Z")
> [@SmashTheState](#): > > The [Ragman](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ragman) comic was based entirely around Jewish folklore. > > And there is an entire team of Israeli superheroes called the [Hayoth](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hayoth) who first appeared in Suicide Squad. Thanks for the tip. ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/67 "2009-07-22T03:52:55Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > Although she was actually created for the series, and only ended up in the comics first due to different lead times. [See the last entry here.](http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2005/10/27/comic-book-urban-legends-revealed-22/) I want to say that’s wrong, because I could swear I have Renee showing up in the 80s, somewhere in the 300-early 400s. Or rather, a character with that name. Or at least a female character with the last name Montoya. Sadly, I can _not_ back it up. I simply remember being startled by noticing it. Nubia has made some modern appearances. She’s pretty awesome, despite being stuck in the underworld. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/68 "2009-07-22T12:31:17Z")
> [@DocCathode](#): > > What I want to know is, where are the Hebrews? Colossal Boy of the Legion of Superheroes. Atom Smasher The Atom (Al Pratt) Moon Knight Batwoman Dust Devil of the Blasters ---
**Author:** ![CandidGamera](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/candidgamera/32/2878_2.png) [@CandidGamera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CandidGamera)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/69 "2009-07-22T13:12:01Z")
Funnily enough, Wonder Woman’s issue this week reveals that T.O. Morrow is Jewish. And he looks to be halfway through a heel-face turn. ---
**Author:** ![cckerberos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@cckerberos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cckerberos)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/70 "2009-07-22T13:49:52Z")
> [@DocCathode](#): > > Kitty Pride- I only learned this when she fails to ward off Dracula with a huge cross and he grabs her by the throat, burning himself on her star of David. FWIW, she wore a Star of David in her first appearance, so she was intended to be Jewish from the beginning. ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/71 "2009-07-22T15:10:13Z")
> [@](#): > > The Atom (Al Pratt) I don’t recall any mention of him ever being Jewish. If you’re going by the fact that Atom Smasher is Jewish, you should know that they are not related by blood at all. ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/72 "2009-07-22T17:01:32Z")
Doesn’t ring a bell for me, either, but Al _is_ based on a jewish RL strongman, who went by the name The Mighty Atom. Iceman’s half jewish. Dunno if he was intended to be from the start. Masada from Youngblood, was, though, even if she is a bit obscure. But the most famous comic book character known for being jewish? Dr. Harleen Quinzel. I didn’t think it revealed Tomorrow as being Jewish, specifically. He could be any number of eastern european ethnicities. There’s a _lot_ of genocides in the Balkans. (Armenian, f’r example.) ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/73 "2009-07-22T18:38:54Z")
Damn you, **foolsguinea**! I was going to list The Brown Hornet. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/74 "2009-07-22T20:27:54Z")
> [@E-Sabbath](#): > > But the most famous comic book character known for being jewish? Dr. Harleen Quinzel. You have a cite for that? I have her origin one shot and every issue of her solo series and her being Jewish is news to me. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/75 "2009-07-22T20:49:01Z")
Hrm…I’d thought Al was related to Albert’s mum…not sure why I thought that. > [@DocCathode](#): > > You have a cite for that? I have her origin one shot and every issue of her solo series and her being Jewish is news to me. 1997, Batman Adventures Holiday Special, story The Harley and the Ivy. Harley asks Ivy if they can have a Christmas tree. ‘Absolutely not \. Besides, aren’t you Jewish?’ ‘Yeah, but they’re so bright and colorful, an’ stuff.’ ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/76 "2009-07-22T20:52:21Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > 1997, Batman Adventures Holiday Special, story The Harley and the Ivy. Harley asks Ivy if they can have a Christmas tree. ‘Absolutely not \. Besides, aren’t you Jewish?’ > > ‘Yeah, but they’re so bright and colorful, an’ stuff.’ Well shave my head and call me shirley, Harley is Jewish! I always assumed with that blonde hair and the name Harleen, that she was southern baptist. ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/77 "2009-07-22T20:53:56Z")
Tengu: > [@](#): > > Hrm…I’d thought Al was related to Albert’s mum…not sure why I thought that. Al adopted her after her father died in an attempt to kill thet Ultra-Humanite. She designated Al to be her son’s (Albert’s) godfather. No blood relationship, though. ---
**Author:** ![Nation](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5daacb/32.png) [@Nation](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nation)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/78 "2009-07-22T20:54:39Z")
there are plenty: Tupak Shakur, Biggie, Snoop Dogg… ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/79 "2009-07-22T20:58:57Z")
> [@cmkeller](#): > > Al adopted her after her father died in an attempt to kill thet Ultra-Humanite. She designated Al to be her son’s (Albert’s) godfather. No blood relationship, though. OK, yeah, that’d probably be where my confusion came from. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682/80 "2009-07-22T21:04:52Z")
While we are on the subject of under represented or misrepresented in comics- Tengu. After getting his spine healed, Bruce Wayne briefly wears a mask he claims represents a tengu. The mask clearly depicts a bat. Tengu are depicted with either red faces and salami noses, or the faces of crows. I have never seen a tengu depicted as a bat. Sadly, the tengu have always had a small population and the industrialization of Japan has reduced their numbers. There simply are not enough of them to make their voice heard. It’s up to us to protest this inaccurate portrayal and to defend the honor of the tengu. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-there-more-black-superheroes/503682.md?page=5)