90. James Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes – Winter Soldier (Jewish) – S6 Racial Draft

More on Jewish Bucky:

James “Bucky” Barnes was Steve Rogers’ childhood best friend from the Lower East Side of Manhattan back in the 1920s and 1930s. As a child, he defended his friend from bullies, and later he fought by Rogers’ side when his friend took up the mantle of Captain America.

Bucky, like Steve, enlisted in the US Army during WWII, but he was captured by the Nazi splinter group Hydra during a covert mission. Jewish prisoners of the Nazis were more likely to be singled out for experimentation, and Bucky was subjected to this at least twice. And in fact, Rogers’ first true act as Captain America was saving his best friend from the Nazis.

However, after being presumed dead, Bucky was captured again and tortured by Hydra, who forced him to do terrible things to survive, something with which many Jews have to reckon. As the Winter Soldier, Bucky had his identity erased over 70 years of torture and brainwashing, until he didn’t know his own name anymore. That is, until he was sent to kill his former friend. Instead, Steve saved him by tethering him to his childhood, to the scrappy Jewish kid from the Lower East Side fighting off bullies.

Bucky ultimately can’t be held responsible for his actions as tbe Winter Soldier by any law, but he morally holds himself responsible and takes it upon himself to make amends. This is a very Jewish concept of forgiveness. According to Jewish law, a person “may not expect forgiveness” unless they’ve sincerely undergone teshuvah (“return” or “repentance”). This means a sincere attempt at making amends to the person you’ve wronged, or to their family. Teshuvah is not just about making amends, it also involves self-reflection and the resolve to not only apologize and amend, but also to change as a person. Bucky’s story is one of reclaiming his agency/identity and using it to fight for others.

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