As many of your know, on August 28th,2020 the world received the heartbreaking news that the iconic actor, Chadwick Boseman had lost his four year battle with colon cancer. If you were anything like me, you were crushed by this news. If I’m being honest with myself I didn’t believe it was real. I like so many others thought it was a joke or a social experiment like we had seen in so many “Twitter Moments” before. As unfortunate as it is, it felt on par for 2020, it was one more crushing blow after another, but Boseman’s life deserves to be celebrated and honored. Chadwick kept his diagnosis private until the end, which in my opinion is very noble. As he was fighting on-screen villains he was fighting his own villain in the form a stage four terminal disease. I and my friends, who I have a podcast with, can tell you that Chadwick was much more than just a superhero on the screen, he was also to many, a superhero in real life.
The actor was best known for his portrayal of King T’Challa, the Black Panther, in the film with the same name. He also portrayed American Heroes such as Jackie Robinson, James Brown, and Thurgood Marshall. The first time I saw Chadwick on screen was as Jackie Robinson in 42. If you know anything about me, you know I love movies and cinema. In my house watching sports movies together was a very special bonding experience for my Dad and I. Watching 42 with my Dad was what began our tradition of enjoying movies together, with analysis and discussion afterward. One of my favorite Dad and daughter dates we went on was to the movies to see 42, the biopic sharing the life and achievements of Jackie Robinson, the first African American to play major league baseball. I remember walking out of the movie just in awe of Chadwick. Even as a 14-year-old, I believed every word, every action, every emotion of this man was Jackie Robinson. In my opinion, this artistry followed Chadwick in every role he played, especially in Black Panther.
In the film T’Challa was an extremely conflicted character, he felt that had to live up to his perceived legacy of his father, King T’Chaka, protect Wakanda and keep their values, and stay true to himself. You see him actively make choices to make Wakanda better and move them forward. In my opinion, Chadwick’s T’Challa showed young BIPOC audiences that they don’t have to let the mistakes of the older generations define them. They have the power to change the status quo. Chadwick showed them that they can be honorable and fight for what is right. Young people don’t have to choose between respecting their elders and standing up for their beliefs. That lesson goes beyond Black Panther and the Marvel universe, it goes beyond Hollywood, it goes beyond the oppressive systems in this country. It is exactly what so many young people, including myself, needed to hear at a time such as the one we are living in.
We can’t honor Chadwick Boseman without talking about the activism he spent his life fighting for. Anyone can see that activism in his work, especially in Marshall, a theatricalized telling of Thurgood Marshall’s career as the first African American supreme court justice, and the first case of his career, but Boseman’s activism goes deeper than that. In 2016, Boseman gave the commencement speech at his alma mater, Howard University, where he praised students for protesting the unjust raise of tuition and severe lack of scholarship and financial aid. Although he praised them, he warned the students to not become complacent in that victory. He encouraged the students to keep doing the work and keep fighting the fight because it was not only for them but it was for the future beneficiaries. The legacy these students would leave was bigger than what they could have imagined.
Additionally, before anyone in the media knew about Chadwick’s diagnosis, He would visit St. Jude’s Children’s hospital frequently to help lift the spirits of the children dying from cancer. He was struck and inspired by so many of their stories. He took the time to make each one of them feel special and seen. Chadwick wanted to make sure these kids felt normal for an afternoon with him. My favorite interview Chadwick every did was with The Black Panther cast at Sirius Radio. In this interview, Chadwick spoke about some young fans he had met at the hospital. He told the reporters that the news about The Black Panther film was what was keeping these boys going. Chadwick got emotional when he revealed that those boys had lost their battle not long after the release of the film. He understood what on-screen superheroes meant to so many. Unfortunately, I don’t know if he could have ever known what his own humanity meant to so many. I pray that Chadwick is looking down on us in humble awe of how highly the world thought of him.
To close, Chadwick Boseman was a hero both on-screen and off because he fought for those who couldn’t fight for themselves even when He was fighting his own battle in silence. I will always remember Chadwick for his artistry and the aura of genuine manhood he carried himself with. I leave you with “Wakanda Forever”, but I challenge you to remember that, that phrase goes beyond the movie and the character. It represents the man and everything he stood for. Rest in Power, King. Wakanda Forever.