RIP Stan Lee: The Man Who Brought Color to Comics

Hello Meltingpot Readers,

I’m going to be honest, I’m not really a comic book fan, (although I did read a lot of Archie comics as a kid). But because I have two sons (and a husband), over the years I’ve come to appreciate the genre. Not surprisingly, as I delved into the comic world, I searched for diverse comics that resonated with the meltingpot maven inside of me. I wanted to find comics with diverse characters and with story lines that reflected contemporary society. When babygirl became old enough to consumer pop culture, I started looking for comics that featured female characters that she could fall in love with and see a bit of herself too.

Because I’m always looking for the story behind the stories, I heard about Stan Lee a lot as I searched for multicultural comic book characters. Lee created Black Panther and the X-Men, but he also was known for using his platform as a writer to bring attention to racial injustice. His impact on popular culture extended far beyond cartoons.

The Stan Lee Diversity Tributes

In case you’re like me and came late to the comics game, here are some stories about Stan Lee that show what he meant to the fight for truth, justice and the American way…for marginalized communities and kids everywhere who needed a hero who looked like them. A hero who would fight for them.

Stan Lee was a True Ally for People of Color from Vice Media.

Stan Lee Imagined an Africa Way Ahead of His Time with Black Panther from Quartz Media.

My favorite tribute comes from The Root.com, where the writer explains how large of an impact Lee had on Black kids like himself growing up. Also, he explains the origins of the X-Men which is totally amazing.

” When Lee created the X-Men in 1963, the battle between Magneto and Professor X was meant to be a rough allegory for the integrationist vs. nationalist philosophies of Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. Yes, the idea of black oppression and philosophy being played out by mostly protestant white guys like Cyclops and Ice-Man is problematic in hindsight (Magneto is Jewish), but it was a radical idea at the time.”

Read all you can about Stan Lee. I know he wasn’t perfect. He was human. But he set a wonderful example of what one person can do with a pencil, a pad of paper and passion.

RIP Stan Lee.

Do you have a favorite Stan Lee character or memory? Please share in the comments.

Peace!