Adam, Legend of The Blue Marvel!

 

 

 

In the 1960s Adam Brashear was a young man who served his country as a U.S. Marine. When he discovered his super-powers, he fashioned a secret identity with which to protect his country; the Blue Marvel! He served as a hero for years, and was one of the most popular heroes of his time. Yet Adam had a secret, he was an African-American, a fact not lost on the government. As a precaution against so much power in the hands of a black man, they took steps to control him, even going so far as to plant a Spy for him to date. His career as the Blue Marvel ended after he faced the Anti-Man, with his ethnicity revealed, Adam was pressured by the government to retire.

As a kid, I was fascinated with comic books. I would read until late into the night. It was a way for me to escape and provided my love for reading which has continued to this day. While I loved all superheroes, I couldn't help but notice the void of people who looked like me being portrayed as the all powerful legends. There were a few, Luke Cage, Power man, Black Panther, The Falcon...But, Adam is a unique story and one I fell in love with immediately.

Though he is fictional, if you read his story, doesn't this resonate and translate in reality? TOO OFTEN we discount potential heroes because of where they come from or look like, we marginalize them and ultimately, we ALL miss out. There are ongoing discussions about how to get this country back to her greatness, some billionaires think we're being beaten out by China and India, IF we are, it's because we CONTINUE to overlook the potential of ALL AMERICANS! Regardless of where they come from or what they look like. Who says the cure for cancer won't come from the mind of a child living in the ghetto? or the cure for aids from a disabled person or some other great discovery from some disenfranchised American?

We hold these truths to be self-evident where all men are created equal and we become a great nation once we put these words into action.