7th Annual Black Comic Book Festival at the Schomburg Center

AURN American Urban Radio Networks was at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture for the 7th annual Black Comic Book Festival.  The Festival is a celebration of Black artists, creators, writers, illustrators, cosplay, and comic fans. AURN spoke with attendees about the significance of Black creators in comic book culture, the vast content they produce, and what makes the Festival so cool!

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John Stewart debuted as DC Comics first Black superhero in Green Lantern #87, December 1971. Originally modeled after Sidney Poitier, Stewart was a Detroit architect who was gifted the Green Lantern ring by the Guardians to provide backup to Hal Jordan in his quest to protect his portion of the galaxy. When Hal retired in the 80’s, Stewart took up his position, anchoring the Justice League and becoming a dominant African-American hero in the DC Universe. With the “DC Rebirth” event, Stewart become the leader of the combined Green Lantern and Sinestro corps. #greenlantern #johnstewart #haljordan #guardians #powerring #justiceleague #dcrebirth #sinestro #dccomics #blackcomics #blerds #blacksuperheroes #comics #comicbooks #superheroes #sidneypoitier #shomburg #shomburgcenter #blackcomicbookfestnyc #blackcomicbookfestival

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Monica Rambeau, also known as Captain Marvel, Photon, Pulsar, and eventually Spectrum, has astounding abilities, notably energy absorption, generation and manipulation; ability to travel at the speed of light while in her energy form; convert her body into any form of energy within the electromagnetic spectrum; travel in energy form through the vacuum of space . . While a lieutenant in the New Orleans harbor patrol, Rambeau attempted to prevent a villain from creating a dangerous weapon and was exposed to extra-dimensional energy in the process. As a result, she gained the ability to convert her body to energy and decided to use her powers to fight crime, naming herself Captain Marvel. Debuting in Amazing Spider-Man Annual #16 (1982), which featured her origin story, Spider-Man encouraged her to join the Avengers and hone her super powers. Mentored by Avengers veterans Captain America and the Wasp, Rambeau became the first African-American female Avenger. Rambeau eventually replaced Wasp as team leader, commanding the Avengers in battles against the X-Men, Moonstone, and Leviathan . . #MonicaRambeau #CaptainMarvel #Photon #Pulsar #Spectrum #Marvel #MarvelUniverse #Avengers #AvengersAssemble #NewOrleans #Louisiana #Energy #SpeedOfLight #Electromagnetic #BlackSuperHeroes #BlackComicBookFestival #BlackComicBookFestNYC #ShomburgCenter #Blerd #ComicBooks #StanLee #SpiderMan #CaptainAmerica #Wasp #XMen #Moonstone #Leviathan #AgeOfUltron

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Misty Knight is a Marvel hero, half of the Daughters of the Dragon with Colleen Wing and is associated with LukeCage, IronFist, and the Defenders. Misty is a former NYPD officer with a bionic arm which gives her perfect aim, superhuman strength, and concussive blasts. The bionic arm was upgraded by Tony Stark, AKA Iron Man, with Antarctic vibranium which can liquefy other metals including adamantium, which means in a battle, Misty could melt Wolverine. #AURN #AURNOnline #MistyKnight #Marvel #MarvelUniverse @marvel @marvelstudios #LukeCage #PowerMan #IronFist #IronMan #DaughtersOfTheDragon #ColeenWing #Wolverine #TheDefenders #JessicaJones #Daredevil #TheHand #BlackSuperHeroes #BlackComicBookFestNYC #BlackComicBookFestival #ComicBooks #SchomburgCenter @schomburgcenter #Blerd #BlackGirlsRock #nypd

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Kwezi, which means “star” in Xhosa and Zulu, is the brainchild of Loyiso Mkize @loyisomkize, a designer and artist who started in comics as an illustrator for the long-running Supa Strikas soccer series. The comic follows a narcissistic teenage boy named Kwezi as he discovers his superhuman abilities amid the daily hustle of the fictional Gold City, a bustling metropolis modelled after Johannesburg. Kwezi’s powers are superhuman strength, invulnerability, and flight. The narrative unfolds as Kwezi tries to mediate city life and accepting social responsibility for his powers. He is a South African superhero who deals with local issues and makes local references and uses slang that is true to the streets of Johannesburg. #AURN #AURNOnline #Kwezi #Star #Xhosa #Zulu #SouthAfrica #Africa #Johannesburg #Joburg #Jozi #GoldCity #loyisomkizeart #LoyisoMkize #SupaStrikas #ComicBooks #BlackComicBookFestNYC #BlackComicBookFestival @schomburgcenter #SchomburgCenter #BlackSuperHeroes #Blerd #Melanin

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The Falcon (Sam Wilson) debuted in Captain America #117, September 1969, becoming the first African American superhero regularly featured in a mainstream title. Through most of the 1970s, the Falcon and Captain America were a team based in New York City, and the series was cover-billed “Captain America and the Falcon.” The Falcon’s abilities include being a skilled martial artist & gymnast, limited control over birds, and seeing through the eyes of nearby birds. Black Panther created the harness wings enabling Falcon to fly. The Falcon has been a member of The Defenders and The Avengers with Wilson taking on the role of Captain America and Avengers leader when Steve Rogers briefly retired. Wilson resumed the identity of the Falcon in a series written by Rodney Barnes that debuted in late 2017, the character’s first solo series since 1983. #AURN #AURNOnline #TheFalcon #falcon #samwilson #CaptainAmerica #steverogers #Marvel #MarvelUniverse @marvel #Harlem #newyorkcity #newyork #thedefenders #theavengers #blackpanther #tchalla #blacksuperheroes @schomburgcenter #schomburgcenter #blackcomicbookfestnyc #blackcomics #blackcomicbookfestival #melanin #comicbooks

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