Was reading my morning news, yeah I know bad idea… and this headline leapt out at me.

Green Lantern’ is opening. Does it appeal only to white American males?

I thought to myself DOES IT MATTER?

Why did the writer of this article think it important to ask this question?

There are a number of movies that I personally have no interest in seeing.

Were I to ask the same question about  The Lottery Ticket for example with a headline like;

Lottery Ticket opens today, Does it appeal only to Black American Males?

I’d be crucified as a racist, so why doesn’t the blade of racism in America cut BOTH ways?

According to Wikipedia the first Green Lantern appeared in 1940.

Green Lantern is a reflection of the time in which it was created.

The story Line I’m most familiar with starts in 1959 with Hal Jordan who is a fighter test pilot. Since the 1959 story line involves a fighter test pilot, and the first African American test pilot (Ed Dwight) wasn’t appointed until 1961. It’ makes all the sense in the world that Hal Jordan would be white.

It is worth noting that later in the Green Lantern story arc as early as 1971, an African American (John Stewart) is chosen by the Green Lantern Corps. Again this is a reflection of the changing attitudes in the society. The John Stewart Green Lantern is an Architect, was a Marine, and is all about Justice and doing the right thing regardless of the consequences. He’s a strong character that everyone can understand and identify with.

There was always considerable diversity in the Green Lantern story. When you consider that  The Green Lantern Corps, is coalition of aliens from many worlds all of whom are given great power and responsibility based on the judgement of the Lantern rings.

I’ve noticed chatter in the ‘net where people are complaining that Hal Jordan, not  John Stewart is the Green Lantern in the current movie.

Since I haven’t yet seen the movie, I don’t know how relevant the internet chatter is.

If the movie is about the origins of the Green Lantern on Earth then the Hal Jordan story arc makes sense. If the movie is about the Green Lantern in general then it could have gone either way.

What I find disturbing is that people are bitching about the color of the Green Lanterns skin.

If anything, the development of the Green Lanterns story over the past 50 years shows that Green is the color of justice and the color of the persons skin is incidental  to the Character and Strength of the person wielding the ring.

It’s ashamed that life is not imitating art in this case.