Take away the African garb, culture, and accent of the black panther. The euphoria of the CGI promise land and what do you have? The 10th highest-grossing movie of all time was a victory in the film industry for the black community. During the height of the Trump presidency, police shootings all over social media, the timing couldn’t have been better to uplift the black morale. But how accurate was it? The reality is Black people wish to be perceived as the black panther but have more in common with the joker..Read on for the bitter truth..

This isn’t your typical marvel vs DC debate. Comics resonate with the masses because the archetypes and stories are relatable. Sure the superpowers and fights makes for great special effects but at the core, the stories and characters are what hooks us..Understanding this context is important, behind our bias for our history, culture, justice, and pride lay human emotions that are in all human beings.

Colonialism has separated black people from their ancient traditions. 2 decades ago a large portion of black people would’ve shunned their native homeland spiritual practices. Calling them pagan, devil, or idol worship..However, today more people are leaving the church than ever before to search and find their spirituality. Martin Luther King referenced the promised land in a speech where blacks are finally free. That place was Wakanda it seems.

The majority of people think they can’t afford or don’t wanna go through the hassle of going back to Africa. But for the price of a movie ticket to see the black panther, you could experience the nostalgia of someone’s interpretation of the motherland/promise land. The reality is, this place doesn’t exist. For the majority of African Americans, the joy of the black panther was the visual of something we’ve never seen before yet aspired to experience.

However, what’s beautiful about stories is that archetypes have no color. Beyond the nostalgia of black panther, its marketing and the dashiki crazed that followed what is relatable about it? Despite not appealing to a certain oppressed group, in an ironic way the joker has more in common with the state of the black community…

Sure the Oakland and Wakanda setting seemed realistic but a very small portion of the film takes place in Oakland…In fact, most African Americans related to the villain eric killmonger more than the protagonist t’challa who is the black panther. T’challa came from family and tradition and culture while the joker cared for his mother who had mental issues. The father is seldom mentioned in the film as well. So while the joker is white and t’challa is clearly black who has more in common family-wise?…In fact, the joker has inherited his mother’s mental health issues either genetically or otherwise.

If you find the similarities in this article odd and interesting then read our Trump and Obama similarities, Here..

The joker goes to seek help and speaks to a therapist who doesn’t seem interested in him as a person, He even confronts her about her lack of interest. As the funding runs out for his treatment she tells him that people won’t care about him but he should still seek help..The joker doesn’t have any friends in the movie and his girlfriend we find out is imaginary..

Similar to the joker, the black community uses entertainment as a coping mechanism, as a consumer and producer. In fact, it’s one of the few industries we excel in. And a sub-par comedian and clown are the only occupations we see the joker doing. Most comedians will tell you that most comedians are sad and depressed. Once you tell a joke, that’s all people want from you..Now ask yourself, does the black community feel that the world takes them seriously?

The late scholar John Henrik Clarke once infamously told black people.

“You have no friends”

Notice in the film the joker is never without his makeup or mask, he doesn’t film confident nor comfortable to face the world without it. He has worn it for so long, it’s the only way he feels he can get attention. Many black people believe that the path to “success” is through entertaining others. Doing things for the gram, world star, twerking in restaurants, you name it..Imagine a large majority of a race typecasting themselves.

This may explain why most comedians are typecasted into comedy roles. It’s rare to see a comedian play a lead in another genre. The same can be said for black entertainers. Black people that are successful millionaires or billionaires are all entertainers..They either started that way or that is what they’re known for. Rappers or athletes..

Despite rapping being one of the most dangerous jobs in the world and over a dozen rappers being killed in 2020, people still aspire to do it. Just like how the joker wanted validation for his comedic efforts. Whether it was his failure to stand up, or on the talk show, rappers want to please people Likewise, less than 1% of collegiate athletes make the pros, yet many aspire to do it..

At some level, we all seek some form of validation or reassurance. But entertainers need it like oxygen. Despite controversial run-ins with paparazzi, Kanye West has publically acknowledge that he has a working mutual relationship with the media that benefits both parties. If John Henrik Clarke tells black people we have no friends, where are we going to get our validation and reassurance from?… Drugs, poverty, failing schools have helped create terrible foundations for black families to function.

The hardest thing for us is what was difficult for the joker to accept. That we all have to realize we need healing. No need to distract ourselves from entertaining people who don’t really care about us outside of what we can provide. This is also a symptom of an excessive capitalistic society. Your network doesn’t determine your value as a human being.

In conclusion, time will tell if the state of the black community will address their obsessive desire for external validation and deny our mental instability. While the truth may be ugly and a hot mess, facing it is the only way to spiritual progress.

What are your honest thoughts on this article?