My mother once told me that the friends you keep around you reflect back on you. It’s good advice that DC Comics’ mothers probably never gave them, otherwise they wouldn’t have hired Orson Scott Card as the writer for the new Adventures of Superman series.
No one can tell other people how they should think or feel. No one has that right, but someone can choose the people that they interact with based on what those people think. That’s why DC should take deeper consideration over what they’re going to do about their new hire.
A difference of opinion can be acceptable, but actions speak louder than words. Orson Scott Card’s actions have spoken loud enough not to be ignored. His seat on the board of the National Organization of Marriage makes no mistake about his active stance against the LGBT community. He’s also vocally stated his personal opinions at DeseretNews.com, stating:
How long before married people answer the dictators thus: Regardless of law, marriage has only one definition, and any government that attempts to change it is my mortal enemy. I will act to destroy that government and bring it down, so it can be replaced with a government that will respect and support marriage, and help me raise my children in a society where they will expect to marry in their turn.
Does this mean that he’ll use the pages of Adventures of Superman as a platform for his campaign against the legalization of gay marriage or any of his other personal opinions? No, but it’s a pretty safe bet that there won’t be a fair, if any, representation of LGBT characters. This flies in the face of DC’s campaign that they boasted so highly at the launch of The New 52. Does this mean that their efforts to increase the diversity of their books only pertained to ethnic backgrounds? Hopefully not.
In response to the fan’s outcry against Card’s hire DC made a statement to Fox News Radio:
As content creators we steadfastly support freedom of expression, however the personal views of individuals associated with DC Comics are just that — personal views — and not those of the company itself.
That may be true, DC, but supporting the expression of freedom doesn’t mean that you have to overlook the disagreeable opinions of others. Hiring an opponent of civil rights like Card reflects poorly on a company that people look towards to help their own characters know the difference between right and wrong.
A ban or boycott of DC Comics all together isn’t the answer to this problem, but a boycott of the Adventures of Superman series and urging your local comic shops to refuse ordering it would help the cause. DC may want to protect freedom of expression, but they won’t deny the displeasure of their fans when the numbers are too low to ignore. There is also an online petition for DC to fire Card before the book is even published. This can solve the problem before it ever hits print.
Take my mother’s advice to heart and choose your friends wisely, DC.