WARNING: The following contains spoilers from Avengers #34 by Jason Aaron, Javier Garron, Jason Keith, and VC's Cory Petit, on sale now.

T'Challa, the Black Panther, is a member of Marvel's flagship superhero team the Avengers, and he currently serves as the team's leader. Famously, the Black Panther is also the king of the African nation of Wakanda and has the distinction of being the first major mainstream superhero of African descent. And in Avengers #34, the African King literally breaks free of chains being used to bind him, giving the classic superhero feat a political subtext that reads as an allegory for the position of Black people across America.

In the previous issue of Avengers, Black Panther surrendered to Moon Knight in an effort to protect his nation from harm. And in Avengers #34, the King of Wakanda has been chained up and tortured by the white-robe-wearing followers of the god Khonshu. In an effort to learn the secrets of his powers, the fanatical members of the cult start flogging him with whips in an attempt to make him tell his secrets, ostensibly to help Moon Knight and Khonshu stop the threat of the devil Mephisto.

Related: Anthony Mackie Calls Out Marvel for Racial Inequality Behind the Camera

The torture of Black Panther is not explicitly shown, although it is heavily implied with the cultists holding flogging tassels embedded with pieces of sharp moon rock, and Black Panther's costume is horribly shredded. The image of an African king being held in chains and beaten is loaded with meaning, resonating with the depths of America's history which tell of African people being taken from their native land, placed in chains, enslaved and forced by whip to do the bidding of their "masters."

After that, Moon Knight intervenes and stops the followers of Khonshu, although he does not do this to free his captive, but instead to punch him after a lengthy conversation where he orders the Panther to give up the secrets of his powers. With T'Challa still steadfast, Moon Knight then leaves the chamber, and the cultists return to finish their work.

Related: What Would Happen If Black Panther & Storm Ruled the World?

Once Moon Knight has left, the priests of Khonshu approach the African King once more, brandishing their makeshift whips. In perhaps the most powerful imagery of the issue, Black Panther breaks free of the chains restraining him and turns the tables on his captors. While the scenes leading up to this appear to be a reflection of the horrors of early America, this scene is one of power.

Where superheroes like Superman and Wonder Woman have made the breaking of chains a common accomplishment for superheroes, Black Panther's actions here carry a far deeper meaning, making the moment one that reflects Africans breaking free of the bonds of slavery and refusing to endure injustice any longer.

This would be a strong statement in any context, but it holds even greater meaning at a moment when the Black Lives Matter movement has compelled America to confront its current and historical racial inequities.

Black Panther Unchained

Marvel has been no stranger to making strong political statements in the company's long history of publishing comics. The character of Black Panther is in and of himself a statement, and he has been since Stan Lee and Jack Kirby created him in 1966, when minority superheroes were virtually unheard of. The publisher has made equally powerful -- if slightly more subtle -- statements by appointing Black women like Monica Rambeau's Captain Marvel as the leader of the Avengers and Storm as one of the core leaders of the X-Men, a team that is explicitly built around the idea of a hated fictional minority, in the 1980s.

While Black Panther's fairly new status as the leader of the Avengers echoes those decisions, the imagery presented in the issue is strong, as is the implied statement within the art. With this moment, Marvel appears to be making a bold statement about the past current climate of America, much like it has done in years prior.

Next: Black Panther: How Shuri Became Wakanda's Hero