Entertainment: Celebrate Black History Month with “Black Panther”
(Photo Credits: Gage Skidmore [CC BY-SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons)
It’s Black History Month, guys! If you are a comic lover, then you’d probably want these free digital Black Panther comics from Marvel. To redeem the comics shown below, heed over to Marvel.com and simply input the code “FOREVER.” The offer is valid for a limited time only, starting from February 4, 2019 to February 10, 11:59 EST!
- Black Panther (2005) #1
- Black Panther: World of Wakanda (2016) #1
- Marvel’s Black Panther Prelude (2017) #1
- Black Panther (2018) #1
- Shuri (2018) #1
If you haven’t heard of Black Panther yet you might be living under a rock. Not only did its film smashed box office records last year and reportedly made $1.34 billion, it also received an Oscar nomination for Best Picture this 2019 (a first for a superhero film) as well as many others. The list include: Best Original Music Score, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Costume Design, and Best Production Design.
Anyway, it is said that in recent comic issues of Black Panther and World of Wakanda, Ayo and Aneka of Dora Milaje are lovers (Dora Milaje is an “elite group of female bodyguards and Wakandan special forces who served King T’Chaka during his time as the Black Panther”) and therefore, fans were disappointed by the lack of lesbian romance in the film.
That being said, apart from the free comics, the Academy Award®-nominated film Black Panther (2018, Ryan Coogler) also had a limited one week free showing in honor of Black History Month last February 1 to 7. On top of these, Disney is also donating a $1.5 million grant to United Negro College Fund (UNCF), a nonprofit organization that helps aspiring young minority students gain access to college education through scholarships.
Black History Month is celebrated annually all throughout February in the U.S., Ireland, the Netherlands, and Canada (they say it’s October in the U.K.) to “remember important people, events, and achievements of African diaspora.” The month of February was specifically chosen in honor of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln whose birthdays fall on this month. Douglass was “an author, orator, and human rights leader in the anti-slavery movement and the first African-American citizen to hold a high U.S. government rank.” Lincoln, on the other hand, is the United States’ 16th President. In 1863, he issued the Emancipation Proclamation that “declared forever free those slaves within the Confederacy.”
Happy Black History Month, guys! Let us know in the comments section below how your area or country celebrates it.
I enjoyed Black Panther a lot and I can easily see the importance it’s served for Black citizens but I couldn’t help but wonder about the message sent by Wakanda’s political system. Instead of a system built on civilized discourse and intelligence the means of political ascension was based on who is the biggest thug and most brutally violent. Kinda perpetuates racist stereotypes and low expectations.
Ahh Black Panther.
The “first black superhero movie” (ahem Blade) that everyone is so afraid to really discuss.
Here we have a movie that features two similar relatives cast against each other… the fundamental difference between them being one had a father in his life and the other did not. Far be it from me to support single families, but I thought ever since Murphy Brown we weren’t supposed to discuss the fact that raising a child without a father has negative consequences? This movie goes far beyond that, and makes it the fundamental reason why the antagonist is bad. Which might conform with the reality, but I wonder if anyone would object if this were any other movie?
Which brings us to the next point. The protagonist straight up makes a nationalistic speech against immigration in his country. A view that he never really changes over the course of the movie, and even into the subsequent move (Infinity War, which -twice- makes a point to support the nationalism and anti-immigration view of the country). If the difference in family was what caused the characters to grow up differently, the end result of that is their political views, which can best be summed up with the good guy being nationalist and the bad guy being globalist.
Again, I think that if a couple more white people were in this movie it would be reviled as the most pro-Trump movie of the last few years.
And just to quell some people from saying “but at the end he talks about outreach!!”… yes. Our nationalist hero at the end of the movie throws some money at some inner-city kids in New York City. Sound familiar? What he doesn’t do is open the borders of his country, in this movie or in the next. What he doesn’t do is help Africa. What he doesn’t do is allow outsiders in. To claim that his views on nations and borders are any different at the end the movie as is the beginning is laughable.
and like, I’m fine with all that. As opposed to most people I’m actually okay with nationalism and borders.
I just find it hysterical that no one actually seems to have seen this movie, or listened to what it was saying beyond “it’s a black movie”.
It wasn’t a great movie. It wasn’t even the best Marvel superhero movie last year.
To prop it (where the character it was based on) up as some sort of symbol of the black community is doing everyone a disservice.
Black history month always h-light February more than any month to me because of the brave, persistent and courage blacks people adored before me. As a proud African American, I realize the path was made easier because of my heroic ancestors. Although during the Trump presidency with racism trying to rear its ugly head, we have made significant strides in attaining the unity that Dr. King aspired so hard for. Let’s all stand up and salute all of America during Black History month. Thanks
You have every right to be proud, and you should be. I agree the leadership of this country isn’t helping at all to bring racial unity, and is actually making it much worse. Dr. King and many others have fought hard and lost their lives in the battle to simply bring respect and unity between different races and nationalities.
Despite the efforts of President Trump, and others, the state of race relations in America is about as lousy as I’ve seen it. The former occupant of the White House, and his lackeys, did everything they could to divide America, for 8 long years, in my opinion, especially along racial lines. People now talk about a second Civil War, and the way the slur “racist” is tossed around by the left is sick. I quietly “celebrate” when I see a black American wearing a MAGA hat and/or joining the #Walkaway movement, because the Democrat Party is now about transforming America into another Venezuela, in my opinion.
trash…you sound just like every other russian troll on social media.
Thank you for doing a spotlight on Black men and women globally who have made significant contribution to the world at large …………. Ireland now that’s a surprise
I thought Black Panther was a great action movie. I was glad to see a movie that featured a black cast. I know people were sort of stereotyping this movie to be geared to a black audience. However when I (white) and my BF (black) seen it together, the theater was nearly packed with mostly a white audience. There are many black “heroes” in real life as well, including my very best friend and lover, (at least I feel that way). Being black history month, I hope it impresses on peoples minds that we are all human, regardless of skin color, nationality, race, age, or looks.
Very good informative article. Thank you very much for the educational lesson on the origin of Black History Month. The writer is to be commended for his research and time to author such……
Kudos to Black Panther for a job well done.
I live in a town that is diverse and tends to celebrate all different cultures throughout the year. So during this month, our county highlights the various black authors, entertainers, scientist and artist that live within our community. It is also a time to talk about the true history of black Americans before and beyond slavery. It a great time for people to discover that while there are people from different cultures and backgrounds we are very much the same in our core beliefs as free American citizens. Our county does the same education and celebrations for other culture and ethnic backgrounds as well.
Also, while Blade was a black superhero, Black Panther is the first of its kind. It is the first superhero movie with a majority black cast and black director that has made over a billion dollars. It made that much because it told a good classic superhero story with plenty of action that inspired a lot of kids and kids at heart.
As a white man I support Black History Month but I’m a little confused about many stating they are “Proud African Americans”. Being born Black, White, Brown or anything hue in between is nothing to be proud of in my opinion. The simple fact of being born from a certain background is not something to be proud of…it’s just something one inherits from their parents.
It’s the quality of the person that one should be proud of, at least that’s how I see it.
Jay, You did say you are confused and you also stated that your comment is at least how you see it. You also stated that you was a white man. I commend you for supporting Black History month as I support other cultural-theme historic months. Sir, you have no idea what it’s like to be born black or brown. You was born privileged just for being white. I’m proud to be a African American because of the history of my people and what my people had to go through. How we continue to fight and struggle for equality and still in the year 2019 haven’t got there yet. I myself inherit a lot of the fight, perseverance, strength, drive, motivation and courage from my proud ancestors. Everyone that read my response just imagine how would you feel being a slave. Being sold like cattle. Being bred like livestock to produce future slaves to work the fields. Being shackled and caged like a wild animals…..These were people sir, human beings just like you. People who had feelings, people who felt pain, people who were CONFUSED just like you….
I can’t go any further because my eyes are beginning to wept with tears…These were my people sir….Hell yell!!! I am proud to be a African American.
I am also white and support Black History Month. I agree a persons race is inherited. Pride concerning ones race is something that sort of separates and segregates a particular race. No one race is better than the other, it’s something that is just inherited. Also why do we keep calling black Americans, African Americans. I am a white American and my BF is a black American. He wasn’t born in Africa, although way back somewhere he may have African heritage. I am proud of my BF and many others as well for whom they are, their personality, accomplishments, goals, etc, which has nothing to do with skin color.
Black Americans, are African-genetically and shall always be, just to answer your inquiry. Being born here, in America makes ‘us’ totally American, “all American” quintessentially so, in fact…
Something about equating Black Panther with history…
I think anyone that has gone through what those of us that are the multiple-great-grand sons/ daughters of the original Africans. Those that were slaves in this country; should indeed, be proud of being African Americans, yeah, look at all our peoples accomplishments, in the face of our oppressors. It’s quite biblical, really, our story…
We’ve actually, to this date, proven to be made of better: physically, mentally, Spiritually, than our oppressors! Nobody, that you can think of on this soil, in this country, has gone through what we have, and yet we STILL, keep “raising the bar” of excellence, across the board.
Not bad for a people that were/are alleged to be “only three fifths human,” lmao! Well, on avg., people are absolutely stupid about race, hell we’re still discovering who we are and what we’re not. So much of history has been buried that were finding out.
You know when I look at it from your perspective, I can see where your coming from as far as being proud as should the rest of the black race. Yes, I agree there has been a lot of accomplishment on the part of black people as yes in the past, it’s horrible that blacks were enslaved, tortured, murdered, and quite mistreated, among many other things. I can’t imagine being being called 3/5 human. How horrid is that. Of course your %100 human, no different than any person on this earth regardless of race or nationality. Yes, as you know I am white, but I”m NOT proud of the way white people treated the black race and others in the past. Still today there is so much discrimination against the blacks, and yes I know of some people who feel that way. White people are no better than anyone else, and as a matter of fact many (and most of them) are quite inferior in their attitudes, beliefs and accomplishments. Oh sure, many say their not racist, but only on the surface, but when it comes to real life that’s not the case. Keep up the good work, fight discrimination, and yes, be proud of the horrible situations that you came out of.
@ BJJJ,
You just keep shining, you set yourself apart from all of that, bud. I also keep in mind, I always have met, some other of my brethren, I’ve not cared for either and visa-versa. Another wards, I know, you’re either a but-hole or you’re not, regardless of color, really, but “Nationally?”
I mean, just about a 1/2 of the whole country, man, yet I guess ‘we’ to some degree, we forgot
as we were making, earning our way forward in this country; our country, what lies at its genetic-psychological heart/center of ideologies, politics, etc.
Denying we’re human, to whatever degree, but Baptizing us, this is done only with/for humans, yet, owned as animals ‘chattel’, contradictory as all hell, they knew they were wrong.
Hey, man, its always up to the next generations, and the next after that, period as humans, globally as well, we’re just doin’ our parts, right, yeah!
And happy Valentines’ days!!!!