Black Panther and African-Centered Visions of the Future

Introduction

When white explorers first encountered Great Zimbabwe, they were convinced that the massive stone structures had been built by a vanished race of white people, since Africans were widely regarded as incapable of creating such impressive architecture. More recent scholarship has dispelled these misperceptions, but the harsh reality remains that the African American community is still widely regarded by many people of other races as somehow inferior. These misperceptions have sustained and even exacerbated longstanding, racially based animosities.

The 2018 motion picture Black Panther challenges these stereotypes and recasts the Black protagonist as a legitimate superhero on the same caliber as other notable comic figures such as Batman and the Green Arrow — two major characters who lacked superpowers but relied upon their own natural abilities. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the manner in which an exclusively Black kingdom, both technologically modern and aesthetically African, allows the future to be reimagined from an African-centered perspective.

Black Panther as Cinematic Intervention

Black Panther is the first mega-budget fictional superhero film with a predominantly Black cast, and as such it fills a significant lacuna in international cinema — the absence or stereotyped portrayal of Africans and their continent on screen. According to one media analyst, "[Black Panther] was the eighteenth movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, released on February 16, 2018, as the entertainment industry was wrestling with its toxic treatment of women and persons of color, and it was regarded as long overdue" (Aiyesimoju, 2018, p. 96).

In sum, Black Panther depicts an African kingdom that is not only scientifically progressive but also generous and willing to share its knowledge with the rest of the world for the betterment of all humankind. The cast and director succeeded in creating this alternative yet completely feasible scenario by drawing on what Aiyesimoju (2018) describes as "elements of a variety of deep African heroic cultures" that "climax with the Afro-complementary gesture of T'Challa sharing the resources and technology of Wakanda with the rest of the world" (p. 97).

In other words, Black Panther is effective in helping both Black and white audiences reimagine a future that is fundamentally different — and far better because of it. Aiyesimoju (2018) concludes that in the film, "The action symbolizes healthy global interaction without undermining national and continental sovereignty and individuality . . . emphasizing Africa's uniqueness" (p. 97). By placing the action in an exclusively African kingdom that enjoys the same level of modernity and scientific achievement as developed nations around the world, Black Panther forces viewers to reimagine a future in which equality is the status quo and where longstanding negative stereotypes no longer shape how Black people are regarded by others — or by themselves.

Race, Identity, and the Politics of Representation

Notwithstanding the growing body of research that has discredited even the concept of race as a myth (Shea, 2018), it is reasonable to suggest that most laypersons understand race as relating to the continent where an individual's parents were born (Shea, 2018). Since race has long been used as a means of distinguishing the majority from the minority in most civilizations, it is little wonder that these factors have also affected how people view others and themselves, as well as their behaviors.

For instance, according to Markus, "Race and ethnicity influence identity and behavior in a wide range of ways, and this influence depends on the majority or minority status of the group with which one is associated, and how others see this group, and with the particulars of the context" (p. 359). An exclusively African kingdom would place its inhabitants in the majority, invariably translating into different ways of thinking about themselves and about other groups. Indeed, in the preface to Doing Race, the authors make the point that "Even people without 'racist' thoughts or feelings will participate in the process of doing race just by being part of a society that is organized according to race" (p. xi). This observation indicates that even though the concept has been scientifically discredited, race still plays an enormously important role in shaping individual thoughts about others — even among the most enlightened and progressive thinkers.

A fully developed and empowered African kingdom that is exclusively Black may delight many, if not most, of the Black community, but it is clear that the concept also unsettles many white Americans — particularly those living in a country where a century and a half of Jim Crow-inspired legislation was specifically designed to prevent Black people from gaining further inroads into the American dream, including participation in the political process. This point is reinforced by Morris (2018), who reports, "To the conservative Christians, Black Panther's display is blatant and jarring against the backdrop of grassroots Black empowerment. The Black Panther movie is infused with rich Black power, authenticity, and inspiration, and this infuses the viewer" (p. 74).

Whether viewers are positively or negatively affected by the film, however, likely depends on their own racial background and experience. Because race has long served as a means of dividing countries — especially the United States — it is not surprising that many people of all races are heavily influenced by negative stereotypes about Black people. In fact, the message has been so pervasive that even some people of color have internalized the notion that they are somehow "less equal" than their white counterparts (Loewen, 1995).

Conclusion

Although the "city of the future" depicted in Black Panther may not be just around the corner, many of the innovations shown in the film have their basis in real-world technologies that will continue to improve. Creating a better world through technology is certainly not a new idea, but the need has become far greater than in the past, as the globe's very survival now depends on humankind's ability to respond to challenges such as the peak oil crisis and global warming. For most fans of Black Panther, it is reasonable to conclude that they hope the world of the future will be a meritocracy — one that sets aside the scientifically discredited concept of race in favor of individuals' abilities and integrity.

References

Aiyesimoju, A. B. (2018, August). Black Panther as Afro-complementary cinematic intervention: Lessons for Africa south of the Sahara movie industries. Journal of Pan African Studies, 11(9), 96–101.

Loewen, J. W. (1995). Lies my teacher told me. New York: The New Press.

Markus, H. R. Who am I? Race, ethnicity and identity (ch. 13).

Morris, L. (2018, August). To the ancestral plane: African spiritism in Ryan Coogler's Black Panther (Marvel Studios, 2018) and the desensitization to spiritualism in Hollywood. Journal of Pan African Studies, 11(9), 73–76.

Schneider, B. & Judy, J. (2012, September). Boosting STEM interest in high school: A project at Michigan State University shows how public high schools can influence the number of students headed toward STEM careers. Phi Delta Kappan, 94(1), 62–65.

Shea, J. (2018). Refuting a myth about human origins. American Scientist. Retrieved from https://www.americanscientist.org/article/is-race-real