Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Africa Trending (2)

Sounds like what Soyinka dismissed as neo-Tarzanism. In the 21 century Africans are expected to cheer the mass murder of fellow Africans in the interest of the genocidal tribal kings. No no no. The movie should not be called Long Live the King. It should have been called Fuck the King with the masses rising to depose the idle wealthy king and enthrone a deep democracy in the spirit of the Black Panthers Party.

Biko

--------------------------------------------
On Sat, 10/2/18, Olajumoke Yacob-Haliso <jumoyin@gmail.com> wrote:

Subject: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Africa Trending (2)
To: "Usa dialogue" <usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com>
Date: Saturday, 10 February, 2018, 9:58

This week, it's the
multiple premiere of Black Panther, Marvel's first Black
superhero movie starring Kenyan actress Lupita Nyong'o
amongst others that's being celebrated by lots of people.
Read about the Kisumu premiere here:
https://www.buzzfeed.com/tamerragriffin/black-panther-will-screen-in-lupita-nyongos-kenyan-hometown

But beyond that, why is the movie considered a
mighty watershed by many Americans and Africans too? Is
it's real and potential impact overhyped or what? Perhaps
Professor Ken Harrow can give us some perspective. Read this
below:

"BLACK
PANTHER" IS MORE THAN A FILM. IT CARRIES THE HOPES OF THE
GLOBAL AFRICAN DIASPORABy Aamna
Mohdin & Lynsey
ChutelFebruary 2,
2018The
buzz around Black Panther, Marvel's first black
superhero film, is palpable.  Weeks before it arrives in
theaters, the film has already morphed into the joyous
reprieve that black America—in fact, all of
America—needs right now. Celebrities are buying
outentire theaters in underserved communities so young
black children can look up and finally see themselves as
superheroes. But the hype doesn't end at America's
border. Book clubs, comic fans, and movie lovers across the
globe are coming together to host special screenings to
watch the star-studded (and all black) cast.The excitement
has translated into impressive ticket pre-sales. The film,
which will be released on Feb. 16, has already outpaced
other superhero movies in advance
ticket sales for Fandango's online tickets service.
The early reviews suggest the film is not only a "game-changing
movie" for Marvel, but also well on its way to
becoming a "defining
cinematic moment" for on-screen racial and gender
representation. But as hype for the film reaches a
crescendo, so does a glaringly obvious question: can the
film live up to expectations?Black
Panther has always carried a heavy burden—the only
black person at the table (fictional or not) usually does.
Stan Lee and Jack Kirby first added Black
Panther to the Marvel universe in 1966, not long
before the Black Panther Party was founded in the US.
T'Challa immediatelyfelt
the political pressure and in a Fantastic
Fourstrip in the same year, tried to change his name to
Black Leopard. Black Panther endured and in 2018,
the film version of T'Challa is finally embracing his role
as a black superhero.The film is set
in Wakanda, a fictional technologically advanced country in
East Africa, which was never colonized (in fact, it was
largely hidden from the rest of the world). For people of
African descent, the kingdom of Wakanda finally brings a
searing question—what if the colonists hadn't arrived
and Africa had been allowed to develop unencumbered by
international influence?—to the big screen.The
character T'Challa, played by Chadwick Boseman, is the
country's leader whose powers come from his intelligence,
his ancestral knowledge, access to advanced technologies,
and, of course, wealth—which all turn him into the Black
Panther superhero. Then there's Killmonger, played by
Michael B. Jordan, the film's main antagonist. And the
film's impressive roster of female characters: Dora
Milaje, the all-female personal guards of the Black Panther
and lead scientist and T'Challa's sister Shuri (the smartest
person within the Marvel universe), played by Letitia
Wright; all shatter
expectations of a black women's role in a superhero
film. The movie is, as one Guardian columnist succinctly puts
it, a "both a celebration of blackness and perfectly
timed political commentary."Early reviews of
the film emphasize the importance of representation—the
simple joy of looking up and seeing yourself on-screen. The
film's costar Sterling K. Brown spoke not only of his
excitement that his sons will get to see a black superhero
on-screen, but that white children also have black heroes
that they want
to emulate.More
importantly, the black characters aren't merely token. The
film has been lauded for its gripping, yet complex
exploration of identity, pain, and power.THE
BURDEN OF HOPE"What do you
know about Wakanda?" Andy Serkis' villainous Klaw asks.
"It's a third world country—textiles, shepherds, cool
outfits," responds a clueless Everett Ross, played by
Martin Freeman.This type
cinematic stereotype has endured in films about Africa for
generations—and made African audiences groan, knowing that
Hollywood producers never considered that their films may be
seen by actual Africans. Black Panther is a
radical break from that, as it not only acknowledges
contemporary African neo-colonial politics—the film's
villains want to pillage Wakanda's natural
resources—but this actually drives the plot of the
film.The producers of
the film made sure to include many elements of contemporary
Africa to make it feel like the fantasy kingdom could almost
be real. Trailers show the cast dressed in traditional
African clothing (even if it is a mix of very different
cultures) and audiences in South Africa are waiting to hear
the moment when T'Challa and his father speak
isiXhosa to each other, a South African language known
for its complex, almost melodic clicks. This, along with the
several African actors in the cast, has pulled African
audiences into the hype, so much so that Nigerians, Kenyans
and others are planning to wear their best traditional gear
to the premiere.The film's
worldwide appeal among black audiences may end up becoming
its undoing. Long devoid of representation, people of
African descent are looking to Black Panther and
hoping to see glimpses of themselves. But with black lives
and experiences differing significantly from Europe, the US,
and Africa, Black Panther finds itself in an
impossible conundrum of trying to live up to everyone's
vision of what a black superhero should be.There are
already murmurings of whether a film produced in Hollywood
is appropriating
African cultural elements for commercial gain and cool
costumes. Then there is the trepidation about Boseman's
African accent since American actors have a history
of butchering African accentsinto a generic,
unrecognizable mish-mash. When a South African journalist
criticized the fact the movie was largely filmed in Atlanta,
US (see Tweet below), he was branded ridiculous and roundly
dismissed by some Americans. The debate around filming
locations highlights the differing expectations between fans
across the world.Black Panther
brings new audiences to Marvel's cinematic universe, but
the film also has to please the traditional superhero geeks
who have made franchises like The Avengers instant
commercial successes. Thor and Tony Stark didn't have the
burden of being a social commentary in the Trump era. Wonder
Woman may know something about that, but even she didn't
have to fit an identity that is at once universally
recognizable and hyper-local as black characters
do.Editors'
Picks, Marvel, Black
Panther, wakanda, t'challaREAD
THIS NEXT2018's best food travel show
isn't even hosted by a chef—and that's what makes
it so
greatAnd...
... and just to balance last week's post on
Chimamanda and the insulting question on libraries in
Nigeria, what is being referred to as #Chimamandagate is in
this article below roundly nailed flat by Kenyan poet
Shailja Patel:
https://brittlepaper.com/2018/02/shailja-patel-molara-wood-reply-chimamanda-adichies-comments-postcolonial-theory/


--
Olajumoke
Yacob-Haliso, PhD.,
Department of Political Science and Public Administration,
Babcock University,
PMB 4010, Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State, Nigeria. 
Official Email: yacob-halisoo@babcock.edu.ng
The Editor, Journal of International Politics and
Development: jipad@babcock.edu.ng
Institutional Website: www.babcock.edu.ng
.....
Intelligence Plus Character -- that is the goal of True
Education - Martin Luther King, Jr.




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