The new ‘Captain America’ as a true reflection of the country
Marvel and Disney’s “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” introduced John Walker as the unexpected replacement for Steve Rogers. The new Cap shocked audiences in the latest episode when he brutally murdered an unarmed man in a fit of rage, being recorded by everyone, while the iconic shield that Steve used acquired a bloodstain all over the edge.
Many viewers disliked Walker from the start of the show, believing that he wasn’t the rightful Captain America. But the truth is, Walker portrayed the most accurate symbol of the country today, in 2021, when the “heroes” supposed to protect innocent civilians end up murdering them.
I never thought I’d find myself over-analyzing superheroes, but considering that this particular show decided to address racial issues in America while portraying abuses of power, it seemed relevant. If anything, I’m glad Marvel is utilizng its massive platform to shed some light in all the filth that thrives in our society. They could do so much more as a multi-billion-dollar company, but it’s a start.
That final shot of episode four, when the camera settled on the bloodstained shield, showcased the first unfiltered symbol of America. Forget the bald eagles, forget the fireworks, forget the AR-15s. The true symbol must include blood over the red, white and blue. The system that lets policemen hold on to their badges after killing another human being is the same system that was designed to undermine minorities since its conception.
What’s truly sad and worrying is that it takes a viral video for people to mobilize, for news channels to offer decent coverage and for social campaigns to arise. But the number of murders and attacks that aren’t recorded and published are far more than the ones we see, and this statistic is not comprised of Black and Brown people only. Native Americans, AAPI, the transgender community and non-white immigrants are also brutalized by the police force and the failed systems that sustain the United States. The discussion here isn’t to reveal which group has been marginalized and abused the most. The common denominator in these incidents is the killer who walks away unpunished. Excuses are always made for them, reparations are always forgotten, and justice delivered by the courts is only a fantasy. In a country where every issue is addressed (but not solved) with a gun, what sense of security can the police truly offer?
When an officer’s first impulse is to fire a weapon on an unarmed man or woman, and the badge is used as a justification for murder, it proves how broken the American symbols are. And this wasn’t describing an isolated case. It can’t be summarized as “one bad apple” when we’re witnessing a pattern as charactersitic of this country as the national anthem.
