Wakanda is not fake and this is why

Wakanda is not this fictitious place some would want to believe. Far from make-believe, Wakanda is not a geographic location but exists within a people who have had their identity and agency stripped from them for centuries. And for all the detractors who challenge this, the concept is long lost on them. Marvel Studios took on the task of telling the story of Wakanda which paid off with the blockbuster hit movie "Black Panther" Over the years, Marvel has brought comic readers fantasy favorites to life and "Black Panther" was no different. Only this time the fantasy was a Real story with real implications that has resonated with millions of people especially of African descent around the globe.

Why is the 'Black Panther' movie a big deal?

"Black Panther" is a big deal for many reasons. Of the many, the film had the biggest domestic opening in the U.S, ahead of the massive 2012 hit "The Avengers." Even before its release Kevin Feige, President of Marvel Studios was reported to have said that "Black Panther" was “the best movie we’ve ever made.” Fast forward eight weeks after and the film is the highest-grossing solo superhero movie to date.

In addition to that, the film has a cumulative total that now exceeds $665.6 million in the US and Canada. This total surpasses the "Titanic" which grossed some $659 million and takes "Black Panther" up to third in movie ticket sales of all time in North America.

It is predicted to eventually gross $690 million domestically after inflation is accounted for. Globally, it is still behind "Avatar" and "Titanic" but has made unprecedented strides by being the first movie to be shown in Saudi Arabian cinemas in 35 years.

"Black Panther" has made more money than any other black directed movie domestically, surpassing Keenan Ivory Wayan’s "Scary Movie" ($267 million) and Sidney Poitier’s "Stir Crazy" ($346 million).

The movie also managed to top the box office for five weekends straight which has not been done since Avatar in 2009. And to top it off, the popular rating website Rotten Tomatoes rates "Black Panther" with an impressive 97 percent positive review rating. These out-rates movies like "Iron Man" with the only other superhero movie in that category to date being Pixar’s "The Incredibles."

Chad Boseman who plays the Black Panther succinctly describes the reason for the film’s success in an ABC interview.

He states that there is a thirst for images of power, intelligence and achievement in the black community and with this film, they not only saw themselves but their dreams as well. That is the story of Wakanda and why it resonates so deeply.

Is Wakanda real?

Wakanda is real because of its unapologetic blackness that reflects the origins of all black people and arguably all humanity - coming from the continent of Africa. This was done in a way never seen before that broke the mold of the skewed narrative the media normally portray of the continent. Wakanda is the result of that and represents the full gamut of the glory the continent is and can be. This gamut is a fresh start for how people of African descent identify and identity is a very real concept.

A peoples identity is how they make sense of themselves and the world around them. Wakanda is just that - a sense of identity where black people can fully identify with the characters as if they were cousins or relatives of the past.

The story of Wakanda is the most political of all the Marvel comics and addresses issues of colonization, segregation, inequity and finally what integration would look like after overcoming these obstacles. This story is very relevant today even 50 years after it was originally written. One of the standout issues Wakanda highlights is gender equity. The world still wrestles with the idea of autonomous women being in positions of power with the same respect and income as their male counterpart.

Wakanda contradicts this by portraying a place where these issues do not exist and by no coincidence also being the most advanced nation in the world as a result. This speaks to the progress that is possible if women were encouraged to realize their full potential.

In Wakanda, women were allowed to be and everyone understood, even the King, that the advancement of humanity depended on the fulfillment of the woman’s full potential. This translates in a real way where the masculine has sought to stifle the raw potential of the feminine by relegating it to a binary of adjectives such as soft, dainty, overly emotional, and fluid.

These qualities are not seen as desired for leadership and in that regard, Wakanda means allowing women to fully occupy their own space.

The idea of Wakanda gets even more real as it relates to its influence on little black girls and boys who are seeking to know more about the history and to understand the cosmology of their nation. Boseman shares an emotional story on Sirius XM during an interview of two terminally ill black children, Ian and Taylor, who were desperately trying to hold on to see the movie but unfortunately passed away before its release. This speaks to the importance of the Wakandan experience for the generation here now and the ones to come.

With the importance of the experience comes the urgency of securing black narratives and how crucial it is for the community to tell its own stories.

In doing that, detractors can no longer deny the excellence of the community and what it brings to the table. The real story is the one Wakanda tells of what a black nation would have been like uninterrupted.

What’s next?

Wakanda is unapologetically black and does tell a specific story. However, even in its specificity, has transcended all the things that divide us. That is why the story of this so-called fantasy nation resonates with viewers on a whole different level.

It is real because as human beings, we have the capacity to relate to anyone. A popular South African term ‘Ubuntu’ which means ‘I am because you are’ perfectly captures what Wakanda is. Wakanda is the story of Africa and the story of Africa is the story of humanity’s origins which is as real as it gets. For that, I say, Wakanda forever!