Is Superman still relevant?

Superman captured my attention when I was a kid. His devotion to “truth, justice, and the American way” inspired me to think about what heights humanity could reach by using values and virtues as our North Star. That the Superman story was created by Jewish artists, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, and draws from the American immigrant experience and the Bible deepened my connection to this character.

In an age of moral complexity and antiheroes, the Man of Steel’s popularity has unfortunately lost its shine. Unlike Batman’s inner turmoil and Ironman’s arrogance, Superman has almost become pop culture kryptonite, as his moral clarity feels outdated in a world increasingly defined by polarization, conflict, and outright hatred.

Since the beginning of this academic year, I’ve experienced three Antisemitic incidents along the East Coast. In a men’s bathroom at Washington’s Union Station, I was verbally harassed for simply being Jewish. At a stoplight in Boston, a panhandler, seeing my son and me wearing yarmulkes, lowered his cup and raised his voice to yell, “You kill babies in Palestine!” And just last week in Manhattan’s Columbus Circle, a random woman on the street felt comfortable enough to exclaim in my face, “You’re a douchebag, Jew.”

In each case, no one said a word. No bystander asked if I was okay. Their silence didn’t just normalize this outrageous behavior; it educated me about how many Americans really feel about Jews.

Elie Weisel, the former Nobel Peace Prize winner, stated, “What hurts the victim most is not the cruelty of the oppressor, but the silence of the bystander.” At these three challenging moments, I wondered, where are the upstanders? Nowhere around me could be found the likes of Raoul Wallenberg or Chiune Sugihara, diplomats during the Holocaust from Sweden and Japan respectively, who jeopardized their careers and risked their lives to save Jews and protect other human beings.

By turning away from Superman, our society may have lost more than we realize. His “Boy Scout” image is often dismissed as naïvely simplistic, but this son of Krypton’s elevation of responsibility, justice, and public service makes this caped hero more necessary than ever. He could have easily chosen to rule the world; instead, he devotes his powers to protecting it.

Superman returns to the big screen on July 11 in a reboot directed by James Gunn and starring David Corenswet – the first Jewish actor to fill this role – at a fragile moment. Along with Antisemitism, Pew Reports and ADL research show that the United States is plagued by political polarization, public cynicism, and declining trust in all branches of government.

At such a moment, Superman flies back into the cultural conversation when we desperately need a unifying story and symbols that remind us of what binds our civil society together.

That’s also the mission of Civic Spirit, the organization for which I work. We bring civic education to Jewish, Catholic, and Christian day schools across the country, training teachers and inspiring students to think critically, engage with curiosity and compassion, and embrace idealism, even if it seems countercultural.

Larry Tye, author of Superman: The High-Flying History of America’s Most Enduring Hero, asserts, “Superpowers are just half the equation. More essential is knowing what to do with them.” In an era when science fact outpaces science fiction and AI is growing by leaps and bounds, schools play a vital role in helping students understand how to use their political as much as their technological power responsibly.

With America’s 250th less than a year away, now is the time for us to recommit to civic education as well as the ideals that bring us together and lift us all higher.  The teachers, administrators, coaches, club advisors, and students across the Civic Spirit network deeply inspire me. These super friends embody the virtues that Superman champions and remind us that we don’t need capes to soar.