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For the last couple of years, Black superheroes have been brought to the forefront like they’ve never been before.
Obviously, a little blockbuster called Black Panther sparked dance challenges, massive sales and robust debates about Black culture. But with shows like Black Lightning on The CW, the TV world is also exploring what it means to be powerful, gifted and Black.
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The second season for Black Lightning, which premiered October 9, finds the hero and his daughter, Thunder, going after the man who killed his father, Tobias Whale. The heroes must also bring stability to the Freeland community, which is being impacted by a dangerous drug called green light. On top of all this, Black Lightning doubles as Jefferson Pierce, an intense high school educator and father of two daughters who also have powers.
With each well-thought-out character, Black Lightning is not only bringing actioned-packed scenes and fire soundtracks, but it’s shining a light on issues that heavily affect Black people.
Hit the next pages to find out which relevant topics Black Lightning is taking on full force!
*Minor spoilers”
Black Education
In season one, Jefferson Pierce served as a high school principal loved by the community. Instead of criminalizing his predominantly Black students with things like metal detectors in the school or over-policing, Jefference always made sure his kids knew they were the future. He even made deals with local drug dealers to make sure his school was a safe zone.
Now, in season two, Jefferson must deal with larger forces that could affect his school’s future. The bureaucracies that impede Black educational institutions will surely be adversaries in the coming episodes.
Black People Being Used As Experiments
Governments and institutions have been using Black people for experiments since the days of slavery. It’s not just old stories like James Marion Sims — who experimented on enslaved Black women in the 1800s — that get attention. The Flint water crisis is the latest example of when governments or institutions gamble on Black life.
In Black Lightning, a U.S. government agency made the same mistake when they used Freeland to test a vaccine that inadvertently created metahumans. This “experiment” created Black Lightning and now, years later, the same government agency is behind the strength-inducing green light drug that’s plaguing Freeland.
The War On Drugs
In the era of #BlackLivesMatter, prison reform, and larger awareness about mass incarceration, the War on Drugs — which has been waged since the 70s — is now well documented.
In Black Lightning, the aftermath of the green light experiments mirrors the real-life failings of the War on Drugs. People on green light, including a lot of young people, are treated as outcasts by their community and the police in Freeland. One character on green light is even killed by the police in episode one of season two, due to excessive force. Instead of rehabilitation and community support, drug users are treated with the heavy hand of the law.
Black Lightning and his family find themselves in the middle of this where they must find the best approach to a complicated problem.
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Family Acceptance
Black Lightning isn’t all doom and gloom. In season one, the theme of family acceptance is highlighted with Anissa Pierce, a.k.a. Thunder, who is accepted and supported as a lesbian by her family. In season two, the theme of acceptance carries over when Black Lightning’s second daughter, Jennifer Pierce, tries to come to terms with her new powers. Her family must learn to accept her yet-to-be-understood gifts and the unique way Jennifer is handling them.
Black Resistance
Probably the best Blackity Black issue Black Lightning covers involves Black people fighting back.
And it’s not just the superpowered heroes who get all the glory.
Community churches, students and Freeland residents take power into their own hands to resist green light, gangs and government corruption.
And of course, anything the people can’t handle, the Black Lightning family takes it on…
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