Superman is Jewish.

That statement always elicits an unusual reaction when I say it in social situations. Some people look puzzled, some laugh, and a handful tell me I’m crazy. Superman is an alien from another planet, they say. He ain’t Jewish or Catholic or anything.

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Yet, in his origins, different names, and even his costume, Superman is a deeply Jewish creation. With a new Superman movie about to be released and American Jews suffering a terrible new wave of antisemitism, it’s a good time to celebrate Superman’s Jewishness — and the truth, justice, and American way he represents.

I recently spoke with Valerie Estelle Frankel, author of the book Jewish Science Fiction and Fantasy through 1945: Immigrants in the Golden Age. In her book, Frankel explores the Jewish origins of the comic book. Comic strips appeared in newspapers in the early 29th century, but in 1933, Charlie Gaines (born Max Ginsberg) had the idea to reprint the most popular newspaper comics in a booklet. It was a huge hit, and by 1939, comic books were selling 400,000 copies a month. Gaines and his assistant, Sheldon Mayer, were the original publishers of Superman.

Superman was created by two Jewish children from New York, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster.

“Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster have described putting a lot of themselves into Clark Kent,” Frankel told me. “He has dazzling abilities, family talismans, a secret name — and Kal-El is quite a Jewish one, meaning the voice or vessel of the almighty. He’s from somewhere so foreign with such different traditions that the local Americans have no context for it. So, sure, he blends in as a shy geek in glasses. He feels that to get a good job and a girlfriend, he has to bury it all. Still, when someone needs his special skills, he shows off all he is — family crest proudly displayed. Siegel and Shuster likewise led double lives — both drawing fantastical creations and wrapping themselves in a tallit and tefillin at temple.”

Frankel also said there has been some erasure of the Jewishness of some comic book characters — that is, characters who are explicitly Jewish in their comics become secular when put on the big screen.

“There’s been a delightful trend toward multicultural superheroes in Marvel and DC’s shows and films,” Frankel said. “I loved Birds of Prey, Suicide Squad, Arrow, Legends of Tomorrow, Moon Knight, Captain America: Brave New World, Batwoman, and Agatha All Along, like the older X-Men films and Fantastic Four. But there’s a catch. Each of these had a character who was Jewish in the comics. However, onscreen, Harley Quinn, Kitty Pryde, and Ben Grimm never indicate any Jewishness. Magneto sure does, but not his children, Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. Ragman, Martin Stein, and Marc Spector each get a very quick reference. Sabra is described as Israeli. Batwoman goes a bit further with a Bat Mitzvah episode, as does Billy Kaplan from Agatha All Along. But all this adds up to a trend of erasure — removing a significant part of the characters’ identity. So will something Jewish appear with Superman, who’s always been a Jewish metaphor but doesn’t identify as Jewish? I doubt it.”

Frankel also explores the story of Supergirl. Like Superman, she is an orphan. Frankel believes that Supergirl’s story reflects the Kindertransports that sent Jewish children to safety during World War II. She sees Krypton Memorial Day as a reflection of this remembrance of the Holocaust.

“The 50s and 60s were prosperous for America,” Frankel said, “but Jews were still mourning the Holocaust, and it showed. Characters from this time include the neurotic and guilt-ridden Spider-Man, for instance. Supergirl is perky, but in her backstory as a refugee sent to her ‘cousin in America,’ lots of Jews saw themselves. She and Superman are the only survivors of an entire race, after all. And there are even darker comics from this period, as before the discussion of the Holocaust really went mainstream, Jewish comics authors sent their heroes to liberate camps and save survivors facing American antisemitism. The collection We Spoke Out collects many of these.”

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So, what current comics would Frankel recommend?

“Oh, there are way too many to have a favorite, and different creators really reimagine some characters. I always pick up Ms. Marvel, Ironheart, Gwenpool, Runaways, and Wonder Woman. Plus anything by Peter David, Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti, Chelsea Cain, or J. Michael Straczynski, whoever they’re writing on. To see Supergirl becoming an earthborn angel with plenty of Jewish philosophy, Peter David’s 90s Supergirl is fascinating,” Frankel said.