Wakanda Salute

Canon immigrants happen for all kinds of reasons. The two most common are that the creators are homaging an adaptation they loved (usually as kids) or that the creators are trying to create synergy with a new adaptation for various reasons. Occasionally, like with the hit movie Black Panther, it's both.

Black Panther, to put it simply, was a phenomenon. It made more money in the US than Marvel's The Avengers, it has a chance of beating The Avengers in the "adjusted for inflation" category, and it just. won't. leave. the theatre. It was released on February 16, 2018, and as of this writing, it's still there! Keep in mind that Avengers: Infinity War was released A MONTH ago. It was released on dvd THREE WEEKS ago. This just doesn't happen. The only reason it would still be in theatres at this point is if it's still making money, and to still be doing that at this stage is a testament to how successful it is.

The movie was a cultural success as well. And one of the things that started popping up from the movie the most was the "Wakanda Forever" salute. Here's an example from the movie:

And here are some examples from real life:

It's no surprise, then, that it didn't take long to make it into the comics, as seen here in Black Panther #171 (March 2018):

Note that it's expressed with a "Hail Wakanda!" instead of "Wakanda Forever!", but the sentiment is still there.