When you hear the word “king,” one might think of King George III, the famous quote by the lovely Denzel Washington proclaiming that “King Kong aint got nothing on me,” or even Martin Luther King Jr. But my king, and I’m sure that most [black] people will agree, was Chadwick “T’Challa” Boseman. 2020 has been an unforeseen year to say the least. A year filled with death in the black community. Whether it was Kobe, Breonna Taylor, Elijah McClain, George Floyd and soo many others. Too many others. I was very much saddened to hear the news of King Chadwick Boseman. 

I was on FaceTime with my friend Katherine and I remember reading a text message from my friend Kyli that said Chadwick Boseman died. I literally screamed “what the fuck.” I typed it in to Google and logged onto Twitter to see it for myself. It is still a shock a week later. 

Chadwick Boseman meant so much to me and I didn’t even know it. For days, I read every memorial post, retweeted many beautiful photos and moments that we, his fans, his people and the world, took for granted. We did not deserve Chadwick, but I am glad that we had him. 

His untimely death has left a positive impact on my life and I’m so glad to have a connection to him via our HU family and to witness his success as a black man. Seeing a Bison portray so many prominent black figures means the world to me. Jackie Robinson. James Brown. Thurgood Marshall. His career is an indicator that one: greatness comes from Howard. It leaves me feeling empowered to keep going and push through any struggles and obstacles to fulfill my true purpose in this world. Our time here is temporary. His purpose was clearly bigger than him because I truly believe we needed a hero and Chadwick was him. For him to silently battle with colon cancer and show up with his whole self to bring these characters to life deserves a standing ovation in itself.

The roles Chadwick played throughout his career educated all of us. My favorite was definitely Black Panther. Me being the extra person that I am, I saved the movie ticket as I do all of the movies I go to. I am so glad that I did because this one hits different. I’ll hold it near and dear to my heart.  I was so excited, engaged, impressed and engulfed in that movie. I felt the pain of Killmonger and I wanted to book a trip to Wakanda. I’m more so excited that my nieces and my nephew had representation and could see themselves in a superhero movie. How cool it is to be a black child growing up and seeing not only a black man in the White House but a black man as a superhero. 

Chadwick, we did not give you enough flowers while you were here, but I heard that in your culture “death is not the end. It’s more of a stepping off point. You reach out with both hands and Bast and Sekhmet, they lead you into a green veld where you can run forever.”

Long Live our King, Chadwick Boseman, most notably known as T’Challa.