Hereās the full context of his statement:
āSteven Caple Jr., the director of Jordanās next film, Creed II, calls this moment of black solidarity in Hollywood a āmovement.ā During the filming last March, Jordan and Caple often talked about black historical figures whose stories might make a great movie or TV series, like Fred Hampton, the Black Panther who was murdered in his apartment in 1969, or Mansa Musa, a Malian historical figure of the 14th century known to many African-Americans but virtually unknown to white people. Musa was reputedly one of the richest men in the world. āWhen people look at black people itās hard for them to think beyond slavery,ā says Caple.
āāWe donāt have any mythology, black mythology, or folklore,ā Jordan explains to me as we cruise past billboards for Atlanta and HBOās Ballers in West Hollywood. DJ Khaledās āIām the Oneā is on the car stereo, and I notice Jordanās iPhone alias is āBruce Leroy,ā the black martial-arts hero of the 1985 film The Last Dragon. āCreating our own mythology is very important because it helps dream,ā says Jordan. āYou help people dream.āā
Source
Context. Iām assuming he meant we donāt have any Black mythology/folklore in TV and films. Itās half true. There have been movies made, but itās only a very small handful. Films like Eveās Bayou, Daughters of the Dust, andĀ Beloved (an adaptation of Toni Morrisonās book of the same name) quickly come to mind that contain folkloric/mythological elements.
The way the writer forĀ Vanity Fair left his statement lingering and didnāt ask further questions so he could fully flesh out his thoughts without leaving one to guess what he was referring to since the mention of popular tv show billboards followed his statement is failed journalism. White journalism. TF we need to know about what was on the radio and his phone in that moment?!ā¦
Hereās some further readings about Black folklore / mythology:
The tweet that mentions the film, To Sleep With Anger, hereās the full thread. Insightful and very detailed.
If you have access to the J-Stor ā> A 22-page article calledĀ āNew York Afro-Puerto Rican and Afro-Dominican Roots Music: Liberation Mythologies and Overlapping Diasporasā
10 African and African American Folktales for Children
List of books on Myths, Legends, and Folklore of African-Americans (Goodreads)
Voodou Mythology: The Voodoo Spirits of Haiti & the Caribbean
The Origin of Zombies and More:Ā āZombie folklore has been around for centuries in Haiti, possibly originating in the 17th century when West African slaves were brought in to work on Haitiās sugar cane plantations. Brutal conditions left the slaves longing for freedom. According to some reports, the lifeāor rather afterlifeāof a zombie represented the horrific plight of slavery.ā (Source: www.history.com)
āThe Tragic, Forgotten History of Zombiesā: The horror-movie trope owes its heritage to Haitian slaves, who imagined being imprisoned in their bodies forever. (Source: The Atlantic)
List of African Mythological FiguresĀ (wikipedia)
Caribbean MythologyĀ (wikipedia)
From My People: 400 Years of African American Folklore: An Anthology (Book)
Collection of books on Mythology and Folklore of the African Diaspora (Barnes & Nobles)
āAn Exploration of African Folktales Among the Gullah Community of the South Carolina Sea Islands: History, Culture, and IdentityāĀ (a 198 page pdf)
Journey into the Spiritual World of Voodoo in New Orleans
African American Folklore
āRiver Mumma and the Golden Tableā (A Jamaican Folktale)
AnansiĀ is an Akan folktale character. He often takes the shape of a spider and is considered to be the spirit of all knowledge of stories. He is also one of the most important characters of West African and Caribbean folklore. (wikipedia)
A Boo Hag is a mythical creature in the folklore of Gullah culture. It is a regionalized version of the Hag myth.Ā According to the legend, Boo Hags are similar to vampires. (wikipedia)
āSanterĆa in a Globalized World: A Study in AfroCuban Folkloric Musicā (a 38 page pdf)Ā






















