“Wakanda for Life!”
“It’s a line that inspired me from Ryan Coogler’s film Black Panther (2018). Chadwick Boseman plays a character named T’Challa, the King of Wakanda, which is an isolated, technologically advanced African nation. Eventually, he has to save the world. This film showed me how I have actually always seen and experienced Africa. Most importantly it displayed how I think that it could be like for all Africans, Afro-Caribbeans, Afro-Americans and for the entire African diaspora. It’s very beautiful to see the responses that all these people have because of this film. It makes everyone so proud. Then again, Africa is a part that does stand far away from us. For example, I am of African descent, but what is that precisely? Next, to that, it can be translated in a very beautiful way as it notifies us but also signifies what has been missing all along for a long time. I think that for a lot of people it is something that they are often confronted with especially if you are a member of the African diaspora living in a western country. You don’t actually know what being of African descent really is. You don’t know where in Africa you are from. Most haven’t even been to the continent of Africa. All that we have now is the beautiful depiction of a maybe even utopic display of how Africa could be. The visual part is what has been missing all along for a lot of people and it is translated in the best way with this film. Since I’ve traveled to several African countries I got to experience the cultural diversity and richness Black Panther displays. That is why the line, ‘Wakanda for life!’ is inspiring to me. It shows me my roots and a place to call home.”
Photo and story by Feargal Agard.
