There’s a video going around Facebook of three men who stumble upon a Black Panther movie poster hanging in the theater. This poster has Chadwick Boseman, Lupita Nyong’o, Michael B. Jordan and several other Black actors and actresses standing tall and powerful. The man recording the video began to say “so we’re sitting here looking at this dope ass Black Panther poster and the conclusion we have come to is that this is what White people get to feel all the time. ALL THE TIME? Since the beginning of cinema y’all get to feel empowered and represented like this.” As they begin to embrace the poster, physically hugging it, another guy says, “if this is what y’all feel like all the time I would love this country too.”
Representation is important. With that being said Marvel’s Black Panther is a much-needed advancement in the powerful representation of Black people displayed within the media. Many people will try to argue that there are already so many people of color throughout the media, in music, movies, and TV. While that is true there isn’t nearly enough positive images of powerful people of color. In Marvel’s Black Panther Black people are shown in an entirely new image. When big blockbuster movies hit the big screen we are so used to seeing Black people play the same roles… slaves, gangsters, and things of that nature. Those are the roles that seem to win us Oscars and get us recognized. All that changes with this movie.
There are young black girls and boys who are now able to look at this film and see themselves. They’ll know that they can be superheroes too, that they are also strong and worthy of being in that position of power. I am extremely proud of this film, and would recommend it to any and everyone. Please go out and support it if you can.