the other press

the douglas college student newspaper since 1976

 

 

Black Borders

Taking a Look at African Representation in the Funny Pages

Vince Yim, OP Comic Book Guy

T. coincide with the release of
the upcoming Spider-Man 3, Spider-
Man is ditching his traditional red and
blue costume in favour of his black
costume, made popular in the mid-
1980s (but, this time using a costume
fabric, instead of an alien symbiote).
Of course, Marvel Comics has been
running a “Back in Black” campaign,
which coincidentally happens to be the
same time as Black History Month.
Granted, that’s probably not quite what
they had in mind.

Over the years, various attempts
have been made to diversify the
ethnicities of comic strips and comic
books, with mixed results. This is a
mere sampling of the good, the bad,
and the bad mother — shut yo’ mouth!

Lobo
First appearance: Lobo (Dell
Comics, December 1965)

Not to be confused with the
similarly-named mercenary anti-hero
from DC Comics, Lobo is the first
African-American protagonist to have
his own comic book. Created by DJ
Arneson and Tony Tallarico, Lobo
was a gunslinger in the Old West who
would leave “L”-marked coins on
the foreheads of his vanquished foes.
Although it only lasted two issues and
has been largely forgotten today, it is
still notable as a milestone.

While the intentions may have been
noble at the time, it does play to some
familiar stereotypes, proudly displayed
on the cover of the first issue, reading,
“An honest man blamed for a crime he
did not commit.”

Black Panther
First appearance: Black Panther #52
(Marvel Comics, July 1966)

 

As the first modern black super-
hero, Black Panther is quite unlike
many of the others featured in this list.
As the prince of the fictional African
nation of Wakanda, he had no criminal
history tied to his origin, instead deriv-
ing his powers from mystical means.
This has given him the strength, speed,
agility, the endurance of an Olympic-
level athlete, and superior fighting
skills. His political ties have made him
a valued member of The Avengers.

Black Panther has had several Afri
can-American creators work on the
title, most notably being Christopher
Priest, who wrote from 1998 to 2003,
writing the book as a political comedy
in the vein of TV’s Spin City. With the
folding of Milestone Comics, Priest
ensured that the book would have
more appeal to a non-African Ameri-
can audience, leading to its success

Continued on Pg 12

 

Forgotten

Canadian Slavery
This Black History
Month, It’s Time to

Wake up to the Truck
Sarah Custer, The McGill Daily (McGill
University)

MONTREAL (CUP)—‘“‘What most people
think of as history is its end product,
myth.”

— EL Doctorow

A. any mention of slavery in

North America, Canadian heads turn
axiomatically to their southern neighbour.
Usually this is done with a certain air
of loftiness that a national of a morally
superior country believes they can afford
to exhibit.

After all, who did not learn about
the Southern plantation economies and
that Lincoln and the Civil War freed the
slaves? (Oh, the wonders of manufactured
historical facts.) But ask those same people
about slavery in Canada and they will most
likely reprimand you for daring to utter
such a blasphemy.

While slavery was never practiced here
on the scale or to the degree of brutality
in which it was carried out in the United
States, it nevertheless is an undeniable part
of this country’s history. Yet, the Canadian
Civil Liberties Association reports that
only 13 per cent of last year’s high school
students know that slavery was once legal
in Canada.

The first slave “imported” directly
from Africa was brought to Quebec
back in 1628, and the presence of slaves
—euphemistically called “servants” to
soften the otherwise seeming barbarity of
their masters — persisted until as late as
1834, when slavery was finally abolished
throughout the British empire.

More than 4,000 slaves blemish the
history of Canada, more than half of
them held in Montreal. James McGill, the
magnanimous spirit who founded McGill
University, was himself a slave owner.

The number would have without a
doubt been higher than that, but when
New France Governor Denonville sought
permission to establish a trade in African
slaves in 1688 he was denied royal

Continued on Pg 3