Nicholas Dulerain

ENGW1111-35

Professor Richard

Pratt Essay

According to Pratt, evaluating existing ethnographies or autoethnographies is crucial

when teaching, writing, or engaging in politically or socially charged discourse. While it is often

more productive to examine existing autoethnographies, taking time to scrutinize scripted or

otherwise third-party ethnographies can provide some much-needed perspective to a particular

culture or group of people. One such scripted ethnography is the HBO documentary

Superheroes, which explores a relatively new phenomenon of non-violent, pop culture-inspired

vigilantism across America. While these people may seem inconsequential, they have real stories

to tell, sometimes very unpleasant ones, but this drives them to give back to their communities.

However, as they do so, they establish two main contact zones, the first with local law

enforcement and the second with the communities they live in and society in general. These

contact zones are only exacerbated by the generally patronizing attitude that the Superheroes

have toward the police and society in general. Pratt would argue that they are marginalized as a

result of judgments and criticisms from society on their characters without getting to understand

their perspectives. She would argue that it is a general lack of empathy that leads to their

marginalization. This paper will argue the opposite, that they have been gaining respect for their

selfless acts of charity and goodwill and as a result, are having their voices taken more seriously

by their communities as well as local authorities. This paper will also argue that with the advent
of the Internet and online communications, fringe groups such as the RLSH project are able to

broaden their social networks, reinforce their connections, and broadcast their messages.

In analyzing the contact zone between the Superheroes and the police, Pratt would argue

that since there exists an obvious hierarchical power structure, with police on top and the

Superheroes on the bottom, the latter are becoming marginalized as a result. She would claim

that they are not being seen as they wish to be seen, that is, as an official part of the established

crime-fighting community. The fact that the police do not see them as a part of it is no surprise

and it is not a reason to slap the label of marginalization on these individuals. The problem is that

while many Superheroes have basic medical and martial arts training, they often lack real law

enforcement training. It can be inferred that the RLSH are obtaining this basic training in order

to define themselves in a way that the police can understand, since police officers go through

rigorous physical fitness, firearm, psychology, ethics and technology training to equip them with

the skills necessary to combat crime. Phoenix Jones, a Superhero based in Seattle is a

professional MMA fighter with a 6-2 record. He often patrols the streets handing out food to the

homeless and preventing assaults and other violent crime. In an interview with local news, he

claims that the movement is doing the police a favor, since the police require probable cause to

act and the Superheroes dont. This is a major problem, since without probable cause you have

Superheroes like Zimmer and his group who intentionally attempt to bait out crime. Police also

fear for their safety, as the Superheroes are not always fully equipped to handle dangerous

situations. Phoenix Jones has been stabbed, shot and has had his nose allegedly broken while

attempting to break up a fight. Clearly the police have grounds for concern about their safety.

Police have also expressed concern that these Superheroes involve themselves in situations

without knowing all of the facts, which could potentially lead to ugly outcomes. Furthermore,
while they may be well intentioned, these Superheroes could get in the way of real police work,

becoming a liability rather than a help to the police or their communities. While the police

interviewed in the film are depicted as condescending and entirely dismissive of the movement,

it is unfair to portray all police as having this attitude. Some heroes like Superhero and Thanatos

have open communication with the police and Captain Jackson was even endorsed by

the Jackson, Michigan police department. Overall, much like the comic books,

the RLSH are met with mixed reactions from the police, with the majority of

opinions expressing concern about their potentially unsettling use of

masks. Expressing concern for the safety of a fringe group trying to benefit their communities

should not be categorized as marginalization, but rather compassion.

The Real Life Superhero Project started in the early 2000s with a handful of members.

However, with the exponential increase in the popularity of nerd culture, including comic

books, sci-fi, fantasy, etc. over the past couple of decades, the movement has exploded into a

global phenomenon, sporting hundreds of members in various countries. In an interesting

conversation I had with a comic book loving friend of mine, he claimed that the directors of

superhero movies have begun to take the genre very seriously, putting a lot of time and effort to

produce quality pictures, the result being box office hits such as The Avengers, the Dark Knight

trilogy and others. I believe that this translates very well into the Superheroes movement; the

Superheroes are met with mixed reactions, but their origin stories, actions, and large hearts

coupled with the increasing popularity of their genre have allowed them to become more

accepted and even praised by people, both online and in real life. As with most superheroes,

these men and women have experienced some form of trauma in their lives, the best example

being Master Legend, probably the most eccentric of the Heros, who used his suffering in the
KKK and his faith to become a symbol of heart and goodwill. To Superheroes like Mr. Extreme

and Super Hero, it was never about gaining respect, or recognition, it was to fight apathy, to

speak up where others remained silent (the tragic story of Kitty Genovese is often their main

source of inspiration) and to have fun. The documentary does a spectacular job of showing the

enthusiasm that the Superheroes have for their nightly outings as well as their motivations. Their

biggest source of support obviously comes from the internet, which has empowered them to

create this network. The internet has provided a platform from which individual acts of courage

and selflessness can be broadcasted to the rest of the world, inspiring hundreds of others to do

the same. This idea is consistent with Pratts call for safe houses, wherein all members can feel

homogenous without judgment, and just one look at the RLSH community reveals how

supportive the members and non-members of the group are to one another. It has also helped to

facilitate the transculturation that Pratt talks about in her essay, wherein once again their stories

are shared and the stories for their inspiration are shared, which is what makes this contact zone

so different from those of the colonial era. These parallels between the Real Life Superheroes

and the comic books successfully dispel any harmful (but not necessarily unsubstantiated) views

that the public may have about them. What it really comes down to is character, since it is

character and personal responsibility, the virtues that the Real Life Superheroes stress, that allow

for successful transculturation through the contact zone in the modern world.

Given the footage from the documentary portraying the police and general public as

disrespectful at times to the RLSH project, it would be easy to jump to the conclusion that this

fringe group is marginalized and looked down upon. However, it is important to understand that

those interviewed are not representative of the general population, and that in reality, more often

than not, people approve of the actions of these people. Of course nobody likes to be called
apathetic, which is what the Heroes seem to be doing, the truth of the matter is, society is

becoming more and more desensitized to these issues. The contact zone established between the

Superheroes and the police is an interesting one to examine. It may appear that the police treat

them as a joke or a nuisance and the Superheroes may feel that they are marginalized by them as

a result, however the documentary provides evidence that they have been gaining respect from

the law enforcement community, and the police themselves are mostly worried about their safety

rather than a challenge to their traditional law enforcement roles. A shift in pop culture towards

more geek-oriented interests as well as the Superheroes acts of charity and relative heroism have

established them as legitimate benefactors to society, and the global community is coming to

recognize that. Finally, while the film itself is a scripted ethnography, an interview with Director

Michael Barnett revealed that the superheroes were extremely pleased with the film and that they

had gone through hours of footage to select that which best highlights their message and view of

themselves. As evidenced by their criticisms of the police and the government and society in

general, the Superheroes (much like a great number of Americans) are sick of the status quo and

are actually doing something to challenge and change it and they are inspiring hundreds of others

to do the same. The resistance to the status quo is evident throughout the world as well, as many

advanced countries are experiencing a rise in populism and distrust in the establishment. It is

difficult to ascertain the future of the RLSH movement, but at least for the present, the growing

influence of geek-oriented culture coupled with the empowerment of social media and other

Internet platforms are giving an otherwise fringe group in society a voice in the crime-fighting

community.