'Black Panther' and Advocacy: How the Film Knocked Me Out of My Complacency (Spoiler Alert)

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Chadwick Boseman, SOURCE: Heroic Hollywood

Chadwick Boseman, SOURCE: Heroic Hollywood

*SPOILER ALERT* I quote some dialogue that might give away parts of the plot. You have been warned. And officially commissioned to go see Black Panther immediately.

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“Is it really over?” I asked out loud as the credits after Black Panther rolled. Yes, I was one of those people. No, I was not mentally prepared to leave Wakanda.

For any reader who may not be familiar with Wakanda, it is a fictional place in the Marvel Universe (Non-Geek translation: the world of Iron Man, Captain America, Hulk and Spiderman). Wakanda is the only African country to be untouched by colonial influence. The film Black Panther follows King T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman) and his rise to the throne of the isolated, technologically advanced African society.

Writer and Director Ryan Coogler did an exceptional job at juggling a wide range of poignant themes (father-son relationships, leadership, inner-city community struggles, multi-faceted womanhood, teamwork, and Pan-Africanism) while miraculously avoiding any sense of heavy-handed agenda pushing.

Lupita Nyong'o, Chadwick Boseman, and Danai Gurira | SOURCE: Marvel.com

Lupita Nyong'o, Chadwick Boseman, and Danai Gurira | SOURCE: Marvel.com

I saw Black Panther opening night (February 16), and in my anxiousness to see the film, I may or may not have bought a single seat between two couples I didn’t know (I plead the fifth). Needless to say, my excitement to see the film was real. However, I must admit that actually publishing a review of the film was not at the top of my list of Fun Things To Do.

You see, a week before the film’s release, I had shared someone else’s status update about racial reconciliation, and soon after, a comment war ensued on my Facebook wall. Prior to that incident, I avoided posting too much on the topic on social media, for fear that it was too “political” of a topic to post. To be sure, some social media posts on the topic are intentionally divisive in nature, but I try to be extra mindful and not repost anything with malicious intent.

Despite my own tactfulness, there were still individuals who deemed it a mistake that I had posted anything on social justice in the first place. Don’t get me wrong, I assume the best intentions by the individuals who posted, but to be honest, after reading the back and forth in the dreaded comment thread, I wanted to curl up into fetal position for several days.

Michael B. Jordan and Chadwick Boseman

Michael B. Jordan and Chadwick Boseman

If you do some simple math, you’d figure out that it has taken me about a month to muster up the courage to write and publish this article. I let the fear of being misunderstood once again paralyze me in my calling as a writer and as a Christian to be a truth-teller and justice-seeker no matter the personal cost. Lo and behold, it was the film itself that inspired me to step out of my complacency.

A turning point for our hero T’Challa is when he finally realizes that if he leads as his father and ancestors have led in the past--by hoarding valuable Wakandan resources--he would be doing a moral injustice to the world. In the end, T’Challa risked his own life and the loyalty of his closest friend for what he thought was right. After watching the film, I was forced to grapple with the question: Am I willing to put my reputation on the line by writing about social injustice?

“All of you were wrong,” T’Challa tells his father and ancestors in the ancestral plane. “For turning your backs on the rest of the world. We let the fear of our discovery stop us from what doing what is right.  No more. I cannot stay here with you. I cannot rest while he sits on the throne...I must take back the mountain. I must right this wrong.”

T'Challa inspired me not to waste my platform when it comes to being an advocate for those with less power and voice, especially my black brothers and sisters. I can no longer stay silent and squander this platform God has given me, while systems and institutions continue to suppress and limit fellow image-bearers from reaching their full potential.

As a disclaimer, I don’t claim to be an expert in African-American studies; nor do I have a simple answer on how to completely eradicate racism. I am in the thick of a messy and ongoing process of learning about systematic injustice--whether it is educating myself on lesser known African-American history, or it is taking a hard look at my ignorance of my own privileges and biases as a working-class first generation Asian-American immigrant.

I have a long way to go. But after watching Black Panther, I refuse to remain silent any longer, and I hope that you, my readers, will join me on this journey. 

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