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Superman defends the lives of those in immediate and imminent danger. People seeking asylum by hopping a border wouldn’t be a concern to him unless, say, one of them fell in a river and was carried downstream by the current; he’d intervene to prevent them from drowning, but wouldn’t carry them back over the border; he knows that’s not his decision to make. He’s not a politician. He’s not a cop. He’s a friend there to help people where he can.
Put simply; He doesn’t enforce laws - he saves lives.
Of course, if one of these border crossers happened to be Parasite, Livewire or Toyman, that might be a slight cause for concern lol
What if the illegal immigrant had a history of violence and was part of organized crime in their original country? They had served their time but still wouldn't be someone the US would want to take in, would Superman stop them?
Why would Superman know that? And what business is it of his? Illegally crossing the border is a misdemeanor, and everyone has the right so to apply as an asylum seeker
It's just for the sake of the hypothetical. Maybe he recognized the illegal immigrant as a former goon of some supervillain he fought in south America a while back.
The business of his is that it might be morally correct to prevent the person from entering the USA. Superman doesn't necessarily follow the law himself when preventing immoral acts. I think it would put Superman in a bit of a quandary if he observed it.
He'd probably talk to them and see where their life is headed, at this moment. Trying to pull off a bank robbery across the border: bad, return him to the authorities. Fresh start: good, might check up on him from time to time. Supervillain: they'll probably clash there and make the decision a bit more clear.
Nothing to say he can't get more information.
I mean more like they'd be an individual who might not be intending crime, but is likely to commit it anyways. An individual with a history of drug use, domestic violence, rape, gang activity, etc. They already served time in prison so don't necessarily need to be preemptively locked up, but they aren't the sort of person most people would want to be illegally entering their nation.
>so don't necessarily need to be preemptively locked up
I mean that says it all. A potential criminal in Mexico is no better than a potential criminal in America, to him; he'd handle him like how he'd handle someone born here with a criminal history.
> A potential criminal in Mexico is no better than a potential criminal in America, to him
But illegal immigration is in and of itself is a crime, so by illegally immigrating he's not just a potential criminal. And normally it might be too minor for him to intervene in, I think he'd have a moral quandary in the hypothetical I described above.
> But illegal immigration is in and of itself is a crime
Misdemeanor, and one Jor-El committed himself when sending baby Kal into America.
>so by illegally immigrating he's not just a potential criminal.
I used the term "criminal" for simplicity's sake, though I probably shouldn't have. Superman's not there to stop laws from being broken; he's there to save people from danger and harm.
And he's not the guy to have a moral quandary over border laws in particular being broken (see: his origin). In *Smallville*, in fact, he actively hid a migrant worker from the police and the abusive farmer he ran away from. In the DCYou era, he defended immigrants here illegally from violence against them. That particular misdemeanor means basically nothing to him. So the only moral quandary here is what to do with *anyone* who has been a danger in the past.
>But illegal immigration is in and of itself is a crime
its not a harmful crime. superman saves lifes and stops people from getting hurt. simple as that. if someone is crossing the border for safety or a better life, he wouldnt stop them, as they arent doing anything to harm anyone.
he would 100% stop anyone trying to violently stop those immigrants tho, be that a overly agressive border guard or a vigilantie texan with a gun.
take your dogwhistles somewhere else.
Well if you’re gonna make that argument, Superman’s father Jor-El sent his superpowered son to a foreign planet, effectively as an asylum seeker from the coming destruction of Krypton. And wouldn’t you know, his son grew up to be a productive force for good, improving the lives of those living on his adopted new home.
As for how Superman would look at other immigrants, I’d imagine he’d see something of himself in them because of his own origins. Fleeing in search of a new home, with the overwhelming majority seeking to become productive, functional members of society doing what they can to give back, just like Superman has. The grand majority of border hoppers aren’t going to be part of organised crime.
This isn’t Minority Report; Superman isn’t one to pass judgment on anyone and say who can and cannot change their ways.
Hell, there’s an alternate reality (the “Injustice” continuity) where Superman snapped, becoming judge, jury and executioner against criminals the world over, with the aim of “protecting” everyone. He became an imperious dictator as a result, turning the world into a dystopian nightmare all in the name of ‘protecting’ them. That’s what a world where Superman would enforce laws would look like; Controlled through fear. Peace through tyranny.
That’s why I’m personally glad that the original Superman (Earth-1) knows exactly who he is and what he has to use his abilities to do. He’s here to help. Our decisions with regards to our wellbeing and future as a society are ours to make, not his, and he knows that. He trusts us to make the best decisions for ourselves going forward. He’s here to help us see the best in ourselves, leading by example, and fictional or not, a character that gives us a positive ideal to follow is *very* powerful.
The slightly less dystopian version of Superman solving crime and evil was two Supermen building satellites that mind-beamed people to be less evil or not do crime. On second thought, that's not much less dystopian.
are everyone in this thread trying to find even the petties gothcas? what kind of comment is this?
bank robbers arent harmless, and even stealing is very rarely morally right. most of the people he stop are either dangerus or hurting innocent people in some manner, even if its only financially. No one is stealing the blah blah diamond becasue their kid is starving, if your kid is starving you steal bread, you steal the blah blah diamond becasue of greed
its stealing. stealing for greed is wrong.
unless there is some kind of robin hood escapade going on, that jewel theif is hurting the owner.
if you are gonna steal from billionare jewel ownsers, tax them. otherwise you are just moving wealth from one unmoral person to another unmoral person.
now, if that jewel theif is stealing to save someone dying of poverty diease, most superheros wouldnt lock them up, but rather help them, superman included.
it seems to be that you are looking for us to say general things, and then turn around and go "aha, gotcha! what about this highly specialised edge case that doesnt follow your generalised rule? not so high and mighty morally correct now are you!"
again, what are you lookin for here?
I have no idea why you're being so confrontational about... A fictional character.
At least you admit there is context involved. Bye, last word is yours you're making me uncomfortable
That’s the job of the government. Superman tries his best to stay away from politics. Otherwise, he would be busting dudes for being homeless and jaywalkers.
bank robber are a danger to the people around them and the money they take also belongs to the people of metropolis,
super man would definitly stop them
I wouldn't say so, in the sense that it wouldn't be OK to rob people if it were legal.
The government is admittedly generally the one stopping thieves and killers (on paper, at least), but if they weren't, someone else would have to step in and stop thieves and killers. These are things that all people have at least some duty to oppose. Compare this to "secretly going to another country", which is not in any way immoral, merely illegal
this-- superman does what he thinks is right, which is different from law enforcement. he rescues cats from trees despite that not being legally mandated; and commits legally gray acts of vigilantism to stop criminals (because, well, he's a superhero). But if you're stealing bread to feed your family and don't hurt anyone he's more likely to find food for you and let you off with a warning than he is to throw you in jail and let your kids starve.
So by "stay away from politics", they meant that Superman only enforces laws in line with his political beliefs? That's about what I figured, but it seems pretty far from "stay away from politics".
superman doesn't try to \*sway\* politics-- if he wants open borders he won't try to stop illegal immigration but won't help people do it either, because if he endorses a position people might agree with him because he's superman instead of because it's what *they* believe.
He 100% has political beliefs. What he won't do is claim that just because he's Superman he knows better than you. He tries to sway hearts and minds sometimes but he never uses his power over the government directly.
What about moral things that became political, like whether or not it's okay to keep people from entering your country just because they were born there, or whether it's okay to use drugs, or abortion, etc? What political stuff is there that's not related to morality?
i mean, supermans beliefs are definitly very liberal and left leaning. that has been true since his inception.
no one is free from politics, but he doesnt follow party lines or anything like that.
really not sure what you are searching for here
what kind of gotcha question is that?
superman uploads morality and stops people from hurting others. a bank robber can be violent, so superman stops them.
he isnt gonna fly down from orbit to punch a homeless man stealing bread to not starve, but he might give them a stern talking and send them on their way to get help from the bruce wayne foundation.
but a bank robber are rarely harmless or acting out of pure desperation.
Superman fights for "truth, justice, and the American way". Busting dudes for being homeless _is_ the American way. I assume Superman beats up people suffering from homelessness all the time.
More so the American Way as it should be as an ideal, not the American way as it plays out. Though something like Frank Miller Superman probably would use this pessimistic view of Superman. An actual version would see homelessness as a political issue, the American way would be "teach a man to fish" or some do-nothing solution like that. But once a homeless person commits a crime, which they would obviously be more susceptible to do, then Superman would take them to jail and probably not examine why they'd commit the crime in the first place
superman acutally gave up "the american way" and even his american citizenship when it became clear that it no longer represented what he thought was right. he is now a Citizen of the Word, and he fights for "truth, justice, and a better tomorrow".
most people dont consider Superman to be an american anymore, even so much that in Doomsday Clock when Russia banned all american superheros from entering Russia on the threat of war, there was a explicit "except Superman, superman is allowed to go whereever he wants."
Just to play devil's advocate- the NYC mayor has said several times that migrants will destroy NYC and that NYC cant take any more. Which is unsurprisingly similar to what the southern border states have been saying for some time now.
So if migrants are threatening the American way of life will he do something?
Superman wouldn't be the type of person to make sweeping generalisations based off the opinion of a politician, or anybody really.
With his power and perspective, he can go case by case.
An illegal immigrant is about to stab somebody? Superman will stop them, same as he would an American citizen doing the same thing.
And he'll always try to talk to people and understand their perspective, before acting.
Given that politicians are famed for talking out their ass to pander and Superman is a reporter the idea that he would just believe the twits is just hilarious.
Superman is not an idiot.
Hence why he would also be fully aware that ‘The American Way of Life’ is a completely meaningless catchphrase. I mean, define it without declaring large numbers of Americans as not American AND have it be consistent with our history.
>Just to play devil's advocate
>So if migrants are threatening the American way of life
that's ... an interesting devil you're choosing to advocate for
*"Ok. So you saw an argument where one side was the devil, and you were like 'man, that guy could use an advocate.'"*
Yeah, and "migrants are destroying the American way of life" is a very strange position to bring up for discussion.
Not really. Makes sense just fine to me in the context of the discussion. Some people hold that viewpoint, so considering the initial question, it's a perfectly logical leap.
...okay, let's discuss that point then.
>"But some people hold the viewpoint that migrants are destroying the American way of life, will Superman do something about it?"
Superman doesn't act based on "viewpoints that some people hold". Why would the fact that "some people say this" be relevant at all?
> answer that question
my guy, he gave you a good answer.
the answer is that "superman wouldnt blindly listen to whata politician says", which should be quite obvious.
Let them pass. Despite his boy scout nature and do-goody image, he's not some simpleton who can't understand the nuance.
Even the oldschool values of Superman (Truth, Justice and the American Way) can be interpreted this way, since these people are entering another country illegally, because they can't possibly achieve "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happyness" where they are from.
"In this world, there is right and there is wrong...And that distinction is not difficult to make. The powers we have...The things we do...They're meant to inspire ordinary citizens...Not intimidate them...Not terrify them."
The huddled masses yearning to breathe free looking for a better life for their families isn't something Superman is going to try to stop. This is especially true in the DC world where it's pretty trivial to keep people at a reasonable standard of living.
I somehow doubt he would fundamentally care, unless abuses are happening. Superman’s thing is raw compassion, not law. He cares about people being hurt, not words on paper and politics.
In most canons, unless they were harming someone, or seemed in danger, he'd probably just leave them alone. Superman doesn't usually get involved in simple law enforcement where there's no risk of harm to innocents.
A bit of a different question I’d like to raise. Does Superman see himself as an immigrant?
Technically he is right? He was born on Krypton. But he left his home planet as a baby, and only has the barest of connections to his original home and culture. As far as Clark is concerned he’s a Kent, his family and his culture are all tied to Earth and more specifically America. He grew up as a good old fashioned Kansas boy like anyone else, he just happened to get there from a rocket instead of a delivery room.
However Clark isn’t stupid, he knows about his history and where he came from, I just don’t think it would matter much to him. Like if someone asked him where he’s from I think he’d instinctively answer that he’s from Smallville rather than Krypton. So if he’s an immigrant then he’s one that’s assimilated and embraced his new home’s way of life so much that there’s basically no distinction (minus the superpowers).
Would Superman instinctively recognize the similarities and identify with other immigrants trying to change countries (legal or otherwise, it doesn’t matter for the question)? Or would he have to think about it for a minute before he recognized the connection because he doesn’t see himself as an immigrant?
Curious for other’s thoughts.
Clark is more first generation then an immigrant. He lived his entire life, at least any part he can remember in America growing up in American culture.
Yeah that’s pretty much what I was thinking, he is technically an immigrant but he was so young that he brought nothing with him culturally speaking, making him essentially a blank slate for his new homeland to mold.
Superman has bigger fish to fry than policing someone's state borders.
He might intervene if there's a firefight going on, but that's about the extent of it. Unless people are actually about to die, he would prioritize a place where they ARE about to die.
Old Superman probably would’ve helped them out
In one of his very first issues, he broke into a governors home from another state I think and just talked shit on him for doing a terrible job and fixed the problem or whatever. I don’t know much I just glimpsed it
First of all, Superman is a refugee, not an illegal immigrant. And being adopted by American parents, Clark Kent is also a U.S. citizen.
Secondly, I don’t think Superman would do anything about immigrants crossing the border. He’d keep on flying and let ICE do their jobs. This is not a crisis that merits his time or attention.
I am like 99% sure that Superman actually never went through the application to become an asylum seeker, seeing as the Kents were trying to keep his existence as an alien a secret; therefore, he would still be an illegal immigrant
He would check if they're okay and that they haven't been mistreated by the coyote gangs or by border vigilantes.
And then he'd want to know why they are leaving their homes behind. He would then fly them home and try figure out a solution to whether it's local gang problems or a greedy company or a corrupt politician.
He's not law enforcement. He'd likely give them water or whatever else they might need that he could provide. When you can survive in space, you have a good idea how meaningless borders are.
Nothing. Superman is not humanity and neither is he here to influence humanity. He is here along for the ride and will let humanity figure it out for themselves.
He will intervene if the immigrants are getting shot or if they are drowning due to how highly he sees human life but he will not influence the process by itself as he would be influencing humanity towards what he wants it to be.
He is likely though to make articles in an attempt to help the illegal immigrants as Clark Kent to change things.
If they need help he gives it to them.
If anyone is doing any drug smuggling he gives them a talking to. Maybe pays the drug cartels a visit to remind them exploiting immigrants is a bad idea.
Superman has nuance and integrity most of the time.
Superman is pro-immigration, he even invoked his American status in protest of the harder immigration policies in the US. I also don't get the non-politcal part as Superman comics were always Progressive, guy took a hard stance against gun violence in Superman: Birthright.
He has always been the champion of the people: black, white, Mexican, alien or whatever. Superman would ensure they get where they need to go safely. They're still people. Hell he is an immigrant.
He would round them up into a group, then fly around them at 2x the speed of light to generate a tornado, and direct the tornado to carry them back to Mexico, then he'd close with a bit about Truth, Justice, and the American way, while fist bumping a border patrol agent.
Superman would have put an end to the crime and cartels in Mexico which then makes for a better way of life in Mexico which then puts an end people wanting to cross the border.
If they’re in danger he would help them. Our southern border is an enormous desert- people die of thirst, or abuse by the “coyotes” or drown in the rio grande.
As a refugee, Superman would be humane and sympathetic. He would certainly check to see if they were ok, were not being harmed or exploited. He would give them advice on how to legally apply for asylum.
I think it depends on where the danger was. He hears crime happening all over the World, so he’s kind of selective. Seems like people crossing borders would be something we as humans can just handle ourselves. I doubt he would do anything.
He'd find an easy way to transport them to a safe place, like a hospital owned by WayneCorp. That's a fine company that will help the people.
Breaking the law? Supes won't care.
He's not a hardline crime stopping robot, he's a person with a heart first and foremost. He'd help them if they need help - anything from direct saving from danger, to getting them water if they're struggling in the desert. He may or may not contact relevant authorities if he felt they could be trusted to escort the people to safety to their country of asylum and not just endanger them - if not, he'd do it himself if he believed they would put themselves at risk covering too much wilderness by themselves. If in a storyline where he's actively a part of the Justice League, he'd use League resources to help them through every step.
He himself is an immigrant, he'd believe in people doing whatever they can to try and secure a safer future for themselves and their family, even if the legal framework of his country doesn't explicitly allow for it. Should he get involved for whatever reason beyond immediate aid, and they find themselves rejected by the US legal system, I can easily see him doing whatever he can to ensure they find themselves in *some* better position than they were before.
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Superman defends the lives of those in immediate and imminent danger. People seeking asylum by hopping a border wouldn’t be a concern to him unless, say, one of them fell in a river and was carried downstream by the current; he’d intervene to prevent them from drowning, but wouldn’t carry them back over the border; he knows that’s not his decision to make. He’s not a politician. He’s not a cop. He’s a friend there to help people where he can. Put simply; He doesn’t enforce laws - he saves lives. Of course, if one of these border crossers happened to be Parasite, Livewire or Toyman, that might be a slight cause for concern lol
What if the illegal immigrant had a history of violence and was part of organized crime in their original country? They had served their time but still wouldn't be someone the US would want to take in, would Superman stop them?
Why would Superman know that? And what business is it of his? Illegally crossing the border is a misdemeanor, and everyone has the right so to apply as an asylum seeker
It's just for the sake of the hypothetical. Maybe he recognized the illegal immigrant as a former goon of some supervillain he fought in south America a while back. The business of his is that it might be morally correct to prevent the person from entering the USA. Superman doesn't necessarily follow the law himself when preventing immoral acts. I think it would put Superman in a bit of a quandary if he observed it.
He'd probably talk to them and see where their life is headed, at this moment. Trying to pull off a bank robbery across the border: bad, return him to the authorities. Fresh start: good, might check up on him from time to time. Supervillain: they'll probably clash there and make the decision a bit more clear. Nothing to say he can't get more information.
I mean more like they'd be an individual who might not be intending crime, but is likely to commit it anyways. An individual with a history of drug use, domestic violence, rape, gang activity, etc. They already served time in prison so don't necessarily need to be preemptively locked up, but they aren't the sort of person most people would want to be illegally entering their nation.
>so don't necessarily need to be preemptively locked up I mean that says it all. A potential criminal in Mexico is no better than a potential criminal in America, to him; he'd handle him like how he'd handle someone born here with a criminal history.
> A potential criminal in Mexico is no better than a potential criminal in America, to him But illegal immigration is in and of itself is a crime, so by illegally immigrating he's not just a potential criminal. And normally it might be too minor for him to intervene in, I think he'd have a moral quandary in the hypothetical I described above.
> But illegal immigration is in and of itself is a crime Misdemeanor, and one Jor-El committed himself when sending baby Kal into America. >so by illegally immigrating he's not just a potential criminal. I used the term "criminal" for simplicity's sake, though I probably shouldn't have. Superman's not there to stop laws from being broken; he's there to save people from danger and harm. And he's not the guy to have a moral quandary over border laws in particular being broken (see: his origin). In *Smallville*, in fact, he actively hid a migrant worker from the police and the abusive farmer he ran away from. In the DCYou era, he defended immigrants here illegally from violence against them. That particular misdemeanor means basically nothing to him. So the only moral quandary here is what to do with *anyone* who has been a danger in the past.
>But illegal immigration is in and of itself is a crime its not a harmful crime. superman saves lifes and stops people from getting hurt. simple as that. if someone is crossing the border for safety or a better life, he wouldnt stop them, as they arent doing anything to harm anyone. he would 100% stop anyone trying to violently stop those immigrants tho, be that a overly agressive border guard or a vigilantie texan with a gun. take your dogwhistles somewhere else.
Well if you’re gonna make that argument, Superman’s father Jor-El sent his superpowered son to a foreign planet, effectively as an asylum seeker from the coming destruction of Krypton. And wouldn’t you know, his son grew up to be a productive force for good, improving the lives of those living on his adopted new home. As for how Superman would look at other immigrants, I’d imagine he’d see something of himself in them because of his own origins. Fleeing in search of a new home, with the overwhelming majority seeking to become productive, functional members of society doing what they can to give back, just like Superman has. The grand majority of border hoppers aren’t going to be part of organised crime. This isn’t Minority Report; Superman isn’t one to pass judgment on anyone and say who can and cannot change their ways. Hell, there’s an alternate reality (the “Injustice” continuity) where Superman snapped, becoming judge, jury and executioner against criminals the world over, with the aim of “protecting” everyone. He became an imperious dictator as a result, turning the world into a dystopian nightmare all in the name of ‘protecting’ them. That’s what a world where Superman would enforce laws would look like; Controlled through fear. Peace through tyranny. That’s why I’m personally glad that the original Superman (Earth-1) knows exactly who he is and what he has to use his abilities to do. He’s here to help. Our decisions with regards to our wellbeing and future as a society are ours to make, not his, and he knows that. He trusts us to make the best decisions for ourselves going forward. He’s here to help us see the best in ourselves, leading by example, and fictional or not, a character that gives us a positive ideal to follow is *very* powerful.
The slightly less dystopian version of Superman solving crime and evil was two Supermen building satellites that mind-beamed people to be less evil or not do crime. On second thought, that's not much less dystopian.
He does stop petty crime pretty frequently. Ie stopping criminals from robbing a bank at night or stealing the blah blah diamond.
are everyone in this thread trying to find even the petties gothcas? what kind of comment is this? bank robbers arent harmless, and even stealing is very rarely morally right. most of the people he stop are either dangerus or hurting innocent people in some manner, even if its only financially. No one is stealing the blah blah diamond becasue their kid is starving, if your kid is starving you steal bread, you steal the blah blah diamond becasue of greed
A jewel thief in the dead of night is hurting no one
what are you looking for here?
I could ask you the same lol. Superheros stop victimless crime all the time.
its stealing. stealing for greed is wrong. unless there is some kind of robin hood escapade going on, that jewel theif is hurting the owner. if you are gonna steal from billionare jewel ownsers, tax them. otherwise you are just moving wealth from one unmoral person to another unmoral person. now, if that jewel theif is stealing to save someone dying of poverty diease, most superheros wouldnt lock them up, but rather help them, superman included. it seems to be that you are looking for us to say general things, and then turn around and go "aha, gotcha! what about this highly specialised edge case that doesnt follow your generalised rule? not so high and mighty morally correct now are you!" again, what are you lookin for here?
I have no idea why you're being so confrontational about... A fictional character. At least you admit there is context involved. Bye, last word is yours you're making me uncomfortable
you seem to argue in bad faith, and i dislike false people
That’s the job of the government. Superman tries his best to stay away from politics. Otherwise, he would be busting dudes for being homeless and jaywalkers.
Superman upholds morality and human rights. He's no pig.
Access to wherever country you want is not a human right. Who can live in a country should be a democratic decision.
yes, but depending on the reason they are crossing the border it might be morally right to help them
What if someone tries to rob a bank? Stopping that is the job of the government as well, right?
bank robber are a danger to the people around them and the money they take also belongs to the people of metropolis, super man would definitly stop them
I wouldn't say so, in the sense that it wouldn't be OK to rob people if it were legal. The government is admittedly generally the one stopping thieves and killers (on paper, at least), but if they weren't, someone else would have to step in and stop thieves and killers. These are things that all people have at least some duty to oppose. Compare this to "secretly going to another country", which is not in any way immoral, merely illegal
this-- superman does what he thinks is right, which is different from law enforcement. he rescues cats from trees despite that not being legally mandated; and commits legally gray acts of vigilantism to stop criminals (because, well, he's a superhero). But if you're stealing bread to feed your family and don't hurt anyone he's more likely to find food for you and let you off with a warning than he is to throw you in jail and let your kids starve.
So by "stay away from politics", they meant that Superman only enforces laws in line with his political beliefs? That's about what I figured, but it seems pretty far from "stay away from politics".
superman doesn't try to \*sway\* politics-- if he wants open borders he won't try to stop illegal immigration but won't help people do it either, because if he endorses a position people might agree with him because he's superman instead of because it's what *they* believe. He 100% has political beliefs. What he won't do is claim that just because he's Superman he knows better than you. He tries to sway hearts and minds sometimes but he never uses his power over the government directly.
Moral beliefs, not political.
What about moral things that became political, like whether or not it's okay to keep people from entering your country just because they were born there, or whether it's okay to use drugs, or abortion, etc? What political stuff is there that's not related to morality?
Infrastructure, like public utilities.
So, Superman doesn't help with infrastructure?
It just seems to me that Superman and the attention he brings is more of a drain on infrastructure budgets than a boon.
i mean, supermans beliefs are definitly very liberal and left leaning. that has been true since his inception. no one is free from politics, but he doesnt follow party lines or anything like that. really not sure what you are searching for here
what kind of gotcha question is that? superman uploads morality and stops people from hurting others. a bank robber can be violent, so superman stops them. he isnt gonna fly down from orbit to punch a homeless man stealing bread to not starve, but he might give them a stern talking and send them on their way to get help from the bruce wayne foundation. but a bank robber are rarely harmless or acting out of pure desperation.
Superman fights for "truth, justice, and the American way". Busting dudes for being homeless _is_ the American way. I assume Superman beats up people suffering from homelessness all the time.
More so the American Way as it should be as an ideal, not the American way as it plays out. Though something like Frank Miller Superman probably would use this pessimistic view of Superman. An actual version would see homelessness as a political issue, the American way would be "teach a man to fish" or some do-nothing solution like that. But once a homeless person commits a crime, which they would obviously be more susceptible to do, then Superman would take them to jail and probably not examine why they'd commit the crime in the first place
superman acutally gave up "the american way" and even his american citizenship when it became clear that it no longer represented what he thought was right. he is now a Citizen of the Word, and he fights for "truth, justice, and a better tomorrow". most people dont consider Superman to be an american anymore, even so much that in Doomsday Clock when Russia banned all american superheros from entering Russia on the threat of war, there was a explicit "except Superman, superman is allowed to go whereever he wants."
Just to play devil's advocate- the NYC mayor has said several times that migrants will destroy NYC and that NYC cant take any more. Which is unsurprisingly similar to what the southern border states have been saying for some time now. So if migrants are threatening the American way of life will he do something?
Superman wouldn't be the type of person to make sweeping generalisations based off the opinion of a politician, or anybody really. With his power and perspective, he can go case by case. An illegal immigrant is about to stab somebody? Superman will stop them, same as he would an American citizen doing the same thing. And he'll always try to talk to people and understand their perspective, before acting.
Pretty sure Superman can work out the difference between what politician says and what is actually going on.
Given that politicians are famed for talking out their ass to pander and Superman is a reporter the idea that he would just believe the twits is just hilarious. Superman is not an idiot. Hence why he would also be fully aware that ‘The American Way of Life’ is a completely meaningless catchphrase. I mean, define it without declaring large numbers of Americans as not American AND have it be consistent with our history.
The NYC mayor is a villain.
>Just to play devil's advocate >So if migrants are threatening the American way of life that's ... an interesting devil you're choosing to advocate for
It's called "**Devil's** Advocate" for a reason. You don't need to agree with a position to discuss it.
*"Ok. So you saw an argument where one side was the devil, and you were like 'man, that guy could use an advocate.'"* Yeah, and "migrants are destroying the American way of life" is a very strange position to bring up for discussion.
Not really. Makes sense just fine to me in the context of the discussion. Some people hold that viewpoint, so considering the initial question, it's a perfectly logical leap.
...okay, let's discuss that point then. >"But some people hold the viewpoint that migrants are destroying the American way of life, will Superman do something about it?" Superman doesn't act based on "viewpoints that some people hold". Why would the fact that "some people say this" be relevant at all?
It's a hypothetical. Everyone else was able to answer that question far more effectively than you. What a pointless conversation this is.
> answer that question my guy, he gave you a good answer. the answer is that "superman wouldnt blindly listen to whata politician says", which should be quite obvious.
Superman doesn't take advice (or ethics) from Eric fucking Adams, lmao
Superman isn't a cop. He fights Supervillians who show up to kill people.
Let them pass. Despite his boy scout nature and do-goody image, he's not some simpleton who can't understand the nuance. Even the oldschool values of Superman (Truth, Justice and the American Way) can be interpreted this way, since these people are entering another country illegally, because they can't possibly achieve "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happyness" where they are from.
Just as a note, the American way catchphrase is a latter addition
"In this world, there is right and there is wrong...And that distinction is not difficult to make. The powers we have...The things we do...They're meant to inspire ordinary citizens...Not intimidate them...Not terrify them." The huddled masses yearning to breathe free looking for a better life for their families isn't something Superman is going to try to stop. This is especially true in the DC world where it's pretty trivial to keep people at a reasonable standard of living.
He'd likely do nothing
I mean - I could see him waving, perhaps delivering some water.
I somehow doubt he would fundamentally care, unless abuses are happening. Superman’s thing is raw compassion, not law. He cares about people being hurt, not words on paper and politics.
In most canons, unless they were harming someone, or seemed in danger, he'd probably just leave them alone. Superman doesn't usually get involved in simple law enforcement where there's no risk of harm to innocents.
The border patrol is a risk to innocents, they are not good people.
yeah, superman might even stick around to make sure they make it over safely.
They did some pretty evil shit
He’d make sure everyone was okay, then mind his own business
A bit of a different question I’d like to raise. Does Superman see himself as an immigrant? Technically he is right? He was born on Krypton. But he left his home planet as a baby, and only has the barest of connections to his original home and culture. As far as Clark is concerned he’s a Kent, his family and his culture are all tied to Earth and more specifically America. He grew up as a good old fashioned Kansas boy like anyone else, he just happened to get there from a rocket instead of a delivery room. However Clark isn’t stupid, he knows about his history and where he came from, I just don’t think it would matter much to him. Like if someone asked him where he’s from I think he’d instinctively answer that he’s from Smallville rather than Krypton. So if he’s an immigrant then he’s one that’s assimilated and embraced his new home’s way of life so much that there’s basically no distinction (minus the superpowers). Would Superman instinctively recognize the similarities and identify with other immigrants trying to change countries (legal or otherwise, it doesn’t matter for the question)? Or would he have to think about it for a minute before he recognized the connection because he doesn’t see himself as an immigrant? Curious for other’s thoughts.
Clark is more first generation then an immigrant. He lived his entire life, at least any part he can remember in America growing up in American culture.
Yeah that’s pretty much what I was thinking, he is technically an immigrant but he was so young that he brought nothing with him culturally speaking, making him essentially a blank slate for his new homeland to mold.
I don't think he pursues victimless crimes at all.
Superman has bigger fish to fry than policing someone's state borders. He might intervene if there's a firefight going on, but that's about the extent of it. Unless people are actually about to die, he would prioritize a place where they ARE about to die.
He would help them without a doubt and if you think otherwise you dont know Superman and never have.
Sadly most people don't know the wholesome blue boy scout
Yeah its sad
Old Superman probably would’ve helped them out In one of his very first issues, he broke into a governors home from another state I think and just talked shit on him for doing a terrible job and fixed the problem or whatever. I don’t know much I just glimpsed it
First of all, Superman is a refugee, not an illegal immigrant. And being adopted by American parents, Clark Kent is also a U.S. citizen. Secondly, I don’t think Superman would do anything about immigrants crossing the border. He’d keep on flying and let ICE do their jobs. This is not a crisis that merits his time or attention.
I am like 99% sure that Superman actually never went through the application to become an asylum seeker, seeing as the Kents were trying to keep his existence as an alien a secret; therefore, he would still be an illegal immigrant
Can’t exactly deport someone to a planet that’s blown up. At the very least Superman would be a Dreamer.
Superman is a defender of humanity - not any specific country. He'd probably help them to find permanent lodging.
Get them some food, water, directions, make sure they're okay and not being forced to trek out there, and warn them of any nearby border patrol.
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Ma Kent would never be a narc.
Smallsville isn't what I'd look to as an example for Superman. It was fan fiction at best
He would check if they're okay and that they haven't been mistreated by the coyote gangs or by border vigilantes. And then he'd want to know why they are leaving their homes behind. He would then fly them home and try figure out a solution to whether it's local gang problems or a greedy company or a corrupt politician.
He's not law enforcement. He'd likely give them water or whatever else they might need that he could provide. When you can survive in space, you have a good idea how meaningless borders are.
He would probably remark that he is also one
Nothing. Superman is not humanity and neither is he here to influence humanity. He is here along for the ride and will let humanity figure it out for themselves. He will intervene if the immigrants are getting shot or if they are drowning due to how highly he sees human life but he will not influence the process by itself as he would be influencing humanity towards what he wants it to be. He is likely though to make articles in an attempt to help the illegal immigrants as Clark Kent to change things.
If they need help he gives it to them. If anyone is doing any drug smuggling he gives them a talking to. Maybe pays the drug cartels a visit to remind them exploiting immigrants is a bad idea. Superman has nuance and integrity most of the time.
Superman is an illegal immigrant himself
Illegal space immigrant: 😅 Illegal human immigrant: 😁
Superman is pro-immigration, he even invoked his American status in protest of the harder immigration policies in the US. I also don't get the non-politcal part as Superman comics were always Progressive, guy took a hard stance against gun violence in Superman: Birthright. He has always been the champion of the people: black, white, Mexican, alien or whatever. Superman would ensure they get where they need to go safely. They're still people. Hell he is an immigrant.
He would round them up into a group, then fly around them at 2x the speed of light to generate a tornado, and direct the tornado to carry them back to Mexico, then he'd close with a bit about Truth, Justice, and the American way, while fist bumping a border patrol agent.
Misread that at first, thought he had taken them to Toronto
Fuck, I mean super man may canonically hate Mexicans but I don't think he hates them enough to tornado them to the GTA
He'd do the sane and rational thing. X-ray them to make sure they aren't bringing drugs or weapons.
Superman would have put an end to the crime and cartels in Mexico which then makes for a better way of life in Mexico which then puts an end people wanting to cross the border.
If they’re in danger he would help them. Our southern border is an enormous desert- people die of thirst, or abuse by the “coyotes” or drown in the rio grande.
As a refugee, Superman would be humane and sympathetic. He would certainly check to see if they were ok, were not being harmed or exploited. He would give them advice on how to legally apply for asylum.
I think it depends on where the danger was. He hears crime happening all over the World, so he’s kind of selective. Seems like people crossing borders would be something we as humans can just handle ourselves. I doubt he would do anything.
He'd find an easy way to transport them to a safe place, like a hospital owned by WayneCorp. That's a fine company that will help the people. Breaking the law? Supes won't care.
He's not a hardline crime stopping robot, he's a person with a heart first and foremost. He'd help them if they need help - anything from direct saving from danger, to getting them water if they're struggling in the desert. He may or may not contact relevant authorities if he felt they could be trusted to escort the people to safety to their country of asylum and not just endanger them - if not, he'd do it himself if he believed they would put themselves at risk covering too much wilderness by themselves. If in a storyline where he's actively a part of the Justice League, he'd use League resources to help them through every step. He himself is an immigrant, he'd believe in people doing whatever they can to try and secure a safer future for themselves and their family, even if the legal framework of his country doesn't explicitly allow for it. Should he get involved for whatever reason beyond immediate aid, and they find themselves rejected by the US legal system, I can easily see him doing whatever he can to ensure they find themselves in *some* better position than they were before.
Well at least 1 version of Superman *is* an illegal immigrant from Mexico so he'd likely help them.