“We Could be Heroes….”
My generation has never truly known the horrors of war. There has been, for the majority of people, a glass wall called television between the tragedies of the battlefield and our every day lives. What does this have to do with comic books? Plenty. Various publishers have sent iconic heroes half a world a way to intervene and raise awareness for issues plaguing humanity. In the mid-eighties it was the X-Men fighting starvation in Africa, Superman has been to different countries, raising awareness about the dangers of land mines, and independent creators have made Eisner award winning titles focusing on AIDS awareness—so what’s the difference now. There is a genocide happening in the Sudan. A race is being extinguished, more so, every day. The comic book industry has always made it a point to band together in times of crisis, such as the tribute books of September 11th or the funding contributed to Hurricane Katrina relief victims. I urge all comic book publishers and creators to band together to raise awareness for another prevalent world issue, the genocide occurring in Darfur. We can all be heroes for hope and save a people which may one day no longer exist. After all, isn’t that the moral that the majority of our comic book reading has taught? In a world full of mutants, we’re not so different after all. If you want more information you can go to: www.stand.org.
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