Controversy erupted over recent comments by James Gunn. The director of the Superman movie described his film in The Times U.K. as “the story of America” and “an immigrant that came from other places.” This drew complaints of wokeness and political activism.
The fact of the matter is that Superman has always been a political character and an allegory for immigration. His creators, Joe Shuster and Jerry Siegel, were both the sons of Jewish immigrants. Shuster himself was an immigrant, having been born in Canada before moving to the United States when he was 10. The idea of an alien who flees a doomed world to start a new life on Earth as a champion of the oppressed was clearly inspired by their experiences. Yet the question remains: is the Man of Tomorrow technically an immigrant, illegal, or otherwise?
What’s the history of Superman’s immigration status?
The origins of Superman were continually revised after his introduction in 1938’s Action Comics #1. It was not until 1948’s Superman #53 that the issue of Superman’s legal status as an American was briefly addressed. Here, the Kents describe the baby they found in a rocket as a foundling and arrange to adopt him.
The Nationality Act of 1940 grants American citizenship to any “person of unknown parentage found in the United States while under the age of five years.” This would clearly apply to the young Clark Kent. However, the statute also removes citizenship if the immigrant learns they were not born in the United States before turning 21. Given that Clark usually learns his alien origins as a teenager, this would also apply to him.
However, things were changed definitively in 1986’s Man of Steel miniseries. In the new timeline, Clark is not born on Krypton, but gestates in a Kryptonian Birthing Matrix while traveling through space. Moreover, the Kents are shown to have claimed that Clark was born during a long winter while they were snowed in.
In this timeline, Superman is technically born in America and officially registered as the Kents’ biological son. However, he may still technically be an illegal immigrant under the law. Indeed, he may not qualify as a citizen due to the US Code defining a person as a “member of the species homo sapiens.”
Superman is technically a refugee, not an immigrant
Another interesting legal point is that Superman is technically a refugee rather than an immigrant. This distinction would also change how Superman is regarded under American law. Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, a refugee is anyone from outside the United States who is unable to return to their home.
Naturally, this act does not account for people from other planets. However, Krypton exploding would seem to qualify as a natural disaster by any reasonable standard. It would also make Kal-El “a person having no nationality.” Jonathan Kent made this distinction while standing with refugee rights protesters in 2021’s Superman: Son of Kal-El #3.
Superman as a naturalized American citizen
Whether he is an immigrant or refugee matters little if Superman can be considered a naturalized American citizen. The classic comics are on firmer ground on this point. Regardless of what he was, Superman is generally treated as both an American citizen and a citizen of Earth.
1980’s The New Adventures of Superboy #12 directly addressed the question of Superman being a literal resident alien. When questioned by then reporter Perry White, Superboy replied that US President Dwight Eisenhower said he had “nothing to worry about.” This could be because the Immigration and Nationality Act grants the President of the United States the authority to grant citizenship to refugees under “special circumstances.” Alternatively, any “alien of extraordinary ability” can apply for an EB-1 visa to speed up an application for American citizenship.
Superman has also been granted the rare honor of being declared a citizen of the world by the United Nations. This first occurred in 1973’s Amazing World of Superman” #1. This was done to facilitate Superman legally crossing the borders between UN member nations.
Perhaps the most humorous proof of Superman’s citizenship is his battle with the IRS in 1961’s Superman #148. There, a dedicated agent went after him for not filing a return for his donations to charity. In the end, however, the IRS agreed to forgive the debt after realizing Superman could legally claim everyone on Earth as a dependent and earn an incalculable refund. While this was played for laughs, it also suggests Superman was viewed as a tax-paying American citizen.
