Gay marriage in X-Men, Famous DC character to come out.

Originally posted by Xcalibur254
As I stated earlier in this thread this is not a new trend for comics.

It's irrelevant if this is a new or old trend. I think it's bad practice to attempt to brainwash or guilt trip others for having different moral beliefs on issues that are still controversial.

The X-Men were a product of the civil rights movement. It showed how ridiculous it is to persecute someone just because they're different.

Well, this is obviously a misrepresentation of what is being talked about. People who think gay behavior or gay marriage is wrong are not against it simply because it's different, but because they think it's wrong. The question is whether or not it is indeed wrong.

Why is it that there's no problem when people in other artistic mediums express their political opinions through their work but it's not allowed in comics?

They can do whatever they want, but if I don't like it, then I'm going to let them know, either by telling them or by not buying the comics.

But think for a moment here. Imagine if a comic tried to teach people that gay behavior was wrong. What would you say then? Or are you only for comic book writers expressing their political views when they coincide with your own?

reply to post by Sleepwalk7

Well, this is obviously a misrepresentation of what is being talked about. People who think gay behavior or gay marriage is wrong are not against it simply because it's different, but because they think it's wrong. The question is whether or not it is indeed wrong.

People thought it was morally wrong to give African Americans equal rights. That didn't stop Stan Lee and Jack Kirby from creating one of the greatest comics of all time that took heavy influence from the civil rights movement. Are you saying that the X-Men should never have been created because it took a stand in regards to a controversial issue that many saw as wrong?

But think for a moment here. Imagine if a comic tried to teach people that gay behavior was wrong. What would you say then? Or are you only for comic book writers expressing their political views when they coincide with your own?

Frank Miller's comics have had undertones of homophobia for a long time. That hasn't stopped 300 or The Dark Knight Returns from being great comics. The thing with most comics that take a homophobic position is they aren't good. Their purpose is to primarily push their agenda with the story being secondary. With the comics being discussed in this thread the story is still the primary concern. Take Northstar as an example. He's more or less been openly homosexual since the 80s. He's been with the same partner for a few years now. The X-Men live in New York. New York recently legalized gay marriage. Don't you think it's natural for him to marry the person he's been in love with for years now? I'm not even talking from a moralistic position right now. I'm talking about character development. Why should Marvel stunt an established character's growth because it might offend some of their fans?

Originally posted by Xcalibur254
People thought it was morally wrong to give African Americans equal rights.

True, but this is a disanalogy because, currently, we all agree that black people should be treated equally, so when we look back at the past we can say things like what was done to black people was wrong.

So your analogy would only work if we presumed that homosexual behavior and marriage was indeed morally good or neutral, and not detrimental to society. But that's precisely the issue. Some people think homosexual behavior and marriage is wrong and detrimental to society.

That didn't stop Stan Lee and Jack Kirby from creating one of the greatest comics of all time that took heavy influence from the civil rights movement.

Great, but that the civil rights movement. Here, we're talking about homosexual behavior and marriage.

Are you saying that the X-Men should never have been created because it took a stand in regards to a controversial issue that many saw as wrong?

Presuming the X-men were created for this sole purpose, no, not per se. But I do think it's bad taste to use comic book characters that people of all backgrounds and opinions read and enjoy to push controversial political opinions. It just seems selfish to me.

Frank Miller's comics have had undertones of homophobia for a long time. That hasn't stopped 300 or The Dark Knight Returns from being great comics.

Well, I don't know if this true or not--or what even homophobia means in this context. Is anyone who disagrees with the moral belief that homosexuality is OK a homophobe? That's an interesting stance.

Their purpose is to primarily push their agenda with the story being secondary.

So you're OK if a comic book pushes the idea that homosexuality is wrong only if the story comes first? Well at least you're consistent. I respect you for that.