X-Men Comics Gives Fans The Jewish Representation The MCU Needs
Jewish representation is unfortunately rare in the superhero genre, but an X-Men comic features a scene that delves into Jewish identity and anti-Jewish bigotry that continues to permeate American society. Kitty Pryde, a fan-favorite mutant superhero, is one of Marvel’s most prominent Jewish characters, whose easily-hidden superpowers are comparable to her identity as a white-passing Ashkenazi woman. Kitty’s monologue in a 2013 issue of All-New X-Men provides the Marvel Comics universe with a tasteful example of Jewish representation that the MCU is, unfortunately, sorely lacking.
The superhero comic genre itself is inexorably tied to American Jewish culture, as the mainstream publishing industry was uninviting to all but white, Christian male creatives for a time. In the 1930s, the comic book industry was one of the few that was friendly to Jewish creatives, resulting in famous writers and artists like Jack Kirby, Stan Lee, Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster, Bill Finger, Bob Kane, and many others creating the modern superhero genre. Jewish culture may be subtly and unsubtly built into superhero fiction, but there are, unfortunately, few overtly Jewish characters in the genre, with some of Marvel’s most prominent examples being Kitty Pryde, Ben Grimm, Marc Spector, and the villainous (yet complex) Magneto.
Related: Spider-Man's Jewish Heritage Hinted as Canon by Marvel
While most Marvel adaptations struggle to even say the word “Jewish,” let alone give Jewish people a decent level of representation, All-New X-Men #13 by Brian Michael Bendis and Stuart Immonen has Kitty Pryde deliver a moving monologue regarding her minority statuses as both a Jewish woman and a mutant. Kitty acknowledges that her ethnic background makes her
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