Twitter users sent a love letter to "Black Panther" in the form of #WhatBlackPantherMeansToMe, a hashtag filled with personal odes to the movie that trended on Twitter today (February 6).
The Root reports that Kayla Sutton, director of online marketing for Black Girl Nerds, created the hashtag after talking to her son about the "Black Panther" comics he was reading.
"As a young Black male with autism, I wanted to know what this movie meant to him," she told The Root. "It got me thinking about the impact this movie is going to have on so many. And how much it means to us internally at Black Girl Nerds and to me personally as a Black woman. This film is so unapologetically Black, and growing up on the outside of the nerd community as an ‘other,’ to have a film filled with people that look like me and my family is the most amazing gift."
Black Girl Nerds launched the hashtag this morning:
#TuesdayThoughts
What does the #BlackPanther film mean to you? #WhatBlackPantherMeansToMe pic.twitter.com/mOnBiHqVYB— Black Girl Nerds (@BlackGirlNerds) February 6, 2018
The responses poignantly address the superhero movie’s importance to moviegoers who yearn for complex and nuanced depictions of Black characters:
#WhatBlackPantherMeansToMe That I have lived long enough to see little black girls – dark skinned, natural hair, even bald– have these POWERFUL African women who are strong, beautiful & brilliant (in STEM at that) to look up to & buy toys & merch for. See themselves in ?? pic.twitter.com/Am809VC79U
— Reina Valentine (@ReinaVCosplay) February 6, 2018
#WhatBlackPantherMeansToMe I was lucky enough to see it early and as an actress and director, it means the world to me that Black artistry has found a new place to shine. My heart was full from start to finish. I’ll be taking every young person I can to see it. #WakandaForever pic.twitter.com/dN78dmMBxW
— DaVette See (@mariavah) February 6, 2018
When I was younger, people didn’t believe I was a nerd because I am a black woman. It was hard to find people like me on tv or in movies. I got really tired of people comparing me to Madea, but now this movie gives kids a chance to have their heroes! #WhatBlackPantherMeansToMe pic.twitter.com/VrDL2YXTyT
— MD (@manika0098) February 6, 2018
My people were queens and kings. My people were warriors and scholars. We may face adversity – more adversity than most – but, we will adjust and overcome. We are commercially viable. We can do and be anything. We are superheroes.#WhatBlackPantherMeansToMe
— Chachie (@ChachieMusic) February 6, 2018
Finally seeing Africa depicted in a powerful and positive light, free from the effects of colonialism, with characters that look like me having motivations beyond the portrayal of “black pain” on screen.#WhatBlackPantherMeansToMe pic.twitter.com/nTEFHQM279
— Andrien Gbinigie (@EscoBlades) February 6, 2018
It’s everything really
To know that kids can walk down the toy aisle and see an action figure that looks like them
That Black Women can be warriors too
That communities are coming together to make sure underprivileged kids see it
It’s us celebrated#WhatBlackPantherMeansToMe
— #Kingstees (@MrRandyWATTsun) February 6, 2018
Can you imagine being a little brown child and seeing Black Panther, only to find out that the creators look like you? That the director has the thickest Oakland accent ever? That the production was filled with black people? #WhatBlackPantherMeansToMe pic.twitter.com/b3f6dNYKz0
— Wakandas Favorite DJ (@djbenhameen) February 6, 2018
The hashtag coincided with the lifting of an embargo on "Black Panther" reviews, which are positive enough to give the movie a 100 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes ahead of its February 16 release.