Rest in Glory, ChadwickChadwick not only played a culturally impactful fictional hero for our commun

Rest in Glory, Chadwick

Chadwick not only played a culturally impactful fictional hero for our community… he played our Real Life ones too. You FELT the love and passion in his craft. The stories he made sure he played also tended to be hopeful though complex. They tended to show our resilience and the different ways to showcase liberation.  For him to pass (what feels) so suddenly—in the midst of all this OTHER targeted harm done to our community—this just really hurts. It’s personal. It feels cruel. And it feels so unfair.  

It’s heartbreaking because there are so many variables here we can only speculate on but one variable that is very particular and we don’t talk about enough is ableism and how that affects us differently when you’re a Black person. Keeping what you’re going through mum because you could potentially be passed up for an opportunity or lose a job altogether? But also, culturally—we tend to keep our pain and suffering to ourselves OFTEN. Working TWICE as hard not only because of this diagnosis but that’s just a THING expected of us as a People? Then as a public figure, you are picked apart and scrutinized relentlessly—  

This hurts.  

Every time I think about it, I can’t help but keep tearing up…

Rest in peace and glory, Chadwick Boseman. You were such a light and now you’re transitioning to be a revered Ancestor. You inspired so many, myself included. Particularly telling/being a part of stories that uplift and empower our community. It helps to know all of that as truth and to know you’re free from the pain in your fight against cancer.