(reposted from October 2015)

There are a handful of books I keep for my sons to read when they get older, two of those books are written by Ta-Nehisi Coates. The reason why I keep both of his books “The Beautiful Struggle” and Between the World and Me is they distill many of the life lessons, problems, paradoxes, pain, aspirations, and dreams of African American men of my generation more eloquently than any other current writer. Toni Morrison has hailed him as taking on the mantle that James Baldwin carried as an intellectual capable of articulating the thoughts and feelings of African Americans to country that both loves and reviles them. This isn’t false praise it’s accurate and earned.

Mr. Coates has made a career of producing illuminating articles on race and social issues in America and along with William Jelani Cobb (author and staff writer for The New Yorker) and Michelle Alexander (The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness) is an essential voice for understanding the how systemic racism continues to shape the experiences of people of African descent in America.  With his articles for The Atlantic Mr. Coates has garnered national attention for his articles such as his most on the destructive effects of mass incarceration on African American families and his George Polk award winning article last year on reparations.[i][i]

What’s amazing is having authored several important articles, a New York Times bestselling book (currently #4) and having just won a MacArthur Genius Grant, Mr. Coates has decided that he would like to write a comic book. Not just any comic book, one about possibly the most important fictional black character ever created, the Black Panther, who happens to be appearing soon in Captain America Civil War and in a self-entitled film due for release in 2017.

The Black Panther, created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, is a unique character in the Marvel universe. He’s not just a superhero, he’s a genius on par with Reed Richards and Tony Stark, a skilled hand to hand fighter, good enough to beat Captain America and actually has beaten all of the Fantastic Four on his own. The thing that truly makes him unique is his role as the head of state for the fictional African country of Wakanda and essentially the chief priest of the Panther Cult, the official religion of Wakanda that worships the Panther God. Lastly the role of Black Panther is merit based, women and men have held the position and once a year the Panther must face the winner of a tournament to show that she/he continues to be worthy of serving in that role.

One of the most striking aspects of Wakanda is that it is an African nation untouched by colonialism, capitalism, and Western influences. While in reality colonialism was a plaque that left nearly no part of Africa untouched, the fictional Wakanda was never conquered by any Western power. It has repelled invasions from neighboring countries, the Dutch, the Nazis, even the Skrulls, the shape changing villains of Marvel’s Secret Invasion miniseries, found it impossible to breach its walls. While recently the country was decimated by the forces from Atlantis for the near totality of the publishing history of the Black Panther Wakanda exists as an idealized notion of what a nation. I should also mention that it’s the source of vibranium, the fictional substance that along with adamantium combines to create Captain America’s unbreakable shield.

 

 

The publishing history of the Black Panther is a complicated one.  The character has gone through periods of staring in his own book, however frequently he has served as a supporting character or as part of an ensemble. Christopher Priest and Reginald Hudlin have produced the best runs so far with the Panther in his own book, however Jonathan Hickman’s use of the character in the New Avengers should be mentioned as well. Still the task before Mr. Coates is a formidable one, write a twelve part series that’s approachable enough to new readers, while incorporating the reality of the experience of the Black diaspora, plus some great action sequences, all at the same time.

Mr. Coates has his detractors who I am sure would claim that the announcement of his role in writing the Black Panther is meaningless, I find that a little hard to believe. Good writers are entertaining, great writers are informative, gifted writers are transformative, Mr. Coates is without question a gifted writer. At my last family gathering, the young and the old who only typically become the most animated when discussing the merits of their respective sports teams, leap into discussions about Between the World and Me as soon as it was mentioned. My mother upon reading the book commented that she could understand my perspective on the politics and sociological issues affecting the African American community in a way that she could not previously.

It matters that the most talented writer on the issues affecting the African American community is writing the adventures of the fictional black character that embodies the idea of who and want would we be if the triangle slave trade and colonialism hadn’t happened.  I don’t know if Mr. Coates run on the Black Panther will be a great one or not, but I have a spot on my bookshelf set aside for it, just in case.

[i][i] http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2015/10/the-black-family-in-the-age-of-mass-incarceration/403246/ see also http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2014/06/the-case-for-reparations/361631/