COCONUT CREEK, Fla. - What do the Avengers and Superman have to do with Broward College? They and other comic book characters will be the subject of a new library exhibit. 

"Superheroes and American History: 1940s – 2020s" runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Oct. 7, at the North Regional/Broward College Library in Coconut Creek. The exhibit focuses on military, political, and cultural events and movements in American history from the 1940s to the present. It will showcase how key historical events and issues have been reflected in comic book art and storytelling over the decades.  

The exhibit is a passion project for Dr. John Donovan, an Associate Professor of History and Political Science at North Campus. He incorporates examinations of American pop culture, including comics, into the study of history. He began teaching while in the U.S. Air Force and has been at Broward College for nearly a decade. 

"I wanted to teach students not just about the wars and the presidents and the politics and those issues, but I also wanted them to understand the popular history connections to how it shapes our culture, how it shapes how we think about the world around us, and how images are used for storytelling," he said. 

Comics can reflect where society is—or sometimes be ahead of it. The 1940 debut issue of Captain America, created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, depicted the superhero punching Adolf Hitler in the face almost a full year before America was at war with Nazi Germany. A moral panic in the 1950s about the impact of comics on children led to decades of industry self-censorship, but writers and artists continued to push boundaries to discuss social issues. Concerns about youth drug use led to a 1971 story arc in Green Lantern/Green Arrow by writer Denny O'Neil which revealed that Green Arrow's young sidekick, Speedy, had become a drug addict. 

"They were trying to help inform young people what's going on," Donovan said. "It's not just reading a story about a drug problem, but what can be done about it." 

The origin story for the exhibit: Donovan was named a 2025-2026 Endowed Teaching Chair last year. The award came with a stipend for professional development and education projects, so he decided to direct those funds toward a comics-themed exhibit. Storyboards depicting comics associated with each decade, as well as comics themselves, will be displayed in the library's auditorium. He has also created a trivia contest based on the exhibit, with prizes supplied by local comics shops. 

In addition to incorporating comics into his curriculum and creating the exhibit, Donovan has contributed chapters to three books on the subject: Comic Books and American Cultural History (2012), Comic Books and the Cold War: Essays on Graphic Treatment of Communism, the Code and Social Concerns (2012), and Ages of Heroes, Eras of Men: Superheroes and the American Experience (2013). 

-BC-