Captain America Co-Creator's Daughter Comments On Hero's Political Resurgence
It is a contentious time in the United States of America. Donald Trump's election as president has [...]
It is a contentious time in the United States of America. Donald Trump's election as president has deepened the already present political divide among citizens.
In such politically tumultuous times, some can question what a patriotic symbol like Captain America means. Even outside of his controversial "Agent of Hydra" and "Secret Empire" storylines currently unfolding in the Marvel Comics universe, Captain America's Nazi-punching past has been something that opponents of President Trump's political policies have rallied behind, most notably to oppose the inclusion of Stephen Bannon on the White House staff and the executive order for a travel ban.
Trump supporters obviously feel this representation is unfair. However, Melissa Groben, the daughter of Captain America co-creator Joe Simon, feels that it is just the continuation of a political tradition as old as Cap himself.
"Captain America has been around for a long time, so anytime there is any turmoil or unrest or disagreement, he pops up," Groben told Heat Vision. "We all find whatever we need in a particular character, whatever that may be. So, I can't say that the way anyone is using the character is wrong. If that's what they see in the character, then that's what works for them.
"What Captain America represents to my neighbor might be different than what he means to someone from three towns over."
Groben also offered a reminder of the context in which Captain America was created by her father and Jack Kirby.
"Captain America was created while the Jews were being killed off in Europe, and my father, being Jewish, and Jack, being Jewish, were enraged that America was not over there with our military strength," explained Groben. "They created Captain America to go after Hitler because our country wouldn't go after Hitler. My father was very, very, very pro-America, pro-Jewish, he was very traditional, and it was a different world back then."
While Groben wouldn't speculate as to how her father would feel about Captain America's use in the current political landscape, she did say, "He saw the character used in many different ways and was thrilled that people found something in the character that fed whatever they were looking for."
ComicBook.com touched on Captain America's history in our look back at the history of superheroes as social justice warriors.
While Groben was measured in her statements, Chris Evans, the star of Marvel's Captain America movies, has not been. Evans has been quite vocal about his opposition to Trump's executive order and political platform. Groben notes that Evans' opinions are not necessarily those of the characters he has played.
"Mr. Evans is not representing his views as Captain America, he is representing his views as an individual," said Groben. "He has been in many other roles and is a fantastic actor. He really did a great job as Captain America, but we have to separate fiction from reality. He is not speaking as Captain America. He is speaking as Chris Evans. And that's the way it should be. His viewpoints are his own."
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Evans was last seen as Captain America in Captain America: Civil War. He'll return as Cap in Avengers: Infinity War, which is now filming for a 2018 release.
