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We don’t know how to break this to you all, but the mutants in Marvel Comics have always been a thinly veiled allegory for real-world racism. If you didn’t catch that from the entirety of Magneto’s backstory, we’re sorry your teachers have failed you. However, there is room for X-Men comics to be where Marvel explores more than just the holocaust and general racism, but some of the atrocities committed closer to home. Marvel writer Gail Simone sees X-Men as a place to address real-world evil like the Jim Crow era in the US.

During a recent interview, Uncanny X-Men writer Gail Simone talked about 'The Dark Artery' storyline that ran in 2025 in the series.

“The Dark Artery is a very special story for this book,” she explained. “I was thrilled that Marvel was so enthusiastic about it, and the readership genuinely demanded to know more. My thinking was, the X-Men books have done a fantastic job of making the Holocaust a real part of the lore. They didn’t shy away from it, they’ve made a fantastic world of comics characters actually discuss real-world evil in a meaningful way.”

For 'The Dark Artery,' Simone turned that same critical eye toward something that many Americans might prefer not to discuss.

“But we haven’t really seen that same attention paid as much to racial injustice in America, not in a sustained way. The idea of mutants in the Jim Crow era, I just think it’s important. And the idea of a mutant graveyard that’s been kept secret all this time, that feels like a real addition to the lore. My joy is that creators like historian/bestselling author Mikki Kendall want to add to the mythology, which is always something you hope for in a shared universe.”

So when you’re reading 'The Dark Artery' storyline in Uncanny X-Men, keep in mind that it is exploring something that really happened in the US through the lens of costumed heroes with superpowers. Because that’s what X-Men comics have always done.

Want more? Make sure you've read our list of all the best Marvel Comics stories of all time, and get ready for all the free Marvel comics coming as part of this year's Free Comic Book Day 2026 / Comics Giveaway Day  2026 events.