Masaryk University Faculty of Education Department of English Language and Literature The armed struggle from Oakland Diploma thesis Brno 2018 Supervisor: Author: Michael George, M. A. Bc. Jan Hudeček Prohlášení: Slavnostně prohlašuji, že jsem tuto diplomovou práci vypracoval samostatně, pracující pouze se zdroji, které jsou uvedeny. Souhlasím s tím, že tato práce bude uložena v knihovně Pedagogické fakulty Masarykovy university a bude přístupná pro studijní účely všech studentů Pedagogické fakulty. V Brně 21. února 2018 …………………… Bc. Jan Hudeček Declaration: I solemnly declare that I had carried out this diploma thesis independently, only working with the listed sources. I agree with this work being stored in the library of the Faculty of Education at Masaryk University and being accessible for study purposes to the students of the Faculty of Education. In Brno, 21st February 2018 …………………… Bc. Jan Hudeček Acknowledgments I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisor Michael George, M.A., for his notes, helpful advices and guidance through the process of writing my diploma thesis and to my family, who never stopped supporting me. Abstract The armed struggle from Oakland outlines the Black Panthers Party movement in USA from 1966 to 1972. Chapters of this thesis are chronologically describing the movement and the development of the Party in the USA, what were the most important events the party participated in and who were the most important members of the party. Anotace Diplomová práce 'The armed struggle from Oakland' ukazuje vývoj Black Panthers Party (Strany černých panterů) v USA mezi lety 1966 a 1972. Cílem této práce je uceleně popsat jak se strana během své existence vyvíjela, jaké byly její nejznámější akce a kdo byli nejznámější členové strany. Key words The Black Panthers, The Black Panther Party, TBPP, USA, Black nationalism, Huey Newton, Bobby Seale, late 1960s, African Americans, Oakland, California, Black movement organization, African-American Civil Rights Movement Klíčová slova Černí panteři, Strana černých panterů, ČP, USA, Černý nacionalismus, Huey Newton, Bobby Seale, druhá polovina šedesátých let, Afroameričané, Oakland, Kalifornie, Afroamerické hnutí za občanská práva Table of contents Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 7 1 From the first meeting to the founding of the Black Panther Party .......................... 8 2 The style that stood out ........................................................................................... 11 3 The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense Ten-Point Platform and Program ......... 12 4 The first recruit and patrolling the patrols ............................................................... 20 5 Getting more guns ................................................................................................... 22 6 Leroy Eldridge Cleaver ........................................................................................... 23 7 Escorting of Betty Shabazz and the Paper Panthers ................................................ 24 8 The murder of Denzil Dowell ................................................................................. 26 9 Sacramento .............................................................................................................. 28 10 Vanguard ................................................................................................................. 30 11 The death of Police Officer John F. Frey ................................................................ 31 12 Kathleen Cleaver (née Neal) ................................................................................... 34 13 “Free Huey!” campaign and the new allies ............................................................. 35 14 Huey Newton as a symbol ....................................................................................... 38 15 The aftermath of Martin Luther King Jr.’ assassination ......................................... 39 16 The funeral of Lil’ Bobby Hutton ........................................................................... 41 17 COINTELPRO ........................................................................................................ 42 18 Ericka Huggins (née Jenkins) .................................................................................. 45 19 Founding of new chapters ....................................................................................... 46 19.1 Los Angeles Black Panther Party and the clash with US ............................. 46 19.2 Seattle Black Panther Party .......................................................................... 49 19.3 New York City Black Panther Party ............................................................ 50 20 Survival programs ................................................................................................... 53 21 Fred Hampton .......................................................................................................... 56 22 The murder of Alex Rackley and the New Haven Black Panther trials .................. 58 23 The demise of the Black Panther Party ................................................................... 60 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 64 List of references ............................................................................................................ 65 List of appendices ........................................................................................................... 72 Introduction When talking about the United States of America in 1960s people usually connect these years with the Cold War, the Vietnam War or the social and political movements. Concerning the African Americans the names of Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X are then widely known all around the world and it comes to nobody’s surprise that they were not fighting alone. Strong leaders always inspired people to rally behind them and Bobby Seale and Huey Newton are no exception from this rule. One of the movements that emerged in the second half of 1960 was the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense. The Black Panthers may not be as widely known in Europe as the other civil rights movements are, but they have created an important chapter in the American history and their beginning shares a lot with the Black Lives Matter. This work takes a look at how Bobby Seale and Huey Newton created a political party that was widely known all around the United States, starting with their first meeting in 1962 and ending with the events that lead to Bobby Seale’s decision to leave the Party for good. Because the Black Panther Party had, at its peak, chapters in more than sixty cities around the United States it is impossible to look at some all of the events chronologically while still creating a comprehensive picture of the development of the Party for the reader. That is why some of the personalities appear more than once, sometimes out of chronological order. The aim of this thesis is to create a work that shows how a small group of people created a Party that was targeted by the FBI, and whose leaders were assassinated and how a change of its focus and ideology lead its demise. 7 1 From the first meeting to the founding of the Black Panther Party After the assassination of Malcolm X on the twenty-first of February, 1965, a lot of young Afro-Americans demanded a change. Martin Luther King’s politics of nonviolence stopped being an option for them, the progress achieved by Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party had no real impact on the west coast of the USA and the changes were happening too slowly in their opinion. It was common that Afro- American families lived on the verge of poverty and had the first hand experience with harassment from police officers and jail time. Amongst those people were Bobby Seale and Huey Newton, the two founders of one of the most famous Afro-American revolutionary parties America ever knew – the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense. The unusual friendship between Robert George “Bobby” Seale (*1936) and Huey Percy Newton (1942-1989), who was shortening his name to Huey P. Newton, started in 1962, when they met at a rally at Merritt College in Oakland, California. Bobby Seale was studying Engineering and Politics, after he had been dishonourably discharged from the United States Air Force due to his brutal attack on one of the commanding officers that owed him money. Bobby Seale had nearly killed him with a pipe. Huey Newton was studying law while also studying for his Associate of Arts degree. Law started to interest him after he was released from prison, where he had been incarcerated several times since he was 14 years old, for crimes ranging from thievery to street fights. Amongst other spokespersons at the rally, which was focusing on the recently announced U.S. blockade of Cuba, featured Donald Warden, the leader of the Afro- American Association (AAA). Bobby Seale and Huey Newton soon started talking and Huey, who believed that U.S. was unjust towards Cuba and that something has to be done, convinced Bobby Seale to come and join him in Warden’s group. (Bloom, p. 21) The AAA believed that the capitalist form of Black Nationalism was the solution Afro-Americans should aim towards but Donald Warden was convinced Afro-American people had no will to improve their own situation and doubted their determination