5 lessons from ‘Wicked’ that remind you of the message about the 2024 election – and America in general

I’ll be honest — I have not desired to talk much about politics since November 6. It’s not that she doesn’t have lots to say, but like many black women who’re sounding the alarm about the state of the country, I now lean on Tricia Hersey’s philosophy that “the rest is resistance” and decided to prioritize my local communities and issues near home.

So imagine my surprise once I went to look at the movie “Wicked” to loosen up – as a complete novice who had no experience with the movie, book or Broadway show (apart from seeing the popular green face poster plastered in every single place when there was no I can afford a ticket) — and I discovered that the film had a political message embedded in two hours and 40 minutes of spectacular singing, dancing and acting by Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande and the entire forged.

It seems Gregory Maguire, writer of “Wicked” relies on, was inspired by political events from the late Nineteen Nineties and early Nineteen Nineties – including the Gulf War between Bush and Saddam Hussein, asking questions about how people characterize “good” and “evil” and how “others” are treated. Maguire wrote his adaptation based on Frank L. Baum’s famous film “The Wizard of Oz,” which also had political undertones. The political apple didn’t fall far from the tree.

McGuire did what the great Toni Morrison did he advised artists to accomplish that in difficult moments, saying: “There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no place for fear. We speak, we write, we use language” because “this is how civilizations heal.” It was a timely message that made sense in 2004, when Morrison had his epiphany following George W. Bush’s re-election victory, and it makes just as much sense in 2024, when the former president was re-elected, threatening to usher in a brand new level of “retribution.” ”, confusion and unrest in America.

Perhaps that is one of the key lessons we must always draw from the election: that history predictably repeats itself. In fact, the story is so predictable that a Broadway show like Wicked, which has been running for over 20 years, discusses the details of this 2024 political moment in such detail that you’d think the writers involved were individuals with the ability paranormal, not only the authors. .

That said, listed below are five of the many lessons from “Wicked” that felt like a political sermon as I sat in the theater and watched Elphaba and Glinda fly over our screens, warning us that “something bad” was happening in Oz… but in addition here on the home front .

(*5*)1. Just as certain books and knowledge were banned in Oz, Black history and other stories are banned or censored in order to rewrite our understanding of ourselves and our country

Wicked is all fun and games until things begin to get real in Oz, specifically when some of the professors, who’re real animals, are told they will now not teach certain classes. Dr. Dillamond, the goat, strives against all odds to teach his students, but even Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) discovers that she must meet in secret with other animals to freely discuss the truth.

“We, the animals, are now blamed for everything that goes wrong, forced to miss work and told to be silent,” he told the other animals.

Americans are observing in real time the ban on publishing books in libraries and schools, threatening librarians with dismissals and even arrests for allowing access to certain works. While some media outlets have labeled these examples “culture wars,” they’re proven signs of threats to democracy.

When AP African American History closes in Florida and classes on slavery portray enslaved Africans as benefiting from the skills they’re learning, it’s an actual try and keep people in the dark about what got here before so that they cannot connect with the present .

2. When individuals are offended, they appear for a scapegoat (no pun intended)

Throughout Wicked, we see Elphaba being feared because of the color of her skin – an ideal analogy for what Black people around the world undergo each day.

But Elphaba wasn’t the just one who faced ostracism because of her appearance. The animals and the top goat, Dr. Dillamond, got here to be seen as other individuals who didn’t need to be taught, let alone listened to, because they were of a distinct species.

This election cycle, now we have been bombarded with news of “invasions” and attacks on America attributable to illegal “aliens.” While experts agree that the U.S. immigration system is definitely broken, the dehumanization of immigrants and false claims that legal Haitian immigrants “eat pets” were intended to create a scapegoat for voters to get offended at.

Immigration has gone from being a lower-priority issue in public polls to a top-priority issue for a decade, and that didn’t occur by accident. The news and social media were used to create even greater concern about the border, making immigrants of color seem like our country’s biggest problem. Meanwhile, little was said about immigrants from European countries.

The “wicked” movie would have been much more on point if not less than one of the animals had been characterised as not smelling like these – because those other animals must have been sent back to the forest from which they got here!

3. True allies might be there for you; others all the time resort to privilege

Watching Elphaba and Glinda’s relationship transform throughout the film felt like watching a real friendship blossom. The once self-centered, wealthy and socially acceptable Glinda appeared to have developed an actual relationship with the green-skinned, micro-braided Elphaba – once she got over her own selfish motives, of course. Glinda even went up to now as to be seen with Elphaba in places where they might normally keep their distance – performative alliance where?!

But in the end (again, spoiler alert) the need for acceptance and the established order ultimately won out, and Glinda simply couldn’t rebel alongside Elphaba.

Similarly, at the height of the 2024 election, Black women voters appeared to have a tough time getting a powerful enough show of allyship from women with different tastes and beliefs, although all women were in the same boat on the post-Roe rollback of reproductive rights.

Much ado was made about the coalition of Black, (non-Black) Latino, Asian, and white progressive voters who had the power to place a Black woman in the White House in the event that they stuck together. Despite Harris’ efforts to win over white voters and her success in persuading college-educated white voters to support her, 53% of white voters still supported the other candidate.

For Harris, the percentage of non-Black Latina women was 58%, but still not a game-changing majority

Meanwhile, 92% of Black women who voted for Harris were left alone on the shelf with our capes, while many of our allies said they understood our common fight, but the price of eggs was the most significant thing and Trump’s racism and sexism just…t that’s it, to defy gravity.

4. The authorities want society to be distracted and preoccupied with trivial matters, so that there is no such thing as a room or energy for fighting

There is a scene in “Wicked” where the Wizard explains that he knows learn how to make people blissful and do what’s best for them: by simplifying their decisions and keeping them busy.

For the 2024 elections, now we have seen a serious break with the tradition of relying totally on traditional media to deliver fact-checked and accurate political news. Instead, partisan voices further dominated the conversation, with many individuals mindlessly consuming propaganda, memes, and podcasts produced by almost anyone (mostly unverified sources) based on whatever the algorithms presented to them.

One man even paid billions to own a literal algorithm, burying the platform often called Twitter and resurrecting it as “X”, then allowing it to be flooded with false information and radical hate speech.

At times, the political news was so controversial, ridiculous, and silly (did we actually need to read headlines about Arnold Palmer’s genitals and Vice President Harris’ race?) that many individuals ended up checking it out.

You would think this was by design.

5. As soon as the “other” demands his rights, he becomes public enemy primary.

One of the most striking scenes in Wicked comes when Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh) jumps on the speaker and condemns Elphaba – the very young woman she promised to mentor and look after – when Elphaba had something she wanted.

You can see the pain and look of betrayal on Elphaba’s face as regardless of what she does or says, she is portrayed as the enemy.

At this point, he has no alternative but to flee or accept his fate.

This sense of betrayal is something that black Americans, especially descendants of slavery in the United States, experience time and time again.

We felt it during the continued enslavement after the Emancipation Proclamation, the oppression during Reconstruction or during the civil rights movement, and now as we see DEI initiatives being rolled back, affirmative motion being overturned, and all the guarantees of the George Floyd and Black Lives Matter era evaporating into thin air. As politicians use the word “woke” against communities that have merely challenged America to maintain its guarantees, we’re greater than used to it.

Black Americans currently look as much as the Madam Morribles of America who call us “woke” and unpatriotic, and those that may look down on us or make us the butt of jokes – very like Elphaba did when she listened to her former mentor “sic the Flying ” monkeys at her, calling her an enemy.

Symbolism is what makes a personality like Elphaba and a story like “Wicked” so powerfully moving decade after decade, regardless of who dons the green face paint.

As I used to be leaving the cinema, the last lesson stuck with me the most.

Elphaba’s calmness, coupled with the public’s commitment to not understanding her and her decision to defy expectations of assimilation or conformity – moderately than standing up for higher principles – are reminders of the price of courage.

The cost is real, especially as 2025 approaches the inauguration of a president who has promised to punish those that stand in his way.

So many Black individuals who showed up in the 2024 elections, giving their all for the cause of freedom and democracy, know the cost of courage.

They now prioritize safety, survival and self-care, while others decide to stay and fight a distinct fight in the coming era.

Each alternative might be seen as defying gravity – an idea the legendary writer wrote about long before the characters in Wicked sang about it.

To quote Toni Morrison again:

“If you want to fly, you have to give up the shit that weighs you down.”