Afrofuturism Powered by Cannabis: Creating Wakanda in Real Life

If there was an element that had the power to bring anything you can imagine to life, what would you create? Would it be something futuristic like hover shoes for faster and cleaner transportation, an innovative repurposing of landfill waste, or maybe developing cures for incurable diseases? At CEED Inc, our imaginations are boundless, giving us the power to transform even the wildest of concepts into tangible realities. This capability has fueled the creation of our digital platform, which can only be described as a portal to Wakanda – a place where culture, technology and imagination come together to create a truly unique and breathtaking experience. So now that we’ve started this digital build, how can we continue down the real-life pathway to Afrofuturism?

If you need a quick breakdown of Afrofuturism, check out our previous blog, High Speed to Liberation. 

Unity is the foundation all great things are built on and it has proven to be the key ingredient that gave birth to countless Black Wall Streets and even the awe-inspiring imaginary city of Wakanda. While having access to extraordinary resources such as vibranium may seem impressive, its true potential can only be unlocked through collaborative efforts. Without unity, shared values, and vision, even the most valuable of resources can become utterly useless. That is exactly why cannabis has become such a powerful force of unification. In the face of division, distraction, and dependance, cannabis offers a common ground for us to come together and appreciate its inherent value.

So what are the common grounds cannabis presents? 

When we are faced with division; men versus women, rich versus poor, light skin versus dark skin, democrat versus republican, etc. cannabis presents an opportunity to break away from individualistic barriers and promotes greater social relations and economic empowerment. With the legalization and recognition of cannabis as a multi-trillion dollar industry worldwide, this opens a gateway to creating a new era of quality medicine, foods, textiles, and industrial products with diasporic families globally. So what's keeping us from doing this?

Much of the distractions in modern society come from the media we willingly consume, (radio, tv, social media, etc.) which often display stereotypical portrayals of our culture and cannabis. Media distractions have withstood the test of time, as evidenced by early instances of films like "Birth of a Nation" and "Reefer Madness" shaping the public's opinion during the early 1900s. These widely celebrated movies created a legacy of global fear and chaos that we still contend with today. Their propaganda not only imposed harmful stigmas but demonized Black people and cannabis; depriving them from realizing their true potential. To make matters worse, these movies were created with the support of the U.S government, further emphasizing the need to recognize and address the systemic racism ingrained in the institutions we $upport.

The cannabis industry and our community have experienced numerous setbacks due to dependence on these institutions/corporate businesses and government oversight. It's imperative that we free ourselves from this death grip and use cannabis as a means to disrupt and break away. This involves strategizing against the consistent failures of cannabis programs that have resulted in only 2% national business ownership. Doing so will ultimately lead to lessening our reliance on these systems and empower us to create a new path forward, allowing for more focus towards building a thriving and sustainable community.

One Plant, Many Solutions

Simply put, the key to unlocking the true potential of cannabis lies within us, not the government, media perspectives, or corporate businesses. It is our shared vision and values that will repair what has been broken but we have to fully realize the limitless possibilities of this plant and ourselves. This is our opportunity to reshape the future and create a brighter one for ourselves, our communities, and the world at large.