White House sparks backlash from Marvel fans over Spider-Man ICE campaign

The White House has made an enemy out of Marvel fans, Euronews writes.

A recent post on its official Instagram account sees Spider-Man imagery being used as part of media campaign to promote US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Accompanied by the caption “Your friendly neighborhood ICE agents”, the four-part post shows Spider-Man firing a web which ends up in the final image, showing a group of men caught in the web.

The final caption reads: “Criminal illegal aliens will be caught and deported.”

The White House turned to a play on words. The phrase “Your friendly neighborhood ICE agents” was modeled after Spider-Man’s well-known catchphrase, “Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man,” which the superhero often uses. Spider-Man humorously presents himself as a local hero who helps and protects ordinary people in his community, saying: “Just another service provided by your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.”

The post has sparked controversy online, with people calling for the account to take the post down and Marvel fans outraged that their favorite hero has been used to promote ICE. Many are calling on Marvel to take legal action.

This sort of thing is not usual for Donald Trump and his administration, who love to co-opt popular culture, specifically movies, as part of his “memetic warfare.” Recently, the US president and his administration angered pop star Katy Perry, who hit out against the White House after its official TikTok account used her song ‘Firework’ in a video featuring military strikes.