Black Rage

10 Pages 2547 Words

a revolution would be the only means of removing oppression in the black society. One of the main goals of the Panthers is to organize blacks in a common effort to overcome oppression. Chairman of the Black Panther Party, Bobby Seale explains in a 1968 speech that organization is the key. If an unannounced riot were to take place then organization is highly important... “Black people, organize!” It is obvious that rage is present, but the true question is: Is it feasible for blacks to organize. Concerning the task of organizing, Eldridge Cleaver, a militant revolutionary of the Black Panther Party, explains, “Black people have never been able through any mechanism to express what their will is. People have come along and spoken in the name of black people; they have said that black people want to be integrated; they have said black people want to be separated; but nowhere at no time have black people been given the chance to register their own position.” The Black Panther leaders sought out to create the means for organization and expression, the ideology of “By any means necessary”. Stokely Carmichael explains his purpose, “We’re going to organize our way. The question is how we’re going to facilitate those matters, whether it’s going to be done with a thousand police men and submachine guns, or whether it’s going to be in a context where it’s allowed by white people.” As Carmichael points out, white resistance, in most cases, will determine where and to what extent rage will lead.
Paralleling similar warnings provided to white America prior to the Civil War, as well as during Jim Crow, Carmichael reflects both the presence and reoccurrence of black rage throughout American history, continually insisting on pressing upward against white dominance.
“The fact is, white society fears, and has always feared, losing power. White America has been resistant and forever reluctant to relinquish her position ...