Main Idea The Black Panther Party example essay topic

Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale founded the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense in October 1966, in Oakland, California. The name was later shortened to the Black Panther Party. Stoke ly Car micheal, the leader of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNC C) who had some of the same views as the Panthers also joined the Party. Their main goals were to end police brutality, and strengthen Black communities through organization and education although many other people were against them.

Like the F.B.I... The problem was J. Edgar Hoover who opposed the Panthers' policies. As he was the director of the FBI, and got the Bureau involved with his own views. he wanted to make America safer (Katsiaficas & Cleaver). While he was destroying the Black Panther Party for the safety of white Americans, which was thought to be his intention, he was destroying the lives of black Americans. In October 1966, the Black Panther Party made their rules and regulations known to everyone. They were called The Ten-Point Platform.

The main points of the platform stated that the African Americans should be able to choose their own destiny, and that every man should be employed by the government in order to maintain financial support for himself and his family. The final objective stated that no black man should serve in any military branch. The Panthers refused to fight for a government that they felt did not treat them as full citizens of the United States of America (Katsiaficas & Cleaver). Racial discrimination was present as most of the soldiers who had been page 2 recruited into the army at that time were African American. This was thought by the Panthers to be unlawful.

This would reduce the military number of men drastically. The Black Panther Party may have seemed like they were revolting against America, but were only doing what they felt was right. A major difference between the Black Panther Party and other black nationalist groups of that time can be seen in the plan for a communist America. To the Panthers, the mother country was America, not Africa.

They felt like they belonged in America, but were being held down by racial biases' of their opposing authorities. One of the fundamental areas in which the Black Panther Party contributed to the Black Liberation Movement, was self-defense of other blacks (The Amercans-Reconstruction through the 20th Century). The Panthers preached armed revolt. They also adopted one of Mao Tse Tung, the leader of the Chinese Communist revolution's slogans: "Power flows out of the barrel of a gun" (The Amercans-Reconstruction through the 20th Century). This is what separated the Black Panther Party from other black organizations because the other groups did not take action to the extent that the Panthers did. In the 1960's, the Black Panthers used guns for self defense and not senseless violence like they were labeled for.

The reason for this label was because of the frequent shoot outs between the Panthers and the police. They carried guns around like wallets to protect any black person that was being mistreated as well as to protect themselves from police brutality that occurred often. The Black Panther Party knew that if used right, it could give them a page 3 huge advantage over their enemies, which could prevent them from being labeled as a violent group of people. The only reason the Panthers were so violent was because they felt there was no other alternative.

They saw that African American had been so discriminated against not only recently, but through out history so they decided to take forceful action. A fundamental thing that attracted blacks to join and support the Black Panther Party was its policy of doing something for the people. The Black Panther Party organized community programs such as free breakfast for children, school for kids, clothes drives, campaigns to stop drugs and crime and more (black history. eb. com). The Panthers tried to make the country understand that it wanted to make America a safer, better place. The Party found ways to spread their messages and ideas across to the citizens of America with such media as its newspaper, The Black Panther, mass rallies, speaking tours, slogans, posters, leaflets, cartoons, buttons, symbols like the fist, graffiti, political trials, and even funerals (black history. eb. com). The Black Panther Party even had enough power to spread its ideas on television and the radio.

The main idea the Black Panther Party had to spread was that, "We were human, we were ready for equality, we were equal to whites, disproving racist ideas held by whites". (Freed) Some blacks decided to do a little research about themselves and their history. Some famous musicians used phrases such as "Free your mind and your ass will follow" (George Clinton), and "Say it loud, I'm Black and I'm proud" (James Brown), to express themselves in the Black Liberation Movement. Some page 4 disapproved of the Party's methods though. The Black Panther's main person was J. Edgar Hoover, according to him, the Black Panther Party was", the number one threat to the internal security of the nation". (Hoover).

The FBI then labeled the Black Panther's as "black racists". (Freed). Hoover really disliked the Black Panther Party. The FBI also went after people who supported the Black Panther Party.

Eventually, the FBI raided Panther Headquarters around the country in places such as: Des Moines, Iowa; Detroit, Michigan; Chicago, Illinois; Indianapolis, Indiana; San Diego and Sacramento, California; as well as Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Katsiaficas & Cleaver). This caused a big decline in the party's support. This all led to the beginning of the end of the Black Panther Party and everything they had done for black people. However, the Panthers were ultimately unable to live down the negative label by government forces due to the many oppositions and opinions within society. After J. Edgar Hoover issued the order to neutralize members of the Panthers. In combination with police executions of dozens, and the arrests of hundreds of Panther's from across the country eventually spelled out the demise of the Party.

They were taken out because of their threat to the government. They were a threat with their violent ways and their strong following which was building up before all this happened. Luckily the Panthers made a lasting impression on the nature of not only black nationalism and civil rights, but they helped create and motivate thousands of young, lower-class citizens to stand up for their human rights page 5 while helping to redefine the New America. This was the first step toward racial equality, which still has not been reached today, but now it is inevitable that one day all races on earth will be created equal.

Bibliography

- web - web -black history. eb. com / micro /71/76. html -Agony in New Haven: the Trial of Bobby Seale, Ericka Huggins, and the Black Panthers- Donald Freed -Liberation, Imagination and the Black Panther Party: A New Look at the Black Panthers and their Legacy (New Political Science Reader) -George Katsiaficas and Kathleen Cleaver -The Amercans-Reconstruction through the 20th Century-Danger, Jorge Kl or de Alva, Krieger, Wilson, Wo loch.