When it comes to ideas around ‘Afrofuturism’, it’s fair to say that Marvel’s Black Panther has colonised modern imaginations. This is no shade to the 200 million dollar production – as far as superhero movies go, I really enjoyed it – but beyond this pan-African steel and vibranium laced fantasy, Afrofuturism as an idea has energised black artists and creatives for decades, and that energy could help us right now as a community.
From what’s happening in America to what is going on right next door, while the natural urge is to disengage and bury our heads beneath pillows, it’s not really something anyone with a marginalised identity can afford to do. So keeping that in mind, how does the fantasy of Afrofuturism help us in the here and now?