U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia to launch a popular arts caucus at Comic-Con
How does the saying go? "Superheros, assemble!" Well on Sunday, that call-out goes political lawmakers, too.
"When nerds get together, we can do a lot of good things," said Democratic U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia of California.
Garcia plans to announce the formation of the Congressional Popular Arts Caucus at Comic-Con International in San Diego on Sunday.
When Garcia was sworn into office, he did it with his hand on a rare Superman comic book that he borrowed from the Library of Congress.
The superhero was a huge influence in his life, Garcia told NPR's A Martinez during an interview for Morning Edition. The comic book series helped Garcia learn English as young immigrant and acclimate to the country.
"As a young kid, I looked up to these heroes that you read about in the comics, and for me it was Superman," he said. "Also an immigrant, also from a strange place — had a secret identity. You relate to these things."
Garcia said the narratives in comic books, movies, video games and other popular arts drive our culture and national economy.
"For example, issues around piracy are really, really important," he said. "We want to be sure that we're protecting the rights of creators. Issues around censorship abroad are really critical for us. And of course, just making sure that we have a prepared workforce."
One the current events likely to be discussed at the panel event his weekend is the strike that actors and screen writers are participating in over residual payments on streaming content and the role of artificial intelligence and creative rights.
Under the strike rules, union members belonging to SAG-AFTRA or the Writers Guild of America cannot promote their projects at press or red carpet events, so there's little official promotion at Comic-Con for upcoming movies like Dune: Part Two or Blue Beetle, reports NPR's Mandalit del Barco on NPR's Weekend Edition.
Garcia said he's gotten commitments for the popular arts caucus from fellow comic book and video game enthusiasts in Congress: Jay Obernolte (R., Ill.) has a long history in the gaming space, Garcia said. Maxwell Frost (D., Fl.) also loves gaming and popular arts, he said.
"I've assembled, like, the biggest group of nerds in Congress," Garcia said. " I actually think that we kind of get it more than most folks."
The audio version of this story was produced by David West and edited by HJ Mai. The digital version of this story was edited by Erika Aguilar.
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Transcript
A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
California Democratic Congressman Robert Garcia is a comic book nerd. You'd have to be if, as he did, you got sworn into office holding a rare Superman comic book that he borrowed from the Library of Congress. So yeah, he's hardcore. And this weekend at San Diego Comic-Con, Garcia is launching what he calls a bipartisan Congressional Popular Arts Caucus. Congressman, so why does Congress need this new caucus?
ROBERT GARCIA: A, thank you. Well, I mean, look; I think, first, the popular arts are an enormous part of the national economy. When you think about what the top movies are, whether it's these big Marvel or DC blockbusters, "Star Wars" - what are the big shows? Shows like "Game Of Thrones." The popular arts drive our culture. They drive the box office. They drive streaming. And so it's a great way to support the economy, support workers. It's a bipartisan caucus. And we already have about 30 members signed up.
MARTÍNEZ: What type of policy work do you want this caucus to focus on?
GARCIA: Well, I mean, there's a lot. I mean, look; there's areas where there's a lot of bipartisan support also. For example, issues around piracy are really, really important. We want to make sure that we're protecting the rights of creators. Obviously, issues around just making sure that people know that the U.S. is a great place to do business, that we're exporting our products across the world. Issues around censorship abroad are really critical for us, and of course, just making sure that we have a prepared workforce. We know that there are labor shortages. Obviously, there's labor strife right now at this moment. But we want to make sure there's a well-trained workforce for all the jobs in the popular arts.
MARTÍNEZ: So you mentioned the labor issues that are going on in Hollywood right now. Artificial intelligence and creative rights is one of the reasons why two Hollywood unions are on strike. Will this be an issue that you're going to be discussing at the caucus?
GARCIA: I mean, absolutely. I mean, obviously, we're just launching the caucus this weekend. But AI especially, there's a lot of bipartisan interest in this. It is going to be incredibly - not just to the popular arts, but in so many industries, be so disruptive. I mean, there's also, obviously, some opportunity. But to creative people, to this industry, there's a lot of dangers. The good thing is that I like to think that I've assembled, like, the biggest group of nerds in Congress.
MARTÍNEZ: (Laughter).
GARCIA: So this is, like, a caucus of, like, nerds and geeks. And I actually think that we kind of get it, like, more than most folks. And, you know, I think when nerds get together, I think we can do a lot of good things.
MARTÍNEZ: So who are the Republican nerds, then?
GARCIA: So we've got a good group of Republicans that are joining. Jay Obernolte is part of our caucus. Actually, he has a long history in the gaming space, which a lot of people don't know. And so we've got folks like Maxwell Frost on the Democratic side - you know, new member, freshman member of Congress like me - who also loves gaming, loves actual - a lot of the popular arts. And so we've got a good mix of people that are going to bring different perspectives.
MARTÍNEZ: And what is it about comics for you that makes such an important part of who you are and your identity?
GARCIA: You know, I'm an immigrant. And I grew up, as a young kid, when I moved to the U.S., you know, as a young boy, and I started reading comics. And that's how I learned English. You know, English was not my first language. And reading comics got me - you know, really acclimated me to this country, to the language. And just as a young kid, I looked up to these kind of heroes that you read about in the comics. For me, it was Superman - and also an immigrant, also from a strange place, also, you know, had a secret identity. And I think that, you know, you relate to these things. And a lot of people don't realize that these stories - you know, when you think about American fiction and what we export to the rest of the world, I mean, comics and the stories of these American heroes is a huge part of kind of global culture and what we export as Americans.
MARTÍNEZ: That's California Representative Robert Garcia, who's launching, at San Diego Comic-Con, his bipartisan Congressional Popular Arts Caucus. Congressman, thanks.
GARCIA: Thanks so much. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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