Marvel's Black Panther will have its official premiere on February 16th and the film has without a doubt been the talk of the town. Starring Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira and Daniel Kaluuya the anticipated film resonates with the black film community in a major way.
A petition on Change.org is calling on the makers behind the film to give back to communities that the movie will "profit" off. The petition is asking Marvel and its parent company Walt Disney to invest 25% of their earnings into black communities.
“As black communities across the United States continue to grapple with issues such as gentrification, police brutality, and substandard living conditions we cannot continue to recklessly support these conglomerates, allowing them to profit off of us without demanding something more than just their products in return,” Chaz Gormley, who started the fund, writes.
“You have the ability to not only be entertained, but to leave the theater in February knowing that a portion of your money will be coming back into your community” Gormley adds. “To not only go see a film about a fictitious country in Africa with advanced technology, but the opportunity to invest in programs which focus on the fields – Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics – that make such advancements possible, in real life.”
As we write this, the petition has received 313 signatures out of the 500 needed to make an impact. What do you guys think?