Warning! Spoilers ahead for Future State: Superman Worlds At War #2!
The criticism that Superman is not relevant in today's world is about as well-worn in the collective comics zeitgeist as his classic motto: "Truth, Justice and the American Way." Writers have constantly attempted to reinvent Superman - removing the trunks over his tights, turning him into a reluctant hero with Christ-like undertones (possibly overtones). In Future State: Superman Worlds of War, writer Phillip Kennedy Johnson doesn't change the hero's old motto so much as reframe it, thus revealing a fundamental truth about the values of the Man of Steel.
In the uncertain future of DC's Future State, Superman's secret identity is public knowledge; he has left Earth for parts unknown. In his absence, Smallville has become part-tourist trap, part-holy ground as some buy Superman merchandise sold on the sidewalk while others read and revere his Daily Planet articles as quasi-religious texts. Acolytes swap stories and share the moments when each of them were saved by Superman. In Future State: Superman Worlds of War #2, written by Johnson with art by Mikel Janín, a young teenage traveler to the town, Sadie, becomes disillusioned with the literal hero worship. She claims that Superman didn't save her - Clark Kent did, with a simple article chronicling the life and death of an old Metropolis citizen.
Truth
Edgar Watters was no one special by comic book standards: a pianist who served in World War II, became a figure in the civil rights movement of the 60s, ran for public office multiple times and lost, started a scholarship in his son's name, and ultimately died poor and homeless. But Clark Kent, true to heroic form, sees the good in him and chooses to remember Watters not at his lowest moments, but at his highest - and through his values. "I call upon each of us to remember this man," Kent writes in his article. "Remember him...by the life he lived and be striving to live as he did. By protecting those in need. By demanding truth from our leaders, and justice from our courts. By leaving great works for those who follow us." This is the new Truth, Justice, and the American Way - or perhaps, in so many words, it isn't new at all. This is what Clark Kent has meant since the beginning, and the fact that the motto is read by a child is no accident.
The phrase "Truth, Justice and the American Way" was first heard in the Adventures of Superman radio drama series in 1942. At the time, the United States had just suffered a surprise attack at Pearl Harbor, dragging Americans into war when they had only just recently emerged from the Great Depression. Morale boosts were sorely needed, and so comic book heroes spent their issues fighting German, Japanese and Italian enemies while promoting American values, and Superman was no exception. In this instance, the values were anti-fascist, anti-Communist (the US and Soviet Union both knew their alliance wouldn't last after the war) and wildly pro-American. Superman's motto faded out of use until the perceived threat from the USSR and their satellite countries became significant. Then it followed him like a loyal sidekick wherever and whenever he went...until the 70s.
Justice
Americans' opinions of their own country soured over the course of the Vietnam War. A seemingly-endless conflict combined with a growing anti-war movement left Superman - the red and blue Boy Scout who often serves as DC's analogue to Captain America when it comes to patriotism - in an awkward situation. Suddenly, in the eyes of the new generation, "The American Way" stood for fighting unwinnable wars, anti-Communist paranoia, and out-of-touch leaders. There was no way around it: Superman represented the establishment (the very same institutions the civil rights movement was fighting against). When the Watergate scandal ultimately ended in a disgraced president's resignation, superheroes attempted to distance themselves from the government. In Captain America #175, the titular hero infamously fought a villain in the White House strongly implied to be Nixon himself. While Superman's writers didn't create any similar stories so drastic, they nevertheless knew that Superman had to change, and so did his motto.
As the Man of Steel fought fewer Communists and more corrupt government officials, his motto was slowly phased out. The last Superman on film to say the phrase in its entirety was Christopher Reeve in 1978's Superman, and even then Lois reacted with a joke. In 2006's Superman Returns, editor Perry White asks his staff "I wanna know: does he still stand for truth, justice...all that stuff?" In 2017's Justice League, Superman starts a fight against villain Steppenwolf with "I believe in truth...but I'm also a big fan of justice." Only in comics does the full line occasionally resurface, such as in a 2019 issue penned by longtime DC writer Tom King. However, while Superman may rarely say "The American Way," he still means it.
The American Way
"By demanding truth from our leaders and justice from our courts" is self-explanatory enough, though this variation certainly pulls no punches when it comes to implicating the government in any potential misdeeds. Still, the demand is important: it turns Superman's old motto from an internal passive belief system and personal moral code into a general call to action. When Sadie reads those words, Clark Kent is instructing her (and the reader) to be a force for good in the world and carry on his legacy.
Finally, the matter of the final sentence: "By leaving great works for those who follow us." In the context of Future State: Superman Worlds of War #2, Superman has departed Earth but left behind a following of people who not only admire him, but will help others as he did. For Clark, "The American Way" means and has always meant to leave behind a better world for the next generation - and inspiring others to do the same - even if the benefactors will not live to experience it. Clark saw the sacrifices Edgar Watters made for the sake of his son and other children like him. To Superman, passing on knowledge, experience and virtues to those who follow us is The American Way, and there is no higher calling.