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How often do you come across superheroes that are not white or male? Not very often, most likely. Unfortunately, this lack of diversity in the comic book world sends a subliminal message to children that whiteness or maleness is akin to valor, morality and desirability.
There are many independent comics that include characters of different ethnic and cultural backgrounds, but many wonder where the diversity exists in the main comic giants, DC Comics and Marvel. You might not see a hit movie about any of the following characters, but their diverse cultural backgrounds are the source of their strength and bravery. These are 11 heroes of color who need their own movies.
Universe: Marvel Comics, (X-Men, The Initiative, S.H.I.E.L.D, New Mutants)
Background: Cheyenne
Dani appears as a young Native-American woman from Boulder, Colorado, who later develops powers during puberty, making her one of the “mutants” or humans that possess the X gene, which predisposes her to special powers. She has the telepathic ability to create illusions of her opponents’ worst fears. Her powers later include versatility, superhuman strength, telepathy and the ability to wield psionic arrows and bullets. She was in New Mutants before she joined the X-Men and is one of the few Native-American superheroes in the main comic book franchises.
Universe: Marvel Comics, (X-Men)
Background: French-Algerian Muslim
Born Monet Yvette Clarisse Maria Therese St. Croix to French aristocrat parents, Monet was pampered as her father’s favorite child of her brother, Marius, and twin sisters, Nicole and Claudette. Her brother was a dangerous mutant who invited her one evening to conquer another dimension. Incredulous, Monet ridiculed her brother. As revenge for her mockery, an enraged Marius turns her into a red, mute creature called “Penance.” When Claudette and Nicole (aka the M-twins) heard the commotion, they assumed that Marius had killed their sister. Knowing that their father would be distraught at the loss of his beloved daughter, the M-twins conjoined to become Monet, her exact duplicate. Because the twins were mutant, the new Monet was armed with superhuman abilities including telekinesis, genius IQ, accelerated healing, telepathy, super strength and agility. Her character is heavily influenced by her Muslim faith, an aspect used to explore anti-Islamic sentiments in the United States.
Universe: Marvel Comics, (X-Men, Excalibur)
Background: Indian
Karima was a police officer and detective in Kolkata. When she meets Neal Shaara, a young man searching for his missing brother, she is dispatched to help him. The two quickly develop a romantic bond. While in pursuit of Shaara’s brother, Sanjiv, both are captured by Bastion, a supervillain who created Operation: Zero Tolerance, an anti-mutant program that transforms people into mutant-killing machines. Neal is revealed as a mutant and Karima is turned into a Prime Sentinel, a machine that can detect a mutant and is designed to eliminate them. Karima forces Neal to flee India, as she cannot fight her urge to kill him. She is later found in Excalibur, the X-Men spinoff and is disassembled by Charles Xavier and Magneto. However, in her return to normalcy, she retains some of the powers of Prime Sentinel, which included regenerative healing, flight and techno morphing.
Universe: Marvel Comics, (Spider-man)
Background: Black Hispanic
Miles Morales is a precocious young Brooklyn teenager born to a black father and Puetro Rican mother. After Peter Parker’s death, Morales is infected by Aaron with the same spider bite. Miles’ father, Jefferson, reveals that he and Aaron once committed criminal acts, although Jefferson later became a law-abiding citizen. When Aaron dies, his last words to Miles are “You’re just like me.” This forms the foundation of the ethical dilemma that defines Miles Morales: Is criminality hard-wired into his DNA? Is he an inherently good or bad person? The response to Miles Morales is positive, with many, including Stan Lee, believing this character to be a great role model and source of pride for non-white children. However, more conservative critics felt that the creation of the character was a stint driven by political correctness.
Universe: DC Comics, (Justice League, Suicide Squad)
Background: African
Mari Jiwe McCabe was born and raised in the fictional African village of Zambesi. When she was young, her mother told her of the legend of “Tantu Tolem,” an ancient African warrior who asked a witch to give him the powers of the animal kingdom to use in the protection of the innocent. Her mother was later murdered, forcing Mari to live with her father, the village priest, who also killed by his half-brother Maksai. It is revealed that Maksai killed his brother to get the Tantu Tolem, which Mari’s father possessed. With no one to look after her, Mari moves to the United States and works as a model under the name Mari McCabe. Her newfound wealth takes her to different countries but on a trip back to her village, she meets her uncle and takes back the totem. She absorbs the power as her own and becomes “Vixen” and then later joins the Justice League of America.
Universe: DC Comics, (Justice League, Suicide Squad, Outsiders, Birds of Prey)
Background: Japanese
Her birth name was “Tatsu.” Before she was Katana, she was just an average girl in Japan learning martial arts, an activity encouraged by her parents. She became acquainted with two brothers Maseo and Takeo Yamashiro, who both fell in love with her. She ended up choosing Maseo but Takeo did not take this news well. After he refuses to attend his brother’s wedding, he becomes entangled with the Yakuza, an organized crime network in Japan. Maseo disowns Takeo as a result of this alliance – unfortunately, this was not the last time they would deal with Takeo. As Takeo moves up in the ranks at the Yakuza, he gains access to more ancient weapons, such as the “Soul-taker,” with which he kills Maseo as Tatsu watches in horror. She disarms Takeo with her swordsmanship and goes on to train as a samurai before moving to America, where she uses her fighting skills for justice. She takes the codename “Katana,” named after the sword she wields that is possessed by the soul of her husband. You can see her film debut in the DC flick “Suicide Squad.”
Universe: Marvel, (The Runaways)
Background: African-American
“The Runaways” is a comic about a rag-tag group of diverse teenagers who discover, after spying on a fake charity event, that their parents are all part of a secret crime organization called “The Pride.” This organization is filled with time-travelers, wizards, mob bosses, mad scientists, telepathic mutants and aliens. Son of superhuman mob bosses, Alex Wilder didn’t inherit any powers, but is considered by many readers as a child prodigy; his intellectual brilliance almost gives him a superhuman status. Armed with razor sharp reasoning and strategy, he is the provisional leader of the Runaways and is the one who decides to organize a “mass escape” from the parents. He is described as “emotionally distant” and stoic. He doesn’t desire to create bonds with any of the Runaways in order to protect himself from potential grief.
Universe: Marvel, (Ms. Marvel, Avengers)
Background: Pakistani-American
Kamala Khan is a teenager from Jersey City who takes the codename Ms. Marvel after Captain Marvel: Carol Danvers, whom she idolizes as a young girl. She has shapeshifting abilities and discovers she has “inhuman” genes, making her part of a species of superhumans. The creators of Kamala Khan said her superhero suit is influenced by the “shalwar kameez,” a traditionally South Asian outfit. Her cultural and religious identities are explored throughout the comics, a storyline praised by critics, who believe her character would “normalize the American-Muslim experience” and remove stigma from Muslim families in America.
Universe: Marvel Comics (X-Men, Generation X, X-Corps, New Warriors)
Background: Chinese-American
Daughter of wealthy Chinese immigrants residing in Beverly Hills, Jubilation Lee dreams of becoming an Olympic gymnast. These dreams are ultimately shattered when her parents were murdered by hitmen. She runs away from her orphanage and hides at a mall in Hollywood, living on stolen food and clothes. When she is caught, she runs away and emits a large blast of energy plasmoid – thereby discovering that she is a mutant. She uses her powers as mall talent but when discovered by M-squad, a group of mutant hunters, she is swiftly rescued by members of X-Men Storm, Psylocke, Rogue and Dazzler. She secretly follows them to their base to learn more about the X-Men. After she helps Wolverine escape the Reavers (group of criminal cyborgs), she is introduced to Charles Xavier and welcomed into X-Men.
Universe: Marvel Comics (Spider-man, Spider-woman, Ms. Marvel, Avengers)
Background: Mexican-Puerto Rican
Anya Corazon was a normal girl in Brooklyn, New York, until one night when she discovers a stranger under attack by a mysterious group called the “Sisterhood of the Wasp.” They attempt to kill him, but Anya blocks the killing blow to save his life. The man turns out to be a man named Miguel, a sorcerer for the Spider Society, a group dating back centuries. He sees Anya as a potential “Hunter of Society” and transfers some of his power to revive her. She wakes up with a spider tattoo and powers of super strength and agility, as well as the ability to grow a blue exoskeleton. She eventually joins the Spider Society as their Hunter. After developing her alias as “Araña” she goes on a mission with her team to stop the Sisterhood of the Wasp.
Universe: Marvel, (Spider-man, Spider-woman)
Background: Korean-American
You know that spider that bit Peter Parker? Well, it bit another person before it died. That person was a girl named Cindy Moon, who would become known as Silk. Born with an eidetic memory, Cindy discovers her powers when she accidentally webs her parents to a wall. Thereafter, she is taken by a man named Ezekiel Sims who keeps her in a bunker and trains her to control her powers for good. When she is discovered by Peter Parker 13 years later, she becomes his ally and later, love interest. She is one of the few Asian-American superheroes to get her own comic book series.
