1981 Fredric Wertham on the fascism of Superman

Its is utterly impossible to understand what happened in Germany. All the different massacres and so on unless you realize they were imbued with this Superman spirit. It represents the abolition of law, the Superman is above the law, all laws. Democratic law, the real law, and even the law of physics and chemistry. He's a person to himself. So what you teach the young person, and incidentally the older person too, is that you have no responsibility. You have to appeal to one individual who will take care of everything.

Boys, and have seen some myself I have to examine them, have really tried that to jump over the banister, fall down, and break their leg. Or try to almost go out of the window. Or later on as men there many of my patients telling me look as a child you I really thought fly or thank God I didn't try but I know someone who did. He [Superman] represents superstition. So here you have violence, superstition, complete distrust in the community, complete distrust in the law, complete trust in a strong individual who can do things which cannot be done.

What do you think of the idea that Superman stands for truth, justice, and the American Way.

Well how can one stand for something that doesn't exist it's very difficult, but he doesn't for one thing he doesn't he comes at the last moment flies through the air and helps. That's not what the girls know who have been r*ped and killed and mutilated. They don't need someone to fly through the air. You need a policeman on the beat to see that this neighborhood gets nuts in such a weird way. So to say Superman stands for right and stands for the good that may have been so in the beginning when these two school boys started him it may have been so but at the present moment Superman stands for violence.