The Black Panther Party: Impact On United States History

In Oakland, California in October of 1966 Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale what was known as the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense. Newton and Seale were two African-American activists. It began as poor black people from the same community joining together and entwining in the same ideology. The Black Panther Party is considered the first organization in the history United States of America, to struggle militantly exert oneself for ethnic minority and working-class famishment. Bobby Hutton, seventeen years of age at the time was the first person to agglutinate himself as a Black Panther, aside Newton and Seale.

     The Black Panther had a huge background of history, goals, and beliefs. Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale in Oakland, Ca 1966, founded the Panthers. They were originally as an African American self defense force and were highly influenced by Malcolm X’s ideas. They were named after Lowndes County Freedom Organization or LCFO. The Panthers had many goals like; giving back to the ghetto, protecting blacks from police brutality, and to help blacks get freedom and jobs. They also had many beliefs like;

Imagine it is the 1960’s: conflict in Vietnam had sparked widespread protest at American college campuses, people all over the country were reading the The Feminine Mystique and fighting for increased equality among the sexes, and the Civil Rights Movement was at its peak. African Americans throughout America were uniting for the common cause of equality, however differing ideology and beliefs regarding how equality could be achieved divided them. Martin Luther King and Malcolm X rose as prominent leaders in the fight against racial inequality, the latter typically credited with the development of more violent methodology which excluded white involvement and conceived the movement of “Black Power.” The Black Panthers, members of a political party formed by college students Huey Newton and Bobby Seale in 1966, are typically associated with the idea of black power and the legacy of Malcolm X despite the fact that he had died a year prior to the party’s founding. While the idea of black power is easily and mis-conceivably associated with the idea of black supremacy and violence, The Black Panther Party primarily sought a spot for African Americans next to that of whites, not above. The Black Panther Party, despite its violent appearance and legacy, made a positive influence on American history through its platform based on equality, human rights, and patriotism.

The Black Panther Party formed as a result of Black Nationalism which came from a multitude of events that began to form decades before any mention of The Black Panther Party. To even begin to understand a group such as this, one must first attempt to grasp the historical context which lies behind them. Blake (1969) asserts that the initial onset began back in 1619 when the first of the colonial settlers accepted a number of captured Africans which were to be used as servants leading to the period of slavery which serves as a sore spot in this country 's history. One of the primary streams of thought behind this idea of Black Nationalism can be summed up as the hypocrisy felt by African-Americans during the era of slavery as well as after it 's end. These are a race of people characterized by their looks and were not given the same rights within the society, yet at the same time, were expected to meet the standards of “regular” citizens within the country creating that sense of inferiority.

Founded on October 15th 1966 in Oakland, California, the Black Panther Party for Self Defense was an organization opposed to police brutality against the black community. The Party’s political origins were in Maoism, Marxism, and the radical militant ideals of Malcolm X and Che Guevara. From the doctrines of Maoism they saw the role of their Party as the frontline of the revolution and worked to establish a unified alliance, while from Marxism they addressed the capitalist economic system, and exemplified the need for all workers to forcefully take over means of production (Baggins, Brian). Mao was important to the Black Panthers because of his different stance on Marxism-Leninism when applied to Chinese peasants. The founders of the Black

By 1966, 32% of African-Americans were living below the poverty line, and almost 2/3 of people living in poor urban areas were Black. The Black Panther Party was a socialist and Black nationalist organization that was founded 51 years ago to address these issues among others. The organization, which had a far-left political position, lasted for merely 16 years and its influence continues to impact the world up till this day. It was the largest Black revolutionary organization to ever exist.

During the 1960’s, there were important events, actions, and organizations that changed the black communities' lives. The 1960’s are an important time period because of the Civil Rights Movement. During that time period, the black community's were able to vote (Voting Rights of 1965) and the Civil Rights Act of 1968. Between 1965 and 1968, the Black Panthers Party was created. Huey Newton and Bobby Seale created the Black Panther Party in Oakland, California in 1966. The Black Panther Party was original called, ‘The Black Panther Party for Self- Defense’; they implemented Malcolm-X philosophy of self-defense because during the time The Black Panthers were created there were high rates of police brutality towards the black community, which meant that Black people were being killed at random with no reason. Before The Black Panther Party had a name, Newton and Seale created the Ten Point Program, which explained what they wanted, and what they believed in. Newton and Seale both knew that they could not present their Ten Point Program without a name and they came up with the Black Panther Party (B.P.P).

i. Although the Black Panther Party is seen as plain savage by some it should be remembered for its positive influence on African American lives in America.

I attended the 50 Years of the Black Panther Party on November 14. Black Panther is an African American revolutionary party. Blacked Panther formed in Oakland, California, by Huey Newton and Bobby Seale. As a result of police brutality against African Americans in the 60s Huey Newton and Bobby Seale established this group. Patrol the police was the main reason that they started this group. Black Panther got bigger every year, and now after almost 60 years they are one of the leading movements for human rights. Thanks to Black Panther there is other movements with analogy beliefs.

The Black Panther Party was created originally in 1966 and was initially known as the ‘The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense’ but is now mostly known as the BPP or the Black Panther Party. It was created by Dr. Huey P. Newton alongside five other individuals who were the founding members; Bobby Seale, Bobby Hutton, Elbert Howard, Reggie Forte and Sherwin Forte (David Cunningham 87). The initial mission of the BPP was to act as a police force to oversee the actual police force in Oakland, California, which was the place where BPP was originally created. Later on, as the popularity of the group spread, they developed several factions across America. They comprised of armed citizens, who kept an eye on police interactions and dealings with

The Black Panther Party (BPP) existed as a famous group of activists whom believed that the campaign of Martin Luther King overall failed. Along with it, any change that would be brought through means of the civil rights movement that promised change would take excessively long to appear or not be introduced at all. The group was founded by Huey Percy Newton and Bobby Seale, who addressed for a revolutionary war. Though both foundered did not originate from the same background, both met in the early sixties while attending Merritt Junior College in West Oakland during an Afro-American Associations group (AAA). The FBI often branded the group as ‘Public Enemy Number One’.

The Black Panther Party began in the late 1960s and was created by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale. When creating the platform for the BPP, both Newton and Seale were not worry about provoking controversy within the ivory towers of the historical profession (Street 351). They were more worried about getting their word across. The creation of the BPP started because of the police murder an unarmed African American man named Denzil Dowell. The murdered was ruled as a “justified homicide”, even though it was no paper work that Dowell was seen in a stolen car before the officer shot him (Roman 11). The death of Dowell encouraged the Black Panther Party to start informing the community about the facts of other murder so

The Black Panther party was founded by Huey Newton and Bobby Seale in 1966. “The Panthers placed militant self-defense of minority communities against the U.S Government, and fought to establish revolutionary socialism through mass organizing and community-based program.”(Baggins, Brian. Black Panther Party, www.marxists.org/history/usa/workers/black-panthers/.). During the 1960’s the civil rights movement was at its full strength. The BPP fought for change in America for African Americans and even other minority groups too.

The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense was a political organization initiated by Bobby Seale and Huey Newton in October 1966 (Peniel 2006 p219). The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense was founded on the goal to arm citizens' patrols to overseer the conduct of officers of the Oakland Police Department and counter-react police brutality in Oakland, California. (Burger Fifteen years of the Burger Court 1984). By 1969, community social programs became a staple in the party’s involvement within their communities. (Joseph 2006)

What comes to mind when you think of the Black Panther Party? Do you even know who the Black Panthers really were? They helped transform the lives of many African Americans in the U.S and helped empower the community. The Black Panther has a huge background of history, goals, and beliefs. Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale from Oakland, California founded the Panthers in 1966. Initially, they were an African American self defense force and were highly influenced by Malcolm X’s beliefs. The Panthers had many goals such as;freedom, protecting blacks from police brutality, and helping African Americans obtain a jobs. Despite the negative stereotypes of the Black Panthers as people who ran around with guns, fighting police, they were a major group during the Civil Rights Movement because they practiced self defense, established revolutionary socialism, and stimulated Malcolm X's influence. In the following I will discuss the successful changes the Black Panther Party, had on the African American community during the civil rights movement.