Originally Posted by
Vampire Savior
It's a trap. When a black character moves away from being an outlet for social commentary, there will be a segment of people who try to put them back in that box, saying, "We need to explore their experience as a black person, because ignoring it isn't genuine." I'm really going out on a limb here, but I think this is kind of endemic of a WAY deeper issue, and that is a thought among many black people that there is only one way to be black.
For instance, in their minds, if you're black, you need to talk a certain way, wear your hair a certain way, have certain views, have certain experiences, listen to certain music, and if a black person deviates from that path even a bit, these types of people will be quick to criticize them, sometimes even viciously. For some people (the worst) this type of thought process is front and center. For others, it's a subversive thing that may be lingering somewhat in the back of their minds.
The thing is, not all black people experience the same things, have the same views, or want to see the same things. Therefore, not using the characters as soap boxes isn't necessarily a flaw, because not everyone wants to see that from every black character...even black people!
Some people think that a black character is automatically going to reflect views they want to see expressed because they're black (and remember, there's only one black view), but what if, when they get their wish and Cyborg is going into social issues and politics, Cyborg is a hardcore Donald Trump supporting MAGA? Then you'll see some of these people complaining because he's likely not reflecting their views that they imposed on him because he's black (and remember, there's only one black view and black experience).