Create a street level event.

[DrNewGod]

My only criticisms are that I'm not entirely sure I like the name yet. 'The Dispossessed' sounds very occult and nefarious to me which makes them sound a little bit larger than being organised crime or a movement (unless that was your intention?). I also want to know how Latin Americans got into it. Not that I have a problem with them being involved, but I really want to know how because the origins of The Dispossessed is clearly rooted in Africans who essentially became African-Americans.

There are actually several reasons I came at the idea of The Dispossessed as being multicultural.

First, the notion was as much about the US' recent cold-shouldering of asylum-seekers as it is about systemic racism. As the event goes on, it becomes clear that the gang are essentially stateless persons trying to find a place in the world for themselves. It is that, even more so than material things, of which the members have been dispossessed.

Second, in-story, there couldn't have been enough Wakandan exiles to staff an nation-wide crime ring. Since there weren't, Killgrave has guided the exiles in using this statelessness as a common bond in organizing the gang. That's not without precedent, what we thought of as organized crime in the 1910-1940s often involved cooperating ethic groups (Italians, Jews of many national origins, even African-Americas). Further, the number of Wakandans involved needs to be relatively small, because otherwise, there's no way the expulsion could have been kept under wraps. That would mean, on at least some level, T'Challa bares complicity for the circumstances, rather than sovereign responsiblility for it. We have to be able to believe he could be kept in the dark until shortly before accepting Captain America's invitation to join the Avengers. You want Black Panther - and by extension, Wakanda - to take some moral excoriation here, but don't want to outright demonize him.

Third, issues of US systemic racism generally focus on African-Americans, and for good reason. The sources of oppression against African-Americans are unique, but systemic oppression is not unique to African-Americans. For whatever reason, Latinos have been less able to cast a light on their struggles. In-story, the gang doesn't want its driving core philosophy diluted by other motives (i.e. the view of so many striving African-Americans to view themselves as part of a common experience), so limits the number of non-immigrants it takes into the organization. That has the benefit of letting us see some of the flaws in this group; their grievances may be real, but their goals are about themselves, not any greater good. Killgrave is the focus of this mentality, but he's hardly alone in it.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, you don't want The Dispossessed to be All-African because it strikes me as a bad idea to make it too easy for readers to characterize The Dispossessed as the IRA to BLM's Sinn Féin. There are already enough distasteful people out there characterizing people protesting for their lives and rights as criminals.

But overall it's a great, great idea.

Thank you.

Would you mind if I posted this on the Black Panther appreciation thread?

I would be honored.

[DrNewGod]

Hmm, yeah, those are good points as well. As for avoiding bringing in the Avengers, that would also be a good idea, as the kind of escalation the Avengers would bring to bear could make things worse instead of better.

There could be a really good "Butt the **** out!" moment if you give the Avengers a minor role. A confrontation between Cage and Captain America would be really telling.

[Huntsman Spider]

There could be a really good "Butt the **** out!" moment if you give the Avengers a minor role. A confrontation between Cage and Captain America would be really telling.

Oh, yeah, that could be interesting to see. And I like your explanation for the Dispossessed.

[LordMikel]

I was reading Mr and Mrs X, which made me think of an interesting street level event. Have Gambit and Black Cat ever teamed? But maybe an Ocean's Eleven type storyline. Something which causes a group of thieves to work together, or they could be at odds too.

[Blind Wedjat]

A heist event? That sounds cool as hell.

[pageturner]

I was reading Mr and Mrs X, which made me think of an interesting street level event. Have Gambit and Black Cat ever teamed? But maybe an Ocean's Eleven type storyline. Something which causes a group of thieves to work together, or they could be at odds too.

Hmm A heist team

Solid start with Gambit and Black Cat

I know a lot of characters have good thief power sets but characters that would make sense to do a heist?

Black Ant and Taskmaster?
Winter Soldier works in the grey.

[DrNewGod]

I was reading Mr and Mrs X, which made me think of an interesting street level event. Have Gambit and Black Cat ever teamed? But maybe an Ocean's Eleven type storyline. Something which causes a group of thieves to work together, or they could be at odds too.

I like this. Especially if they and several other sticky-fingered characters from all the good, bad, and ambiguous corners of the MU are competing to nick the McGuffin. Want to stir the pot further? Have different players hired to protect/retrieve it by different interests (Paladin, Silver Sable, Spymaster, etc.). Whole thing turns into a light-hearted game of keep-away!

I suppose light-hearted is what I like about this the most. It's a nice alternative to some of the grimmer stuff that everybody has offered up.

[Huntsman Spider]

I was reading Mr and Mrs X, which made me think of an interesting street level event. Have Gambit and Black Cat ever teamed? But maybe an Ocean's Eleven type storyline. Something which causes a group of thieves to work together, or they could be at odds too.

I like your idea, especially given Black Cat's current solo has her in conflict/at war with the Thieves' Guild of New York. That said, Gambit did guest-star in Web of Spider-Man #113, which also included Black Cat, so they have interacted at least once in canon.

[Tien Long]

I like your idea, especially given Black Cat's current solo has her in conflict/at war with the Thieves' Guild of New York. That said, Gambit did guest-star in Web of Spider-Man #113, which also included Black Cat, so they have interacted at least once in canon.

Just thinking about that connection, with Black Cat and Gambit concerning the Thieves' Guild. That would be a cool thing, a street level heist. And just to tap into previous posts, it could be an international one. Thieves' Guild plan to do a job over the course of several days spanning cities all over the world. Los Angeles, Shanghai, Dubai, Sao Paolo, etc. Except some of the heroes catch wind of it and try to stop the Thieves' Guild in the process. (Think how in G.I. Joe's "Arise, Serpentor, Arise" the Joes tried to stop Cobra from getting the DNA of all of those rulers by tracking all over the globe to do so). Of course, this has to be done quietly. No big guns at all. So you can get some street level Avengers and X-Men involved (Hawkeye, Black Widow, Cap, Wolverine), but also recruit Daredevil, Shang-Chi, Luke Cage, Danny, and the rest.

Could work out.

[Huntsman Spider]

Just thinking about that connection, with Black Cat and Gambit concerning the Thieves' Guild. That would be a cool thing, a street level heist. And just to tap into previous posts, it could be an international one. Thieves' Guild plan to do a job over the course of several days spanning cities all over the world. Los Angeles, Shanghai, Dubai, Sao Paolo, etc. Except some of the heroes catch wind of it and try to stop the Thieves' Guild in the process. (Think how in G.I. Joe's "Arise, Serpentor, Arise" the Joes tried to stop Cobra from getting the DNA of all of those rulers by tracking all over the globe to do so). Of course, this has to be done quietly. No big guns at all. So you can get some street level Avengers and X-Men involved (Hawkeye, Black Widow, Cap, Wolverine), but also recruit Daredevil, Shang-Chi, Luke Cage, Danny, and the rest.

Could work out.

Sounds like it could be awesome, and since this might go international . . . I'd throw in Silk in place of the usual Spider-suspect(s), especially given her history with Felicia.