While I can�t even get mad at Boardwalk�s strive to maintain an accurate historical context, I am intrigued by the inclusion of Michael K. Williams� character Chalky White in the lineup.
Williams� portrayal of Chalky is just as, ahem, intoxicating as his previous HBO character Omar Little of The Wire. An African American bootlegger with southern roots, Chalky maneuvers his way through the dealings of prohibition era Atlantic City, New Jersey. On the surface, Chalky is the token black character of the series. He has dialogue instead of literal one-liners that restrict fellow African American cast members.
The muteness of black characters in the series is in part due to the series� blatant white (male) supremacist discourse. The inextricable linkage of entitlement and white patriarchal privilege frames the Boardwalk Empire narrative. This relationship teeters on a multifaceted platform of gender, class, and race.
Chalky�s presence, however, is more significant and complicated than being Boardwalk�s token black guy. He embodies the struggle for access to entitlement afforded to men like main character Nucky Thompson because of his whiteness. Chalky�s name also symbolizes this struggle, doubly signifying how whiteness is a social construct and his effort to one-up �the man� (chalk also means to score). He challenges the embedded privilege of whiteness and class. These privileges are inaccessible to marginalized Black men.
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