Heroes hiding in plain sight
Me with my Editor
HEROES HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT
I was hit hard by Chadwick Boseman’s death.
Chadwick, an actor who portrayed African American icons such as Jackie Robinson, Thurgood Marshall, and Black Panther among others, died last Friday. His was the rare ability to fully understand these gentleman, and then make them accessible to the rest of us.
They say you can’t act what you don’t know, and it turns out that Chadwick understood the likes of Marshall and Robinson because he had the grit, luck, and grace to change history too. Like those icons, he became a first…the first black superhero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Think that’s not a big deal? Think again. The movie raked in over a billion dollars, and more than that, it showed black children and their parents that they could be superheroes too.
And that was Chadwick’s purpose it seems, to give our world more positive and powerful black role models. God knows we need them.
Chadwick fighting to be named King in Black Panther
And here’s the irony of the whole deal: While he filmed Black Panther, an inspiring and visually stunning film, he was battling stage III colon cancer!
When his condition was revealed upon his death, millions of our jaws hit the floor. For those of you who haven’t seen the movie, and I highly recommend it, it’s physically and emotionally demanding. Look at how incredible he looks above!
It turns out that Chadwick was the REAL SUPERHERO hiding in plain sight.
For those of us who fear cancer like me, who are battling cancer, and/or who have survived it, Chadwick stands as a beacon of hope. He showed us that we can still make a huge difference while battling this beast. Even fighting for your life doesn’t have to stop you from achieving your dreams.
My prayer is that they make a movie about Chadwick’s life. It turns out that he was the real king. (Black Panther’s alter ego is King T’Challa of Wakanda.)
Are you a superhero hiding in plain sight? Or do you know one? Please share your stories of these incredible people with me. I need as many superheroes as I can get. If you give me permission, I’ll highlight them in my social media accounts and in a newsletter as well.
Radical Resources from the Library: Propose a program or an event. Your library works hard to plan events that will delight and engage you, and it helps us better our programming with suggestions from our patrons! An example of a possible programming idea from my library.
An event from my library: Vegetable gardening does not have to end when summer does! This topic will review how to prepare your garden for the fall, and discuss what vegetables are ideal for planting and harvest during this season. Grow a bountiful crop of delicious, sweet, crunchy vegetables for good healthful eating throughout fall and even into winter!
YouTube Video of the Week: Chadwick playing another icon: James Brown. Courtesy of Movieclips Coming Soon. Click the Image to see the video.
