The organizers at New Media Mentors posed the question: “What does a Hollywood blockbuster about an African superhero have to do with nonprofit organizations working for justice?” The Black Panther movie has raised discussions of intersectional racial justice issues and created an opportunity for advocates to connect their work to a pop-culture phenomenon.
New Media Mentors, in partnership with The Center for Story-based Strategy, Harry Potter Alliance, Intelligent Mischief, and Black Girls Create, hosted an online convening in Feb 2018 — Black Panther #FanActivistCon — where activist fans developed content for a Black Panther Fandom Activist Toolkit and brainstormed a fan-led illustration project. The digital gathering was followed by a Twitter Townhall, with organizers leading a conversation on the film’s implications and opportunities for racial justice, worker justice, and environmental justice. Black Panther #FanActivistCon is an example of a collaborative approach that uses social justice framing, especially messages related to race and the environment, to engage fan communities and shape the public conversation around a pop-culture event.
Learn more:
Join a closed Facebook group of #FanActivistCon participants
