Up next in 10
Why did the Black Panther Party Fall Apart?
12K views
Jan 27, 2023
#blackpanthers #blackpantherparty #hueynewton #blackhistory #blackhistorymonth The Black Panther Party came into prominence in the 1960s. By 1980, it was all over. How did this historical party start and what led to it falling apart? Black Origins examines original stories in Black culture and society. _____________________________________________________________________________ BlackExcellence.com is a digital platform dedicated to empowering excellence everyday through sharing thought provoking, informative, entertaining, and noteworthy stories in the Black community. Website: https://blackexcellence.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/BExcelOnline Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blackexcell... FB: https://www.facebook.com/BExcelOnline
View Video Transcript
0:00
The power structure, the establishment has been aggressive towards us in every area
0:07
the social area, the economical area, and the political area. So therefore, we felt it necessary to erect a political party to defend and promote the general interests of Black people
0:22
The Black Panther Party became a symbol for armed resistance in the Black community in America
0:28
But how did the Black Panther Party start and at the end fell apart
0:43
The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense was founded in October 1966 in Oakland, California
0:49
by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale. The two first met in 1962 while they were college students at Marriott College
0:59
They were active members of the Donald Wardens Afro-American Association where they widely discussed and followed the Black nationalist movement
1:07
inspired by the likes of Malcolm X. Eventually, they became more attracted to revolutionary and anti-imperialist ideas
1:15
and militant groups that had keen interest in community service, which later on became crucial in developing the Black Panther's community survival programs
1:26
The birth of the Black Panther Party in the West Coast follows a chain of events that started with the Second Great Migration that begun in the 1940s
1:35
During the Second Great Migration, over 5 million African Americans moved from the South to the Northeast, Midwest, and also the West Coast
1:44
Tens of thousands landed in cities like Oakland in the Bay Area to find work in war industries such as Kaiser shipyards
1:55
Discreet migrations transformed cities on the West Coast. The new arrivals faced new forms of racism and segregation that they thought they had escaped in the South
2:05
Unlike the rural South, urban areas in the Northeast, Midwest, and the West Coast put African Americans in close proximity with whites
2:15
As the war efforts started winding down, jobs started fleeing to suburban areas along with white flight
2:22
This left segregated urban areas poor and exposed to racial terrorism along with brutal police tactics
2:29
It's these types of environments that foster the idea for blacks getting armed to protect
2:34
themselves and their community. In America, black people are treated very much as the Vietnamese people or any other
2:42
colonized people because we're used, we're brutalized. The police in our community occupy our area, our community as a foreign troop occupies territory
2:53
and the police are there not to, in our community, not to promote our welfare or for our security and our safety but they there to contain us to brutalize us and murder us because they have their orders to do so
3:08
Huey Newton understand the anger of the community and started to realize that it can be organized
3:13
to combat not only racism, but also poverty. Newton and Seale began studying gun laws in
3:21
California and selling books to raise money for guns. After meeting with Stockley Carmichael
3:26
a leader in the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, they decided to adopt the Black Panther
3:32
logo and form their own party, the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense. Their first recruit was
3:38
16-year-old Bobby Hutton. One of the party's first tasks was to go on police watching patrols
3:46
This was done in an effort to record incidents of police brutality. Members often cited the open
3:51
carry gun laws of California for their rights to carry guns while on their police watching patrols
3:58
Although the Black Panthers were viewed as a violent militant group by money, the organization
4:02
was focused on not only self-defense, but also creating and advocating for economic opportunities
4:09
for Black communities. The party's 10-point program, released on May 15th of 1967, demanded
4:16
for employment, freedom, decent housing, education, and freeing of Black men in jails
4:23
The Black Panthers first made national news just a year ago when they entered the state
4:28
capital in Sacramento armed with rifles and pistols. When the California State Assembly Committee on Criminal Procedure was scheduled to meet
4:37
and discuss the Malford Act, a bill that would make the public carrying of loaded firearms
4:41
illegal, Black Panthers showed up at the California State Assembly armed. That protest at the statehouse brought so much publicity to a party that was not nationally known up until that point
4:53
The party went from a small organization in Oakland to an internationally recognized movement that attracted fans globally
4:59
The fame also attracted the attention of law enforcement. In 1968, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover described the Black Panthers as the greatest threat to the internal security of the country
5:12
By 1969, the Black Panthers became FBI's counterintelligence program's primary target. The program was created with the intention of surveilling, infiltrating, and breaking apart political organizations
5:27
It launched various actions to prevent the unification of different Black nationalist groups and discredit their leaders
5:34
On October 28, 1967, an Oakland police officer was shot and killed during its traffic stop
5:41
involving Huey Newton. Huey and a backup officer were also injured, and Huey got charged with
5:48
murder. The leader of the militant Black Panther Party will go on trial July 15 in Oakland
5:53
California, accused of murdering a policeman. He spent three years in jail and was released when
5:59
his conviction got reversed on appeal By 1968 the Black Panthers party had expanded to other U cities including Atlanta Baltimore Chicago Boston Dallas Detroit and New York
6:14
At the peak of their popularity, the Black Panthers attracted not just Black nationalists
6:20
but also leftist groups that allied themselves with the Marxist-Lenist doctrine. They adopted a Serve the People program that first involved a free breakfast program for children
6:31
While the kids ate their breakfast, party members would educate them on Black history
6:36
current issues in their communities, and what the party was doing to address them
6:40
This became the party's most popular program, but other programs were also active like clothing
6:45
distribution, free medical clinics, self-defense lessons, and classes on politics and economics
6:52
But it wasn't too long after when cracks began appearing in the party
6:58
Some party members started engaging in criminal activities like extortion and robberies
7:03
The party also begun to get rid of members due to fears about law enforcement infiltration
7:08
The major issue in race relations in Oakland is the continued friction between the Black community and the police
7:15
Both sides are holding firm to their positions and the situation remains potentially explosive
7:20
Several shootouts took place in 1969 between the Panthers in various cities and the police
7:27
State's attorneys police arrived at Fred Hampton's Westside apartment half a block from Panther headquarters at 445 this morning
7:34
They had a search warrant authorizing them to look for illegal weapons. One of the biggest blows to the Panthers happened on December 4th of 1969
7:43
when Panther leader Fred Hampton was killed in Chicago, along with Panther guard Mark Clark
7:50
Chicago police, working with the FBI, raided Hampton's home and assassinated him in his sleep
7:55
The pigs murdered Deputy Chairman Fred Hampton while he lay in bed
8:00
I approve it. I approve it to the world that Fred Hampton was murdered by the pigs
8:04
Their lives, their orcs to the people, can't bear up to the evidence that we have that they murdered our Deputy Chairman in cold blood as he lay in his bed asleep
8:13
Cook County State Attorney told the media later on that the Panthers were first to shoot and refused to cease firing
8:20
But investigations showed that only one shot was fired by Mark Clark, and that was a result of a reflexive death convulsion after he was struck in the chest by police
8:30
Police, however, fired at least 80 shots. Eight Chicago police officers were indicted by a federal grand jury over the raid, but charges were later dismissed
8:40
A major split in the party took place when ideological differences could not be resolved
8:47
in the early 1970s. Party leaders like Huey Newton and David Hillard wanted to focus on community
8:53
service and self-discipline, while others like Eldridge Cleaver favored a more confrontational
8:59
strategy Cleaver was removed from the party and he went on to lead a splinter group the Black Liberation Army The split turned violent as the two groups carried out assassinations on each other members
9:12
In 1972, under the leadership of Huey, the Panthers started closing down dozens of chapters around the country
9:19
and bringing operations and members back to Oakland. Their plan was to take over the city of Oakland politically
9:25
Thus, Bobby Seale ran for mayor and other party members run for city council and for minor offices
9:31
Although Seal was not successful, few members won seats on local government commissions
9:37
And if Black Panther Party want to run political candidates and hold up their signs and keep
9:42
guns in their homes to defend themselves from racist pink cops who shoot up windows and murder
9:47
Black people in the Black community, then let Black people hold up the sign of the gun
9:51
and use it to defend themselves. Everybody has the right to survive
9:55
In 1974, Huey Newton and eight other Panthers were arrested and charged with assault on police
10:03
officers. Huey was also charged with the murder of Kathleen Smith, an 18-year-old prostitute
10:09
He fled to Cuba to avoid prosecution and put Elaine Brown in charge, the first chairwoman of
10:15
the party. Under Elaine Brown, the party became more politically engaged and brought several women
10:20
into leadership roles. By 1978, Huey had returned from exile in Cuba. The party that he left behind
10:27
looked different now, with women outnumbering men. This didn't sit well with many of the male
10:33
members. They complained about the excessive power of women in the organization. Seeing how women were
10:38
beginning to get punished for their perceived power over men, Elaine Brown resigned from the
10:43
party and moved to Los Angeles. For the rest of the 70s, the Panthers consistently lost members
10:49
in droves. By 1980, they had only 27 members left. A man whose name became synonymous with black
10:57
militancy in the 1960s was shot to death early this morning in Oakland, California
11:02
Huey Newton, a co-founder of the Black Panther Party, had been shot several times. He was 47
11:08
Police say that Newton was shot three times in the head, and neighbors around here are both
11:13
stunned and frightened. No one here would admit they saw the murder
11:17
but there are reports that two men had stopped Newton on the street, pulled a gun
11:22
then fired point blank at him. The legacy of the Black Panther Party is controversial
11:34
but it's no doubt that it was a major political and cultural force
11:38
Numerous former Black Panthers moved on to hold elected offices in the US
11:42
including city council positions and even becoming a congressman. In 1990, Chicago City Council passed a resolution declaring Fred Hampton Day
11:53
And in October 2006, the Black Panther Party held a 40-year reunion in Oakland