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I watched Black Panther in a theater in the Eastern Cape, South Africa, with a group of mostly isiXhosa-speaking students, who laughed and delighted in the passing comments in isiXhosa throughout the film. I led discussions and read essays on their responses to the film. It was a privileged experience, and a fantastic hook into a class on global justice and African philosophy.

Perhaps it is this context that amplified the dissonance between the film and African philosophy: on the one hand the voices of Wakanda spoke of “our way of life” and protecting our people: “I chose my people. I chose Wakanda.”; “people who are not our own”; “I am not King of all people. I am King of Wakanda.” On the other hand, the African philosophers we studied spoke frequently of “mutuality,” “reciprocity,” “relatedness” – of engaging with the other rather than fearing the other.

Wakanda is, of course, fictional. So, it does not need to be held accountable to empirical reality. Yet, Wakanda is clearly located in Africa and tries to represent a version of what Africa is, and could have been: a place that thrives in its own way. It is odd, then, that “the way” of the people of Wakanda appears to be largely shaped by a Western perspective rather than traditional African thought.

Much has happened with regard to the issue of global justice since Black Panther’s 2018 release – many around the world have joined in to support the American Black Lives Matter movement against systematic racism in US law enforcement and criminal justice systems, and the depth of global inequality and its dire consequences has been highlighted in a new and stark way through the COVID-19 pandemic. It will be interesting then to see how (or if) Black Panther’s sequel addresses these issues of injustice. Will the perspective remain Westernized? Or, will the filmmakers show a Wakanda that speaks more clearly to the histories of African philosophies and ways of life? And, what will be the effect of Wakanda’s global outreach? Will Wakanda still view the world as others who need help, or will Wakandans embrace the concept of ubuntu and truly view the world as one?²⁷