Comic Wednesday: The Importance of X-Men Today

Caitlyn Woodbury

Everywhere you look at the moment, whether it be social media or the news, divisive politics can be seen. Left vs right, woke vs not, red vs blue. Politicians, influencers, and podcasters are spewing hate left, right and centre in order to distract us from the real issues. They tell us that it is immigration that is causing high unemployment rates, not the increase of AI in jobs or the fact that big businesses are finding any way to employ less people. They tell us that it is the wars that are causing petrol and diesel to skyrocket, even though BP made billions in profit in the first year of the Russia-Ukraine war. The elite and the powerful try to cause as much infighting as possible in order to distract us and this leads me onto today's blog.

X-Men comics debuted in September 1963, in the height of the American Civil Rights movement. For those unaware, it centres on a group of people named "mutants": people with advanced genetic mutations that can cause differences in appearances, or often superpowers. For over 60 years, X-Men media has focused on the battle between Professor Charles Xavier (the leader of the X-Men) and Magneto. With many comparing this pair to Dr Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcom X, for their differing opinions on humans. Outside of this battle, politicians and scientists would be figuring out how to deal with, what they believed to be, the mutant problem. A prominent figure within this media is Bolivar Trask, a scientist who created sentinels- large robots with a sole focus on destroying mutants. Another recurring character is Senator Kelly, who works closely with Trask and other anti-mutant scientists. Within government, Kelly attempts to pass a bill that would require mutants to identify themselves and allow them to be registered and most likely monitored (hopefully this sounds familiar to 1930's Germany). The X-Men not only focus on stopping Trask and Kelly, but they also risk their lives to save humans, even ones that share Kelly's views. Magneto, a holocaust survivor, instead believes mutants to be "homo superior", and often takes a violent approach to fulfil this idea.

So how does X-Men and today's politics link together? Well, I am so glad you asked! For 60 years, X-Men media has explored the ideas of bigotry and prejudice, often linking to issues that are happening in the real world. For example, in the first X-Men movie in 2000, Senator Kelly suggests the risk of a mutant that can walk through walls being able to use that power to assassinate the President. Although not to this extreme, many politicians use this rhetoric of immigrants entering the country in order to commit violent crimes. In X-2, a character "comes out" as a mutant to his parents, to which they reply, "have you tried not being a mutant", a question that unfortunately many queer kids have been asked. These are films from over 20 years ago, and comics from over 60 years, yet they still hold important messages today. The X-Men show us that we do not need to live in hate, that despite the world being divided, and maybe people being divided on your own identity, there is always hope, there is always the people around you, and there is always a reason to keep going. It shows that a differing opinion does not mean someone deserves to be hurt (which some people have used as an excuse for genocides across the globe), and that to help those around you is the best thing you could do.

However, it is not that naive. Since the X-Men have been introduced, people have empathised with Magneto's ideology, understanding that it is a result of the environment he grew up in. Over the years, the comics, TV shows, and movies have often explored a middle ground with the two feuding men, with them being able to understand the other's perspective. This is the message I believe that we should learn from X-Men. You do not have to agree to understand, you do not have to hate those you don't agree with. However, I think the most important message that we need to take from this media, is what are these politicians saying and why? Do they genuinely believe what they are saying? Are they trying to stir hate based on their own prejudices? What do they benefit from this divide?

Overall, I believe that X-Men can be an eye-opener for those who do not see the prejudice and attacks that are going on around them. Even though the world is still divided since the comics came out, it is slowly getting better. To be different is not something to fear or be ashamed of. To be hateful and fearful of those different to you, that is the real shame.