The Black Panther Party grew out of the civil rights era in the 1960s to form a movement aimed at protecting African-Americans from police brutality and the social injustices that stemmed from...Show moreThe Black Panther Party grew out of the civil rights era in the 1960s to form a movement aimed at protecting African-Americans from police brutality and the social injustices that stemmed from living in a racist society hellbent on ensuring the underdevelopment of Black communities. In seeking to explore and understand the growth of the International section of the Black Panther Party (BPP) from its base in Oakland, California to the Mediterranean coast of Algeria, this project will come across a variety of primary and academic sources that address the various influences and actions partaken in this journey. Whilst relatively short lived in its mission, the internationalisation of the BPP involved numerous actors, among whom, many have released autobiographies and memoirs detailing the unfolding of events that occurred between the years 1969-1972, alongside video speeches and declarations pertaining to such events. Yet, in order to truly appreciate this often forgotten part of the Black Panthers’ history, the years of revolutionary struggle dedicated to fighting for the rights of Black people across the world, and in the case of this project notably in the United States, albeit not solely, must also be taken into account. This is particularly important as tracing the influences of Black philosophical thinkers of the 20th Century such as W.E.B. Du Bois, Frantz Fanon and Malcolm X on more contemporary movements, such as the Black Panther Party, is often not done so to the extent that such major influences deserve. The usefulness of highlighting the actions partaken by the BPP prove timely in assessing the current political climate faced by members of the African diaspora all over the globe, notably in the United States with the continued growth of the Black Lives Matter movement.Show less
The contributions of female members are an important and understudied aspect of the Black Panther Party. Survival Programs, the Panthers’ community service programs which were governed mostly by...Show moreThe contributions of female members are an important and understudied aspect of the Black Panther Party. Survival Programs, the Panthers’ community service programs which were governed mostly by women, are a good example of nonviolent techniques carried out by the Panthers to reach some of the goals on their Ten-Point Program Since the Black Panther Party consisted of mostly women for most of its existence, this indicates a difference between the common image of the Black Panther Party and the reality of it. Therefore, this thesis will answer the question “In what ways did female members defy the stereotypical image of the Black Panther Party?” In short, it will argue that not only is the significance of the nonviolent Survival Programs undervalued in the party’s popular image; so is the significance and even the existence of (other forms of) female involvement and crucial contributions to the Black Panther Party. Indeed, although the violent, male contributions to the movement are more known, the nonviolent techniques mostly executed by female members, such as the Survival Programs, take up a larger part of what the Party truly was. This thesis will pay attention to these lesser known acts committed by the Black Panthers.Show less
Stokely Carmichael is wellicht de meest onderschatte zwarte burgerrechtenactivist van allemaal. In de jaren '60 en '70 is Carmichael actief in onder meer de burgerrechtenbeweging, de Black Power...Show moreStokely Carmichael is wellicht de meest onderschatte zwarte burgerrechtenactivist van allemaal. In de jaren '60 en '70 is Carmichael actief in onder meer de burgerrechtenbeweging, de Black Power beweging en het Pan-Afrikanisme en verzet hij zich op een radicale manier tegen de slechte positie van de zwarte bevolking. Carmichael doet dit in navolging van Malcolm X op een radicale manier wat hij onder meer te danken zou kunnen hebben aan zijn Caribische achtergrond. Deze achtergrond en zijn radicale verzetsmethode staan centraal.Show less
The main focus of this thesis is how children’s books were used as a tool within the Black Power Movement to overcome the cultural deficit. After examining the state of children’s literature prior...Show moreThe main focus of this thesis is how children’s books were used as a tool within the Black Power Movement to overcome the cultural deficit. After examining the state of children’s literature prior to the movement the Black Power Era’s influence on children’s literature is addressed. The children’s books written by Julius Lester To Be a Slave (1968) and Black Folk Tales (1969) are then the key texts with which to examine how children’s books reflected the cultural changes that were developed during the Movement. The books provide a more nuanced and less overtly political view of black identity that is aimed at children. In conjunction with other materials, such as Ebony Jr., I demonstrate that the Black Power Movement enabled the production of various media such as magazines and children’s books that were not as extreme as the vision of Amiri Baraka’s view of the Black Arts Movement but nevertheless important in the struggle against the cultural deficit. Though these images and texts are less recognizable they were part of an effort that built on work prior to the Civil Rights movement but struggled in the shadow of the militaristic and provocative cultural expressions of the Black Power movement.Show less
