Daily Lobo 02/26/2024

Op-ed: 2024 Black History Month: Revitalizing the revolution

By Imani Knox

In the month of February, we enter a time of reflection and re-embrace what the Black Community has done and continues to do – not only at the University of New Mexico, but in our ever-evolving world. Black History Month starts Feb. 1 and ends Feb. 29 and is a nationwide celebration that highlights those who have paved the way for Black Americans to be where they are today.

As we honor this month at UNM, we emphasize the theme of “Revital izing the Revolution” and bringing life to change in environments where growth is critical.

What does “revitalizing the revo lution” mean, exactly? To me and so many of the Black students here on campus, it means being able to have the courage and passion that so many of those who came before us dem onstrated with every step they took, which will allow us to open doors and improve the Black experience.

This attitude can be seen in Carter G. Woodson, the founder of Black History Month. He had a vision and was passionate about highlighting the contributions of Black Americans in the United States. He started by establishing Negro week in 1926 as the second week of February, which set the stage for the full month to be recognized as Black History Month.

His passion is what allowed for Black Americans to get the recognition they deserved. It did not just stop with him; there were so many African Americans who had an idea of what they wanted the world to look like for Black individuals, and ran after it with this desire to see growth in the society in which they lived in.

As we zoom into this idea and what it looks like on UNM campus, we remember students like Barbara Brown Simmons, who helped to create the UNM Africana Studies Department and African American Students Services – one of the only safe spaces for Black students on campus.

We also remember students like Rene Matison, who was a charter

member of the first Black fraternity to be established at UNM. We must also recognize students who are presently on campus and continue to fight with passion for the needs of their Black peers.

Black student leaders like Meilani Dugarte, Annah Macha, Kamryn Kizzine, Kenya Thomas, Dorothy Onikute Thompson, Emmanuel Mitchell, Kaelyn Moon, Quincy Blakemore, Nakia Jackson, Chiamaka Okoye, Jason Stigler, Senator Nwamaka Tutman and Senator Sierra Dedmon serve as presidents of the various Black student organizations on campus and hold office in our student government.

These leaders and my peers understand the need for change and how a single idea can influence history on campus where there is still an opportunity for growth in the overall

Inside this Lobo

CICCONETTI: The Bill Picket Inviational Rodeo (pg. 3)

CHAPA & CHAPA: Mt. Olive Baptist Church has served Albuquerque’s Black community since before New Mexico’s statehood (pg. 4)

experience. They are leading the efforts by continuing to celebrate and make history at UNM.

The UNM Black Student Union (BSU) is celebrating its 55th year on campus and continuing to provide space for Black students to address matters of interest to their community, engage in cultural practices and center the voices of Black students at UNM.

As we honor the 55th year of the BSU, we celebrate the UNM National Pan-Hellenic Council chartering. The NPHC is the governing council for the nine historically Black fraternities and sororities. While these fraternities and sororities have had a presence on campus since 1965, 2024 will be the first year the organizations operate within a UNM chapter of the NPHC. The Divine

Nine (D9) family could not be happier to have a space where they can collaborate and function as one. Being a part of a community that embraces what being Black means on a campus where you are the minority is what has made my experience at UNM great. It has allowed me to find family and friends who look like me. It has given me the opportunity to have conversations about history that are often neglected and how the Black experience – my experience – contributes to my identity. I am forever grateful for what African American Student Services (also known as the FRO) has done for me and for my peers. I would also like to thank the staff Brandi Stone, J. Gourdin, Dannelle Kirven and Anu Somoye who have taken the roles of

brothers, sisters, aunties and uncles.

These individuals have made the space what it is for so many and make sure that we are always supported and always have what we need. As we continue through the month, we will convene to talk about Black love, what it means to revitalize the revolution as young adults, watch the D9 at upcoming basketball games and be in community with those who mean the most to us.

This Black history month we are lighting a fire under our feet and finding ways to continue to improve the Black experience at UNM.

Imani Knox is a student in the College of Nursing and Student Success Leader at the African American Student Services.

ALEXANDER: UNM researcher studies Black settlement in NM (pg. 6)

BRENES: Gospel showcase enchants (pg. 7)

ALEXANDER: Owpinion: Past, present and Af- rofuturism (pg. 8)

GARCIA: Black superheroes and representa- tion in comics (pg. 10)

Students at the African American Student Services (AASS) Annual Flag Raising Community in front of Scholes Hall on Feb. 1. Courtesy Photo of Dannelle M. Kirvan.

Courtesy Photo / Daily Lobo / @DailyLobo

The Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo Black voices in rodeo

By Francesa Cicconetti @fran_cicconetti

The rodeo: the quintessential showcase for cowboys and cowgirls. Anyone can be a cowboy, but the rodeo hasn’t always been considered an inclusive space for Black Americans.

The search results for “famous cowboys” include names like Billy the Kid, Jesse James or Buffalo Bill. The similarity between these individuals is that they’re all white. Bill Pickett, also known as the Dusky Demon, is among a group of Black cowboys often forgotten.

Born in 1870, Pickett was a Black cowboy who introduced bulldogging, or steer wrestling, to the modern rodeo, according to Britannica. Today, most rodeos in the United States and across the world showcase this event. Pickett was one of the first Black cowboys to break into the traditionally white space of the western rodeo.

The Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo (BPIR), headed by CEO Valeria Howard-Cunningham, was founded by her late husband Lu Vason in 1984 as a tribute to Black cowboys and cowgirls and to honor their contributions to the west while keeping the name and legacy of Bill Pickett alive.

Vason started the BPIR after realizing there wasn’t Black representation in rodeo and wanted to create something his community could come together over and share, Howard-Cunningham said.

“(Vason) went to see a rodeo called ‘Cheyenne Frontier Days,‘ which is the granddaddy of rodeo,” Howard-Cunningham said. “When he was there, he realized he wasn’t seeing anybody that looked like him ... He decided he was going to put together a Black rodeo association.”

After some research, Vason dis-

covered that Pickett was widely unknown in the Black cowboy community and made it his mission to change that.

“(Vason) came across Bill Pickett and nobody knew who Bill Pickett was, and he thought this was the perfect time for us to create this rodeo named after Bill Pickett so that people would understand who he was and what he contributed,” Howard-Cunningham said.

This year, the BPIR is celebrating its 40th anniversary. It has toured across the United States, sharing the Black rodeo community with America.

“We have traveled to 33 cities across the United States, educating people about the roles of Black (Americans) in the development of the West and also showcasing the skills of Black cowboys and cowgirls,” Howard-Cunningham said.

Taylor White is the current New Mexico State Fair Queen and University of New Mexico psychology and media communications student. Growing up in rodeo and agriculture, White said that she didn’t see a lot of Black people involved in rodeo, making it intimidating to get involved in the sport.

“When I first started rodeoing, I never saw Black individuals or any other culture besides, you know, typically white, and it was really offsetting and off-putting. I was really scared to get into this,” White said.

As a rodeo queen, White prides herself on sharing her passion for rodeo with those who may not be familiar with it. She said she wants to use it as an opportunity to educate the community on agriculture and the sport of rodeo itself.

The BPIR works to create an environment and safe space for

Black cowboys and cowgirls. White said she admires the work the association does and hopes to someday get involved with it. For now, she works to share her love for rodeo here in New Mexico and across the Southwest, continuously proving that she belongs.

“It’s nice to see that they’ve (BPIR) created a space specifically for Black individuals to get involved in this (rodeo) and to prove themselves to others … it’s sad to say you have to prove yourself in this world just because the color of your skin is different,” White said.

The association will continue to create a foundation for future generations of Black cowboys and cowgirls to showcase and grow their skills as well as their passion for rodeo, Howard-Cunningham said.

“Even today, there are people who don’t know that there are Black cowboys and Black cowgirls because you don’t see them on television or in the history books … like everything else in life, we’ve left things out of the history books,” Howard-Cunningham said.

Being Black and being a rodeo queen has allowed White to share her intertwined identities. She hopes her work and dedication will help involve those who may not typically think they’d fit in at a rodeo.

“By being Black in this community and also by being a rodeo queen, I’d like to think that I’ve inspired a lot of other cultures or individuals that aren’t particularly involved in this to get involved in this,” White said.

Francesca Cicconetti is a beat reporter at the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @fran_cicconetti.

Steer at the home ranch of First Impression Rodeo Club on Saturday, Feb. 24.

Steer at the home ranch of First Impression Rodeo on Saturday, Feb. 24.

Black and white spotted horse at the home ranch of First Impression Rodeo Club on Saturday, Feb. 24.

White horse at First Impression Rodeo Club. on Saturday, Feb. 24.

Leila Chapa / Daily Lobo / @Lchapa06

Leila Chapa / Daily Lobo / @Lchapa06

Leila Chapa / Daily Lobo / @Lchapa06

Leila Chapa / Daily Lobo / @Lchapa06

Mt. Olive Baptist Church has served Albuquerque’s Black community since before New Mexico’s statehood

By Paloma Chapa & Leila Chapa @paloma_chapa88 & @chapa06

When Tabytha Watson moved to New Mexico from Texas in 1898, the state did not have a Baptist church.

To satisfy that need, Watson began organizing prayer days and Sunday school classes in her Albuquerque home located on Fourth St. and Copper Ave., according to Historic Fairview Cemetery. However, her ministry didn’t end there.

One year later, Watson sought expansion and led the formation of the Mount Olive Baptist Church. Together with her church members, Watson raised enough funds to purchase a $135 lot on Lead Ave. Soon after, services moved from Watson’s home to the new building in downtown Albuquerque, according to Historic Fairview Cemetery.

Today, Mt. Olive is recognized as the first Black Baptist Church to open

its doors in New Mexico.

“We see Tabytha Watson as a remarkable woman, because when she came to New Mexico there were no Baptist churches here,” Barbara Williams, former Mission President and Church Mother, said.

The first baptism services at Mt. Olive took place in the Rio Grande, according to Black Past. The church has been in operation ever since.

Williams joined the church in 1974, two years after the original church moved from the downtown location to its new one on University Blvd. and Gibson Blvd., Williams said.

Current Mt. Olive Head Pastor Sidney Miller said the church moved from its original location because “they were wanting to get a foundational spot where they can increase the wealth in the Black community because there was such a disparity.”

Some of the first Black Americans who moved to New Mexico in the early 1900s came from the Southeast in

not only in the community, but in the whole state,” Miller said. “We need to have these kinds of things in order to know more about our culture.”

Miller is particularly passionate about sharing the history at Mt. Olive because of the erasure of critical race theory in educational institutions – especially in his home state of Arkansas, he said.

“This church has always been strong in civil rights,” Miller said. “We want the word to get out, how instrumental Mt. Olive was in this city, and

for it not to be forgotten.”

Ralph Bunche, who the Multi-Cultural Center room is named after, was a political scientist, diplomat and civil rights leader. As a child, he moved to Albuquerque with his family. He was also a member of Mt. Olive Church.

Later in life, Bunche was a founding member of the United Nations, and was the first Black American to win a Nobel Peace Prize for his work in Palestine in 1949. He was an active supporter of Martin Luther King Jr. and marched with King twice, according

search of a better life. Some were former military, according to Black Past.

“Many migrated from the South to get away from slavery and find land and start anew in New Mexico,” Miller said.

At 92, Williams is still active in church activities. Her latest initiative is called “The Legacy Room,” which will be housed in the current church building. It will highlight the history of the church and the role it plays in the state’s history.

The church’s Ralph J. Bunche MultiCultural Center room features framed photos exhibiting the history around Mt. Olive. Miller pointed out that the pictures are missing story descriptions. This would be the role of the Legacy Room.

One photo on the wall depicts John Collins – a Buffalo Soldier and the son of an enslaved individual, Miller said. Collins attended Mt. Olive.

“We want everyone to know how intricate the Mt. Olive Church was,

to a 2004 article from The Perspective that was posted on the church’s wall.

Church Mother Luther May Golston recalled memories of singing in Mt. Olive’s choir.

“My best time was singing in the choir,” Golston said. “When they built this church here, the choir used to wear robes and we used to march in, and everybody stood up until we got to the choir stands.”

Today, the church is still involved in the community with several outreach programs that provide food and assis-

tance to families in need. During the COVID-19 pandemic, church members handed out Smith’s gift cards to community members, Williams said.

“It’s always been a social church. We were known for our good food. Whenever there was a 3:00 service, everyone would always like to come over here and eat,” Golston said. “Mt. Olive has always been known for our hospitality.”

The church is holding an Easter luncheon on Sunday, March 31.

“The state is 112 years old, and

Mt. Olive is older than the state,” Williams said.

Paloma Chapa is the multimedia editor for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at multimedia@dailylobo. com or on Twitter @paloma_chapa88

Leila Chapa is a freelance reporter for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at culture@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @lchapa06

The cornerstone at Mt. Olive Baptist Church embedded into the 1971 building on University Blvd. and Gibson Blvd. on Saturday, Feb. 24.

Exterior of Mt. Olive Baptist Church located on University Blvd. and Gibson Blvd. on Saturday, Feb. 24.

The altar inside the sanctuary of Mt. Olive Baptist church. on Saturday Feb. 24.

Sanctuary of Mt. Olive Baptist church on Saturday, Feb. 24. A framed picture of Tabytha Watson, the founder of the Mt. Olive Baptist Church, on the wall of the vestibule at Mt. Olive Baptist Church on Saturday, Feb. 24.

Head Pastor Dr. Sidney Miller and First Lady Shantail Miller pose in front of The Living Tree in the Ralph J. Bunche Multi-Cultural Center room on Saturday, Feb. 24.

Exterior of the Mt. Olive Baptist Church on University Blvd and Gibson Blvd on Saturday Feb. 24.

Leila Chapa / Daily Lobo / @Lchapa06

Leila Chapa / Daily Lobo / @Lchapa06

Leila Chapa / Daily Lobo / @Lchapa06

Leila Chapa / Daily Lobo / @Lchapa06

Paloma Chapa / Daily Lobo / @paloma_chapa88

Leila Chapa / Daily Lobo / @Lchapa06

Leila Chapa / Daily Lobo / @Lchapa06

By Lily Alexander @llilyalexander

Frank Boyer, established the settlement in 1903 with 12 other Black homesteaders, according to the NPS. The community housed an estimated 150 people who began to disperse in the 1920s.

Carlyn Pinkins – a doctoral candidate in the department of history at the University of New Mexico – plans to examine Black homesteads in New Mexico, including Blackdom, in her dissertation.

Boyer and his brother-in-law traveled from Southwestern Georgia to Chaves County with the idea of starting a settlement where Black individuals could flee the oppression and violence of the deep south, Pinkins said. There, leaders hoped Black individuals could seek their own prosperity, self determination and higher education without being limited by Jim Crow laws, she said.

“The founders of Blackdom really wanted to make this a town, and wanted to make it a beacon for Black people who wanted to pursue their own dreams and goals outside of the

Jim Crow South,” Pinkins said. Federal law and jurisdiction superseded local ordinances at the time of Blackdom’s creation, making Jim Crow laws more difficult to enforce, according to an essay by historian and artist Timothy Nelson in El Palacio Magazine.

Blackdom had a U.S. post office, a school, a store, churches, a pumping plant and an office building, according to the NPS.

Boyer and his wife Ella filed the official plat for the Town of Blackdom in May 1920, according to Nelson’s essay. This documented details about the terrain and mapped a township complete with blocks, streets and alleys.

“Unlike other homestead communities, where maybe the residents came to live there and were a community organically, Blackdom did have solid ambitions to become a town,” Pinkins said.

The reason Boyer and others chose Blackdom’s geographic location is something Pinkins hopes to learn, she said. The oral history states that Boyer’s father – an army wagoner – observed the available land in New Mexico and encouraged his son to travel there, Pinkins said.

“It seems kind of odd to me, being that there’s not a lot out there and (it is) pretty far from water,” Pinkins said. “But land is land. It’s an opportunity at wealth.”

Pinkins noted some discrepancies in information about Blackdom from various sources. Much of the research relies on oral history, leading to mismatched details, Pinkins said. She was initially inspired to study Black homesteads in New Mexico after noticing that the town Boyer was from had a different name depending on the article she read.

“The information isn’t always accurate, but if you put some clues together, you can find the truth in the middle,” Pinkins said.

Another instance of inconsistent information about Blackdom centers around the settlement’s depopulation. The hardship of homesteading led residents to get jobs in nearby

towns, Pinkins said. Homesteaders were required to use their land for agriculture, which was difficult in a place with limited water access.

Some residents who got jobs in nearby towns were given permission to drill wells to assist with agriculture. The main oral history states these residents lost this permission following a drought, but some – including descendants – say the wells were sabotaged by nearby white residents, Pinkins said.

Residents eventually left Blackdom and the settlement did not survive the Great Depression, according to the NPS.

What remains of Blackdom is now difficult to reach by car, as

there are limited paved roads. A Senate Memorial passed in the New Mexico Legislature in 2023 to establish a task force to address accessibility to the site.

“Telling these stories will put New Mexico on the map in terms of adding our presence to the national narrative about Black settlement out west, but then also that larger narrative of Black people helping to settle the West nationwide,” Pinkins said.

Lily Alexander is the news editor for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at news@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @llilyalexander

“Janet Baugham speaks to the audience during the dedication ceremony of the Blackdom townsite marker.” Courtesy photo of National Park Service.

Courtesy Photo / DailyLobo / @DailyLobo

Opinion: Past, present and Afrofuturism

By Addison Fulton @DailyLobo

One of my favorite writers is Octavia Butler because her work is unlike anything I’d ever read. What I love most about her work is that it pushes literary boundaries around gender, violence, race and power that I had not yet been exposed to.

The first story by Butler I ever read was “Bloodchild.” It follows a species of insect-like aliens that use human men to carry and birth their eggs. I heard about it through my boyfriend, who read it as part of an English assignment and wanted me to read it too so I could feel his discomfort.

Sure, it was an uncomfortable read, but it was also fascinating. It was so visceral. I’d never seen body exploitation, sex and power examined in such a way. I was hooked. I wanted more, but I struggled to find works like it until I discovered the vast cultural, literary and critical canon that Butler was a part of: Afrofuturism.

Afrofuturism is a subculture, genre and aesthetic that explores speculative futures through the lens of the African diaspora – the displacement of Africans and their descendants worldwide and African culture. Af-

rofuturism spans and explores diverse subgenres of speculative fiction – including, but not limited to, science fiction, high fantasy, alternate history, magical realism and urban fantasy, according to a breakdown from The Smithsonian.

The next Butler book I read was the graphic novel adaptation of “Kindred” – the story of a young Black writer named Dana living in the 1970s. She finds herself transported in time to meet an ancestor – a freed Black woman forced into a marriage with a white man on a plantation. Once again, I was struck by how powerful the narrative was, but “Kindred” was different. With “Bloodchild,” I could relate to the themes of pregnancy, sex, gender roles and power, but “Kindred” was a distinctly Black narrative and, as a white person, one I found less relatable. My ability to relate was not the point, though. I loved Butler, I loved Afrofuturism and I was determined to learn more and encourage others to learn about the genre as well.

In a D Magazine interview focusing on Anti-Racist Pedagogy in art, Kathy Brown, assistant professor of art at the University of North Texas discussed the significance of Afrofuturism.

“Afrofuturism is about forward thinking as well as backward think-

ing – having a distressing past, a distressing present, but still looking forward to thriving in the future. So I think that ties into … how present day, we’re still in the struggle. But we look forward to a point when artists of color have equal space on the walls and in schools,” Brown said.

Afrofuturism crosses genres and mediums and is passing more and more into the mainstream. The most popular mainstream piece of Afrofuturism is Marvel’s “Black Panther,” which follows the story of T’Challa, the titular superhero and young king of a fictional African nation called Wakanda. The nation is depicted as incredibly technologically advanced and highly isolated from the rest of the world to protect itself from imperialism.

Afrofuturism is a way of seeing African culture being incorporated into world culture on a broader scale. It is a way of seeing technology through a non-Western lens and seeing a more inclusive world through inclusive art.

As a white person, reading Afrofuturism has shifted my perspective on race, equity, history, philosophy and ethics. But what I, as a white person, have taken away from this genre is of secondary importance. First and foremost, Afrofuturism is a genre meant to highlight and uplift Black voices. It is meant to reaffirm Black people’s place

in culture and in the future.

Everyone can, and should, engage with the genre. That said, for too long the opinions of white people have been considered to be the focal point of judgment regarding artistic merit. This is why I instead defer to and uplift the experts.

Andrea Mays, senior lecturer at the University of New Mexico, discussed her “Wakanda moment” – the moment of discovery, joy and empowerment that came with the realization of the ways that Afrofuturistic art and literature could celebrate Blackness in a lecture on Afrofuturism and the work of Janelle Monae.

She emphasized the importance of Afrofuturism as a way of seeing representation moving into the future and showing a world wherein Black people are not defeated or driven into hiding or extinction, and are instead thriving.

For those looking to start engaging with Afrofuturism, check out the literary works of Octavia E. Butler, “The Broken Earth” series by N.K. Jemisin, and “The Underground Railroad” by Colson Whitehead. Afrofuturism also crosses into all sorts of different mediums, so check out Afrofuturistic music such as “Dirty Computer” by Janelle Monae and Afrofuturistic films like “See You Yesterday” by Ste-

fon Bristol and “Us” by Jordan Peele. Afrofuturism is a diverse and beautiful philosophy with so much to teach and explore. No matter who you are, you should delve into its rich world and see what new stories and revelations you can take away.

Addison Fulton is a freelance reporter for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at culture@dailylobo.com

A portrait of Octavia E. Butler. Photo courtesy of The Octavia E. Butler Estate

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By Arly Garcia @DailyLobo

The Marvel versus DC debate is as old as time, but when it comes to Black representation, scholars suggest independent publishers, writers and artists are the best source.

“Marvel and DC both pale in comparison to the independent, alternative and creator-owned comics scenes,” Jesús Costantino – an associate professor of English at the University of New Mexico said.

For a comic to have good Black representation, it needs to feature a Black character in a storyline written by Black writers that speaks to Black

readers. This is not yet the norm in the industry, Costantino said.

“Does the industry have a healthy, varied, compelling, just and nuanced view of Blackness? That’s the sort of question that might give an answer to whether or not representation is ‘good’ or ‘bad,’” Costantino said.

DC and Marvel have each tried to include more diverse characters, but their attempts have thus far been relatively unsuccessful. This is due in part to the Comics Code of 1954, Costantino said.

This code was created during a time of moral panic, and the industry worked to address concerns of violence and ultimately banned issues of racial and religious prejudice, which “reduced representation of nonwhite people,” according to Vox.

The Code has since been largely phased out, according to Bowling Green State University, but had worked to censor several aspects of comic books. Neither Marvel or DC have quite recovered from this. Constantino said.

“In addition to wiping out most of the comics industry in the US, the Comics Code also killed what had been a surprisingly diverse comics industry,” Costantino said.

With 800 - 1200 Black superheroes, only a few are within the mainstream universes, according to Finnie Coleman, an associate professor in the UNM English department and affili-

ate faculty with the UNM Africana Studies Department.

Coleman and Costantino argued that Marvel holds a marginal advantage over DC, given its commitment to several Black characters such as Storm or Miles Morales. Holistically speaking, Coleman said that indie comics have a much wider range of representation.

Chris Losack, the owner of Albuquerque comic shop Astro-Zombies, referenced Marvel’s Voices: Legacy – an initiative that features Black characters and creators. Other collections in the series include Pride, Heritage, Identity, Indigenous Voices and Comunidades. Each anthology features characters and creators of historically marginalized identities.

“The Marvel Voices is what we call an anthology, so there’s several stories within one comic book – little short stories – and they’re all by Black creators and artists. Typically, it’s about Black characters as well, but not always,” Losack said.

Coleman spoke about racial biases when looking at various superheroes. It can be easy for a reader to judge a character who is named something like “Black Panther” or “Black Lightning,” Coleman said.

“I see Black as a naming convention that some people will find problematic because of the racial implications. The convention makes me chuckle. Just points out (how) deeply ingrained notions of race continue to be, even in

fantasy,” Coleman said.

This naming convention can reflect back to the 1970’s “Blaxploitation” films that are controversial in the realm of media, Costantino said. Some have denounced them as racist, while others praise them as symbols of empowerment. There was much sentiment that praised these films as a means of representation, but “critics and activists problematized the films for their apparent overreliance on violence, sexual content and drug culture, according to Novotny Lawrence and Gerald Butters Jr. from The Journal of Pop Culture.

“These names always struck me as throwbacks to 1970s ‘Blaxploitation’ films. Most of these (comic) characters come out of the same era and out of a similar sentiment. Blackness is treated much like gender when it comes to naming superheroes,” Costantino said.

It is not enough to simply include Black characters in storylines, though good representation comes down to the stories told, Coleman said.

“Good representation means having writers, characters, villains and heroes – storylines that cater to a Black scopophilic gaze,” Coleman said.

Arly Garcia is a freelance reporter with the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at culture@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @DailyLobo

A Wonder Woman comic displayed at Astro-Zombies in Albuquerque, Nob Hill on Friday, Feb. 23. (above)

The comic book display at Astro-Zombies in Albuquerque, New Mexico on Feb. 23. (above)

A Captain Marvel comic displayed at Astro-Zombies in Albuquerque, Nob Hill on Friday, Feb. 23. (above)

Liliana Esparza / Daily Lobo / @DailyLobo

Liliana Esparza / Daily Lobo / @DailyLobo

Liliana Esparza / Daily Lobo / @DailyLobo