Indian Artists Create Comic-Book Heroes

The year is 2006, and the United States of America is engaged in a civil war with the United Tribes of America.

The United States wants to confiscate reservation land on which something valuable was discovered. But the land is sacred to the Indians, who will protect it with their lives if necessary.

To help them in their struggle, the tribes have called upon their own team of superheroes who can do all your basic superhero feats. They can see, hear and fight better than any mortal - and, of course, some can fly.

What distinguishes these idols from the likes of Superman, Batman and Spider-Man is that they are Native Americans.

Together, they represent the title characters in Tribal Force, the first comic book featuring Native American heroes created by Native American talent.

Artist Ryan Huna Smith and writer Jon Proudstar, both 28-year-old Tucson residents, were inspired to produce Tribal Force in part from a dissatisfaction with the way Native Americans are portrayed in comic books.

If they are depicted at all, Native Americans are usually “trackers, or they wear bone necklaces and lots of fringe, or have a cloud of mysticism and an eagle hanging around them,” Smith said.

The one comic-book Native American hero Proudstar liked was Thunder Bird, in the X-Men series, but this hero was killed off shortly after his first appearance.

Proudstar, whose ancestry includes Mayan, Yaqui and Hispanic blood, had been kicking around a story about Native American heroes since he was 18. The opportunity to make his idea a reality came when he saw a drawing he liked hanging on the wall of a comic-book store.

Proudstar asked the shop owner how to get in touch with Smith. Soon, writer and artist were collaborating on Tribal Force.

Smith, who is of Navajo and Chemehuevi descent, said they found private investors to kick in $50,000 to launch their comic-book brainstorm. Tribal Force is the first of a four-book series for Mystic Comics of Costa Mesa, Calif.

Proudstar said the primary inspiration for Tribal Force was to provide Indian children with contemporary heroes of their own.

“Children today have no contemporary heroes to identify with,” he said. “All our role models are from the past.”