812
(0 votes, average 0 out of 5)
Written by Angel Sevilla
May 6, 2010
The history of fiction in comic books has never strayed too far from reality. The topics covered in comics have always paralleled our real current history in the United States. When we were at war with the Japanese it was unmistakably apparent that all of the villains in comic books at that time happened to be Japanese. When the Depression swept America and we needed someone to inspire hope the comics gave us heroes like Captain America and Superman. It is for this reason that I’m not surprised about Archie Comics revealing that it will introduce its first openly gay character in September. Archie Comics co-CEO Jon Goldwater says he wants to keep “the world of Archie Comics current and inclusive.”
If you’ve read my column before you know that I hate separating us from heterosexuals by using terms like “gay community,” but this is honestly awesome, especially for the gay community. The character AC is introducing will be named Kevin Keller, and in his first issue he will win an eating contest as well as win the interest of a beautiful female character. His dilemma will lie in figuring out how to let her down gently.
I just think of all the young gay kids who will have a cool gay role model in this new character. It may not seem like a huge deal especially because he isn’t the title character, but to some young gay kid out there it’ll mean a lot. I appreciate the fact that we’re being acknowledged even in this small way.
Kevin Keller isn’t the first gay comic character The Watchmen graphic novel featured a lesbian hero who was murdered in a hate crime and in the last couple of years Detective Comics decided to bring back Batwoman, a character that had been killed off in 1979, but this time she was introduced as a “lesbian socialite.” When this revelation was made it was met with lots of mixed opinions and reviews from Batfans. Some people didn’t want Batwoman to be gay. I want to know why.
What’s the difference with whether she’s a lesbian? She’s a comic character; she isn’t even real. If a person can’t handle a comic book character coming out of the closet then it makes me wonder how that person would handle a real person being openly gay. Not well, I’d assume.
I read an article that said parents feared that the new openly gay Archie character might make their kids gay. I have a question for these people: Would you turn gay by reading about a gay person? If you’re truly straight, then I doubt it.
Chip Alfred of the LGBT organization Equality Forum said, “Kids should be introduced to gay characters. If they aren’t, they don’t understand them and that breeds hatred and intolerance.”
I agree with Alfred. People fear what they don’t know or understand, and sometimes their misinformation isn’t completely their fault.
Including gay characters in comics and other forms of popular entertainment is a small but important step forward in the fight for gay rights. I’m happy to know that larger entities like comic production companies are taking it upon themselves to make homosexuality more commonly accepted, instead of just turning away and ignoring a struggle that they don’t have to stand up for.
