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Magdalene Bailey

ENGCMP 0540

Professor Pittman

1 October 2023

Are Race and Disability All That Different?

In the Marvel show The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, the two titular characters work in

tandem to highlight the other and show their differing experiences. Sam Wilson, a Black man

being given Captain America’s shield and the weight of the job that comes with it, and James

Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes, a U.S. war veteran during World War II turned brainwashed Soviet

superweapon dubbed “the Winter Soldier” and subsequently deprogrammed, appear to have very

little in common on the surface. The link between them is Steve Rogers, the old Captain America

who is now dead. However, the categories placed on them by societal structures and factors

beyond their control make them more similar than they would appear to be on the outside.

Sam and Bucky have quite a lot in common despite having different marginalized

identities. Both are treated unlike their “normal” counterparts. In the first scene with Bucky’s

therapist, she says, “With your history, the government needs to know you’re not going to…”

and then makes a stabbing motion with her hand (“New World Order” 18:44). This statement

comes under the assumption that Bucky could fall back into his brainwashing and become an

assassin again. Bucky is seen as volatile, almost like he could snap on a whim and murder

thousands. The same concept can be applied to Sam’s experience. He has repeated time and time

again that he cannot be Captain America because the shield used as a symbol “…feels like it

belongs somebody else” (“New World Order” 15:00). Everyone has an expectation of what
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Captain America is supposed to look like, and that image does not reflect Sam. In the season

finale “One World, One People,” Sam gives a speech, for lack of a better term, to the senators on

the Global Repatriation Council (GRC) on hard decisions, saying, “I’m a Black man, carrying

the stars and stripes. What don’t I understand? Every time I pick this thing up, I know there are

millions of people out there who are going to hate me for it. Even now, here. I feel it. The stares,

the judgment, and there’s nothing I can do to change it” (28:45). Despite living in the 21st

century, racism in the United States persists and impacts the way Sam does his job or takes the

mantle from Steve, a blond-haired, blue-eyed white man. Based on these characteristics, both

Bucky and Sam are fighting an uphill battle to not be treated less than others.

Throughout the show, many of the secondary characters doubt Sam and Bucky’s ability to

function in the roles they are placed in; Bucky as a civilian and Sam as Captain America. The

pressure Bucky faces comes from the government and his therapist because of his past and long

list of crimes. He is being forced to attend therapy, which does not really work to help people

most times. His disability and ableism evolve from something systemic as he was a soldier in

World War II before being frozen and unfrozen for 70+ years. He fights the therapy and

nightmares he has from being a brainwashed assassin and war veteran more generally. The doubt

Sam faces comes from what it means to be the face of a nation. To call it systemic may be an

understatement. When the previous Captain America died, he passed the mantle to Sam. Sam did

not want this and donated the shield to the government, who gave it to yet another white man.

When Sam finally allows the mantle to be passed to him, he knows that people are going to

judge him for it. How is a Black man supposed to represent a country that does not represent

him? How is the public going to call him Captain America when he does not fit their ideal of
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what an American is? Both characters face doubt from others that shape their perceptions of

themselves.

Based on his portrayal, the characterization of Bucky is shown rather than seen. Other

people outside of him cannot see what he experiences, especially his disabilities. Much of

Bucky’s character arc centers on the nightmares he has from his time as the Winter Soldier and

his court-mandated therapy as a result of being pardoned for his crimes. Bucky’s nightmares are

a result of the post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) he sustained during his brainwashing. He

has a “list” of people he needs to make amends to as a part of his deprogramming of his Winter

Soldier identity, which are presumed to help with his nightmares. In episode one titled “New

World Order,” the first scene of Bucky is a nightmare of an old mission he ran as the Winter

Soldier, remembering the innocent person he killed because he was a witness to the crime

(16:26). No one outside of Bucky can see these thoughts in his head, but we as the audience see

them because it is central to his character arc. Moments after Bucky wakes up from his

nightmare, the show cuts to him in therapy with his therapist asking him about having

nightmares, to which he lies and says he has not had any more; the therapist does not believe this

and tells Bucky that she knows he is lying (“New World Order” 18:17). At the prodding of his

therapist, Bucky shares that he “crossed a name off [his] list” (19:20). His reluctance to share due

to past trauma and the three rules for his list, two of which he broke during this “making

amends” and “crossing a name” off the list that he lies to his therapist about, are prime examples

of the way Bucky’s PTSD manifests itself and how it becomes a pivotal part of his character and

story.

In contrast to Bucky, Sam’s social category is seen rather than shown. Bucky’s

disabilities are (mostly) invisible while Sam’s race is always visible. In episode two “The Star-
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Spangled Man,” Bucky takes Sam to see someone he had fought while he was the Winter Soldier

in Korea. The person in question is the only Black Super Soldier (created via attempts to recreate

the Super Soldier serum they gave Steve), who was treated poorly by the government and is

presumed dead because of forged papers; this angers Sam because no one had ever said anything

about it – presumably because the government wants to pretend he never existed – and argues

with Bucky as they are walking away in the street before getting stopped by the cops (“The Star-

Spangled Man” 30:33). The cops step out of their vehicle and ask, “Is there a problem here?” to

which Sam answers, “No, we’re just talking” and Bucky adds, “We’re fine;” they do not leave

and continue to ask Bucky if he is okay before realizing who Sam is and apologizing for not

noticing sooner after Bucky says, “Do you know who this is?” (31:07). Bucky does not get

treated in such a way because his “differences” are not visible while the color of Sam’s skin is.

No one has to show racism because it can be clearly seen in scenes like this one.

The experience of ableism toward Bucky and racism toward Sam can provide a

commentary on the world in the 21st century. Bucky does not experience ableism in the same

way as Sam experiences racism because Bucky’s disability is not (usually) seen while Sam’s race

is. Bucky is not “seen” as disabled, unless his metal arm is exposed, while Sam is always seen as

Black. Sam does not have a choice but to be Black while Bucky can choose to show or disclose

his disability to others. Their diverse experiences showcase how different types of discrimination

impact the lives of those affected. Much of Bucky’s ableism comes from inside of himself. He

thinks he should be better or handle it better or that it is his fault for all of this; the ideas for this

came from what was instilled in him as a child (in the 1930s/1940s), which stuck with him to the

modern day after 70 years of cryogenic freezing and memory wiping. For Sam, the

discrimination comes from outside of himself. The monologue he gives in the season finale
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showcases the impact racism has in his life. People underestimate or judge him for the color of

his skin when he cannot help that. They think he is “dangerous,” and he said it himself that he

feels discomfort “representing a country that doesn’t represent me.” Sam’s life has more obvious

negative consequences due to racism, which is external to him, while Bucky’s life has subtle

negative consequences caused by internal beliefs and guilt.

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier is in Phase Four of the Marvel Cinematic Universe

(MCU) and comes right after WandaVision and Avengers: Endgame. According to a production

brief from March 2021, the show was created to explore Sam and Bucky’s character dynamic

and their stories as characters. These two characters were more background characters in other

MCU movies, and this show gave the creative team the ability to develop them more. In

describing his character, Anthony Mackie says, “There’s a lot of trepidation as far as how does a

Black man represent a country that does not represent him?” referring to Sam’s struggle with the

burden of Captain America (“The Falcon and the Winter Soldier Production Brief”). The same

can be said of Sebastian Stan on Bucky’s struggles in the show. He says, “And I think in Bucky’s

mind, Sam is the next guy—that's who was chosen, that was Steve’s wish. Bucky wants to see

that through—and if there's any doubt in Sam’s mind about it then that's immediately a conflict

for Bucky” (“The Falcon and the Winter Soldier Production Brief”). This conflict that is present

in both of their characters exemplifies what it feels like to be marginalized and to have to grapple

with that in a way that creates positive change. At its core, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier

tackles what it means to live in the modern world under expectations and how those expectations

affect actions and worldviews.

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Works Cited

“New World Order.” The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, created by Malcolm Spellman, season 1,

episode 1, Marvel Studies, 2021. Disney+, https://www.disneyplus.com/video/1c5d063a-

52a4-4942-ac08-67f0ea13e27b.

“One World, One People.” The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, created by Malcolm Spellman,

season 1, episode 6, Marvel Studios, 2021. Disney+,

https://www.disneyplus.com/video/f3f11053-d810-4b92-9c95-567bef5f215d.

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier Production Brief, 15 Mar. 2021, https://lumiere-

a.akamaihd.net/v1/documents/the_falcon_and_the_winter_soldier_production_brief_fina

_875edcc9.pdf.

“The Star-Spangled Man.” The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, created by Malcolm Spellman,

season 1, episode 2, Marvel Studios, 2021. Disney+,

https://www.disneyplus.com/video/b6a1f374-9191-4809-a675-9351bbab3631.