LIFE V

OL. 6

8, N

O. 4

FE

BR

UA

RY

6, 1

970

Black Panthers: the

ccording to government estim

ate, the Black

Panthers num

ber only about 1,200 mem

- bers. T

hey are scattered across the U.S

. in tw

o dozen chapters, some tightly organized, oth-

ers so unstable that a single arrest could bring ab

out th

eir collap

se. Yet th

e Pan

thers h

ave

emerged as the sym

bol of militant black rage,

the hard edge of confrontation with the police.

"They are convinced," says a senior Justice D

e-partm

ent official, "that the black man w

ill never get his just dues w

ithout the force of violence. W

hitey just won't give in. S

o someone has to

overthrow the system

, and they're it." T

he Panthers spout the rhetoric of revolution

("Seize the tim

e! All pow

er to the people!") and in chilling, specific detail exhort their m

ember-

ship ("Guns, baby, guns. K

ill the racist pig cops. K

ill Richard N

ixon"). They have arm

ed them-

selves heavily in the name of self-defense and

they have used their weapons—

not only in self-defense. S

o far, in the running guerrilla war of

roofto

p sn

ipin

g, m

idnig

ht am

bush

and m

ass shoot-outs that the P

anthers and police have been w

aging in a number of cities, four policem

en have been killed and scores m

ore wounded. In turn

at least 19 Panthers are dead (pp. 22, 23) and

many have been w

ounded. (The P

anthers claim

28

dead

, bu

t it is un

certain th

at mo

re than

a dozen have died of police bullets.)

The P

anthers charge that law officers are con-

ducting a nationally coordinated campaign to ex-

terminate them

. The police deny it, but a C

hi-cago sergeant speaks for m

any when he argues,

"1 don't say cops should have a hunting license

to shoot people, but when anybody—

I don't care w

hat his color—starts scream

ing 'Kill the pig

cops' or tries to start a revolution, he belongs in jail. A

nd when they start shooting police, they

sure as hell are going to get shot back." In D

ecember the street w

ar intensified when

police raided Panther headquarters in L

os An-

geles and Chicago. In the latter raid tw

o Pan-

thers were killed, and there is evidence that the

police did virtually all the shooting. The events

gained the group so much public sym

pathy that a L

os Angeles police official suggested, "M

aybe w

e're play

ing th

e Pan

thers' g

ame." H

itherto

stand-offish black m

oderates gave statements of

support, and some w

hite liberals gave fund-rais-ing parties and pledged m

oney—especially w

el-com

e because the Panthers are chronically short.

But the crackdow

n will continue. "I don't see

the Panthers snow

balling enough to succeed in overthrow

ing the government," says a federal of-

ficial. "But they're not too sm

all to kill police, and m

aybe others. We can't allow

it." L

IFE

asked the noted black photographer and author G

ordon Parks, a m

an respected in both the black and w

hite comm

unities, to report on the P

anthers and their leaders, especially El-

dridge Cleaver, the P

anther minister of infor-

mation. A

fter serving a term for rape and as-

sault, Cleaver w

as on parole when authorities

ordered him back to prison because of his in-

volvement in a P

anther-police incident. Afraid

that h

e would

be k

illed in

jail, he fled

the

country and is now living in A

lgiers. Parks's

interv

iew w

ith h

im b

egin

s on

the n

ext p

age.

ship

("Du

ns, b

aby

, gun

s. Kill th

e racist pig

cops. K

ill Richard N

ixon"). They have arm

ed them-

selves heavily in the name of self-defense and

they have used their weapons—

not only in self-defense. S

o far, in the running guerrilla war of

roofto

p sn

ipin

g, m

idnig

ht am

bush

and m

ass shoot-outs that the Panthers and police have been w

aging in a number of cities, four policem

en have been killed and scores m

ore wounded. In turn

at least 19 Panthers are dead (pp. 22, 23) and

many have been w

ounded. (The P

anthers claim

28 d

ead, b

ut it is u

ncertain

that m

ore th

an a

dozen have died of police bullets.) T

he Panthers charge that law

officers are con-ducting a nationally coordinated cam

paign to ex-term

inate them. T

he police deny it, but a Chi-

cago sergeant speaks for many w

hen he argues, "1 don't say cops should have a hunting license

come because the rantners are chronically snort.

But the crackdow

n will continue. "I don't see

the Panthers snow

balling enough to succeed in overthrow

ing the government," says a federal of-

ficial. "But they're not too sm

all to kill police, and m

aybe others. We can't allow

it." L

IFE

asked the noted black photographer and author G

ordon Parks, a m

an respected in both the black and w

hite comm

unities, to report on the P

anthers and their leaders, especially El-

dridge Cleaver, the P

anther minister of infor-

mation. A

fter serving a term for rape and as-

sault, Cleaver w

as on parole when authorities

ordered him back to prison because of his in-

volvement in a P

anther-police incident. Afraid

that h

e would

be k

illed in

jail, he fled

the

country and is now living in A

lgiers. Parks's

interv

iew w

ith h

im b

egin

s on th

e nex

t pag

e.

Weapons poised, S

an Francisco riot

police (below) face a taunting crow

d outside B

lack Panther headquarters

last spring after they had broken up

a Panther street rally. A

t right, a Pan-

ther in Detroit kept a trigger-ready

vig

il in D

ecember fo

llow

ing a re-

port that a police raid was im

minent.

hard edge of confrontation

Eldridge Cleaver in Algiers, a visit w

ith Papa Rage

In th

eir hom

e cutsid

e Alg

iers, P

arks photographed Cleaver and

his w

ife Kath

leen b

eneath

a pic-

ture o

f Huey

P. New

ton, founder of the B

lack Panther P

arty, who is

no

w in

priso

n fo

r man

slaug

hter.

by GO

RD

ON

PA

RK

S

ne n

ight, ju

st befo

re left New

Y

ork

to see E

ldrid

ge C

leaver in

Al-

giers, a squad car eased alongside me

and stopped. Tw

o policemen jum

ped out. T

he older one carried a walkie-

talkie an

d th

e younger o

ne b

lock

ed

my

path

and

dem

and

ed so

me id

en-

tification. I was w

alking briskly from

my E

ast Side apartm

ent, late for the th

eater. Desp

ite the fact th

at I, like

many other black people, experience

this ty

pe o

f harassm

ent co

nstan

tly,

I was im

patien

t. Wh

en I ask

ed w

hy

I h

ad to

iden

tify m

yself, th

e young-

er one warned m

e that he would run

me in

if I did

n't. "I'd

prefer th

at," I said

. He co

pped

out, assu

ring m

e th

at th

ings c

ould

be w

ork

ed o

ut

there on the street. Then he inform

ed m

e I was in a w

ealthy neighborhood w

here there had been several robber-ies lately.

"Do I lo

ok lik

e a robber to

you?"

"All ro

bbers d

on't g

o a

round

wearing little black m

asks," he said. "A

nd all ro

bbers d

on't g

o aro

und

wearin

g b

lack faces," I co

untered

. A

s I reached for my w

allet to prove once ag

ain th

at I wasn

't a crimin

al, h

is han

d in

ched

tow

ard h

is gu

n.

"You tw

o are p

retty ju

mpy," I

said, pulling out my L

IFE

card. I h

ave alw

ays tu

ned

out at th

e term

"pig

." But w

hen

those tw

o fat

faces redd

ened

at the sig

ht o

f that

card

, I too g

ot th

e im

age—

very

clearly. I turned and w

alked off. "S

orry

, Mr. P

arks." I k

ept w

alk-

ing

. "Just d

oin

g o

ur jo

b. T

ryin

g to

p

rotect y

ou

. Merry

Ch

ristmas." I

went on w

ithout answering, shocked

at my th

oughts o

f rifles with

silenc-

ers, of rooftops—and pigs.

Sev

eral day

s later I told

Cleav

er about m

y experience. He sm

iled eas-ily

and sp

oke so

ftly. "

Thin

gs

hav

en't ch

ang

ed m

uch

back

in B

ab-

lyo

n sin

ce I've b

een o

n v

acation

." T

o h

im m

y in

cid

en

t mu

st hav

e

seemed

like ab

solu

tely n

oth

ing. H

is last en

counter w

ith th

e Califo

rnia

police ended with 17-year-old B

obby H

utto

n sh

ot to

death

, one B

lack

Pan

ther an

d tw

o p

olicem

en in

jured

, and C

leaver being hustled off to jail w

ith a bullet-shattered leg. C

leaver w

as no

w liv

ing

with

his

wife K

athleen

and th

eir 5-m

onth

-old son, M

aceo, outside of Algiers in

on

e of th

ose y

ellow

ish-w

hite co

n-

crete houses that line the Mediterra-

nean

coast. It w

as wet, w

indy an

d

unusu

ally co

ld fo

r Alg

iers. He w

as slum

ped in a chair, his legs stretched out, th

e in

fant slu

ng a

cro

ss his

sho

uld

er. He g

ently

massag

ed th

e b

oy

's back

. In th

e soft, rain

-filtered

light from the sea, he looked like any

other father trying to burp his child. B

ut h

is min

d w

as on a trag

ic, more

violent thing—the killing of his fel-

low

Pan

thers, F

red H

ampto

n an

d

Mark

Clark

, by C

hicag

o p

olice. "It

was co

ld-b

loo

ded

mu

rder," h

e said

in a low, caustic tone.

I handed him som

e clippings from

the A

merican

press, m

ost o

f which

, I felt, co

ndem

ned

the p

olice actio

n

in th

e killin

gs. C

leaver started

to

read an

d I w

atched

for so

me ty

pe

of reaction. As his eyes m

oved over th

e prin

t his d

ark face w

as imm

o-

bile. Maceo finally burped. E

ldridge called

Kath

leen. "C

om

e get th

is P

anther." As she took M

aceo away,

Eld

ridge fro

wned

. "That little cat

will g

ive th

em h

ell on

e of th

ese d

ay

s." He lit a

cig

are

tte, to

ok

a

healthy swallow

of Scotch and start-

ed re

adin

g a

gain

. I got u

p a

nd

loo

ked

abo

ut th

e ho

use.

There w

ere five ro

om

s, countin

g

a tiled kitchen that also faced the sea. E

mo

ry D

ou

glas, th

e Pan

thers' m

in-

ister of culture, and his wife Judy oc-

cupied one room. C

onnie Matthew

s, an

attractive g

irl who rep

resented

the P

anthers in Scandinavia, had the

other room. O

ff a dark hallway w

as th

e "wo

rksh

op

," littered w

ith ty

pe-

writers, m

imeo

grap

h m

achin

es, p

rintin

g m

aterials, Em

ory

's po

sters an

d p

arty leaflets in

several lan

-guages. T

he large living room-bed-

roo

m in

wh

ich I h

ad left E

ldrid

ge

was the gathering point. T

here w

as very

little laughter in

that house. T

oo many brothers w

ere in

coffin

s or p

risons. T

he co

ld ev

e-nings w

ere spent talking of friends, rev

olu

tion an

d d

eath, th

inkin

g an

d

planning to Otis R

edding's blues, to E

laine Brow

n's protest songs and to the soul-stirrings of A

retha Franklin

and Jam

es Bro

wn. It w

as the clu

t-tered

, temp

orary

shelter o

f a black

m

an

in e

xile

—w

here

bag

s stay

pack

ed an

d all p

recious th

ings are

mad

e po

rtable.

Cleav

er had

finish

ed read

ing th

e clippings w

hen I returned. "Well,

wh

at do

yo

u th

ink

?" I said.

"Crap

. Un

adu

lterated o

bjectiv

e

"Rig

ht o

n," sh

e repeated

. Maceci-

beg

an to

cry. E

ldrid

ge p

icked

him

up. "H

e's angry. He w

as born angry —

like a real P

anth

er." W

hen Maceo quieted I m

entioned that A

rthur Goldberg and R

oy Wil-

kins were form

ing a comm

ittee to do som

e investigating of their own.

"An

d w

hat are th

ose d

ud

es go

-ing to investigate?"

"Th

e k

illing

of H

am

pto

n a

nd

C

lark

." - E

ldrid

ge scratch

ed h

is beard

and

sm

iled fo

r the first tim

e. "An

d th

ey

will w

ind up saying the police were

justified

in sh

ootin

g th

e bro

thers."

"Th

ey m

igh

t find

just th

e op

po

-site."

"It doesn't make m

uch difference w

hat they find. It's too late for their concern. T

he brothers are dead. All

that is left is the problem. T

he Pan-

ther is th

e solu

tion."

"Are

yo

u a

ware

of th

e g

reat

amount of sym

pathy that has sprung up am

ong even the black moderates

since the Chicago incident?"

"Sy

mp

athy

wo

n't sto

p b

ullets.

And w

e can't defend every black per- son in B

abylon. Right now

it's a big jo

b ju

st to k

eep o

urselv

es alive. It's

the b

roth

er's job

, and

righ

t, to d

e- fend his ow

n home. A

nd there's only one w

ay fo

r him

to d

o th

at. When

co

ps b

ust th

rou

gh

yo

ur d

oo

r, pu

t a g

un

in th

eir faces and

say, 'S

plit,

mo

ther!' T

here's altern

atives. C

all th

e U.N

., or th

e civil lib

erty b

oy

s, o

r the p

olice statio

n, an

d tell th

em

you're b

eing sh

ot u

p. T

hen

wait."

"What d

o th

e Pan

thers h

ave to

offer black m

oderates other than vi-

Ij

lilt I W

t11.:, III a

V

VC

cIlL

ily

where th

ere

had been several robber-ie

s late

ly. "D

o I lo

ok like

a ro

bber to

you?"

"All ro

bbers

don't g

o a

round

wearin

g little

bla

ck masks," h

e sa

id.

"And a

ll robbers d

on't g

o a

round

we

arin

g b

lack fa

ces," I co

un

tere

d.

As I re

ach

ed fo

r my w

alle

t to p

rove

o

nce

ag

ain

tha

t I wa

sn't a

crimin

al,

his h

an

d in

che

d to

wa

rd h

is gu

n.

"Yo

u tw

o a

re p

retty

jum

py," I

said

, pullin

g o

ut m

y LIF

E ca

rd.

I ha

ve

alw

ays tu

ne

d o

ut a

t the

te

rm "p

ig." B

ut w

hen th

ose

two fa

t fa

ces re

dd

en

ed

at th

e sig

ht o

f tha

t ca

rd, I to

o g

ot th

e im

ag

e—

ve

ry

clea

rly. I turn

ed

an

d w

alke

d o

ff. "S

orry

, Mr. P

ark

s." I k

ept w

alk

-in

g. "J

ust d

oin

g o

ur jo

b. T

ryin

g to

p

rote

ct y

ou

. Me

rry C

hris

tma

s." I

iicalt L

uasu It

WcIN

w

et,

IN iiiu

y a

liu

unusu

ally co

ld fo

r Alg

iers. H

e w

as

slumped in a chair, his legs stretched

ou

t, the

infa

nt s

lun

g a

cro

ss h

is

sho

uld

er. H

e g

en

tly ma

ssag

ed

the

boy's b

ack. In

the so

ft, rain

-filtere

d

light from the sea, he looked like any

oth

er fa

the

r trying

to b

urp

his ch

ild.

But h

is min

d w

as o

n a

tragic, m

ore

vio

lent th

ing—

the killin

g o

f his fe

l-lo

w P

anth

ers, F

red H

am

pto

n a

nd

Mark C

lark, b

y Chica

go p

olice

. "It w

as co

ld-b

loo

de

d m

urd

er," h

e sa

id

in a

low

, caustic to

ne.

I ha

nd

ed

him

som

e clip

pin

gs fro

m

the A

merica

n p

ress, m

ost o

f which

, I fe

lt, con

de

mn

ed

the

po

lice a

ction

in

the

killin

gs. C

lea

ve

r sta

rted

to

read a

nd I w

atch

ed fo

r som

e typ

e

of re

actio

n. A

s his e

yes m

ove

d o

ver

the p

rint h

is dark fa

ce w

as im

mo-

gliclg

eb. 1

Ile all ge liv

ing ro

om

-ne

o-

room

in w

hic

h I h

ad le

ft Eld

ridge

was th

e g

ath

erin

g p

oin

t. T

here

was ve

ry little la

ughte

r in

that house. Too m

any brothers were

in co

ffins o

r priso

ns. T

he co

ld e

ve-

nin

gs w

ere

spe

nt ta

lking

of frie

nd

s, re

volu

tion a

nd d

eath

, thin

king a

nd

pla

nn

ing

to O

tis Re

dd

ing

's blu

es, to

E

lain

e B

row

n's p

rote

st songs a

nd to

th

e so

ul-stirrin

gs o

f Are

tha

Fra

nklin

a

nd

Jam

es B

row

n. It w

as th

e clu

t-te

red

, tem

po

rary sh

elte

r of a

bla

ck m

an in

exile

—w

here

bags s

tay

packe

d a

nd a

ll pre

cious th

ings a

re

made p

orta

ble

.

Cle

ave

r ha

d fin

ishe

d re

ad

ing

the

clip

pin

gs w

he

n I re

turn

ed

. "We

ll, w

ha

t do

you

thin

k?" I sa

id.

"Cra

p. U

na

du

ltera

ted

ob

jective

cra

p. S

o w

e h

ave

to b

e sh

ot u

p a

nd

m

urd

ere

d in

our h

om

es b

efo

re p

eo-

ple

be

co

me

ind

ign

an

t. We

ha

ve

ch

arg

ed th

e p

olice

with

am

bush

and

murd

er o

ver a

nd o

ver a

gain

. Now

, a

fter 2

8 m

urd

ers, p

eo

ple

are

takin

g

a look. What are w

e supposed to do, pra

y for d

elive

rance

?" H

e a

sked th

e

questio

n in

a s

oft, d

ispassio

nate

voic

e, th

en a

nsw

ere

d it h

imself.

"Their d

eath

s w

ill have to

be

ave

ng

ed

. Th

e co

ps w

ho

mu

rde

red

th

em

must b

e p

unish

ed in

the sa

me

way th

ey c

om

mitte

d th

e c

rime."

"Rig

ht o

n, P

ap

a R

ag

e," K

ath

lee

n

snapped. H

er b

lue-g

reen e

yes w

ere

sm

old

erin

g b

eneath

a g

reat co

pper-

colo

red b

ush

y Afro

. Her fa

ce, p

ale

, stro

ng

an

d in

ten

se, re

vea

led

a fe

ar-

lessn

ess e

qu

al to

he

r hu

sba

nd

's.

Wounded in a 1968 O

akland police am

bush in which another P

anther w

as killed, Cleaver w

as taken away

in a police ambulance. S

tate au-thorities then re

voke

d h

is pa

role

. .

that is

lel t is

the p

roble

m. T

he P

an-

the

r is the so

lutio

n."

"Are

yo

u a

wa

re o

f the

gre

at

amount of sym

pathy that has sprung up am

ong even the black moderates

since the Chicago incident?"

"Sym

path

y w

on't s

top b

ulle

ts.

And w

e can't defend every black per-so

n in

Babylo

n. R

ight n

ow

it's a b

ig

job ju

st to ke

ep o

urse

lves a

live. It's

the

bro

the

r's job

, an

d rig

ht, to

de

-fend his ow

n home. A

nd there's only o

ne

wa

y for h

im to

do

tha

t. Wh

en

co

ps b

ust th

rou

gh

you

r do

or,, p

ut a

g

un

in th

eir fa

ce

s a

nd

sa

y, 'S

plit,

moth

er!' T

here

's alte

rnative

s. Call

the

U.N

., or th

e c

ivil lib

erty

bo

ys,

or th

e p

olice

statio

n, a

nd

tell th

em

yo

u're

be

ing

sho

t up

. Th

en

wa

it." "W

ha

t do

the

Pa

nth

ers h

ave

to

offe

r bla

ck mo

de

rate

s oth

er th

an

vi-o

len

ce, o

r a fig

ht to

de

ath

?"

"No

thin

g. N

ot e

ven

con

do

len

ces,

for th

ey w

ill brin

g a

bout th

eir o

wn

death

s thro

ugh th

eir o

wn a

path

y." H

e g

ot u

p a

nd

mo

ve

d a

cro

ss th

e

room

. He is b

ig, w

ell o

ver six fe

et,

bro

ad

-sho

uld

ere

d a

nd

po

we

rfully

built. He m

oves with the brutal grace

of a

fighte

r. "Vio

lence

? O

ur p

eople

are program

med into w

orse violence by U

ncle

Sam

. Tell m

e, w

hy sh

ould

bla

ck boys h

ave

to g

o fig

ht K

ore

-ans and V

ietnamese boys, instead of

the Maddoxes, R

eagans and Wallac-

es a

t hom

e? A

craze

d w

hite

lunatic

can attack a black man on the street.

Bu

t wh

en

the

cop

s com

e th

ey first

club th

e 'vio

lent n

igger.' V

iole

nce

?

We

ha

te it. B

ut is it vio

len

t to sh

oo

t a co

p w

ho b

reaks in

to yo

ur h

om

e

be

nt o

n killin

g yo

u?

If so, th

e P

an

-th

ers a

re vio

lent."

I rem

em

bere

d th

at rig

ht a

fter th

e

murd

er o

f Martin

Luth

er K

ing,

Bla

ck Panth

ers sp

read th

rough th

e

ghetto

s c

autio

nin

g a

ngry

young

bla

cks ag

ain

st viole

nce

an

d rio

ting

. C

ON

TIN

UE

D

Nineteen m

en the Panthers list as `m

urdered' S

purg

eon W

inte

rs, 1

9, s

hot b

y

po

lice, C

hica

go

, No

vem

be

r 19

69

. In

quest ru

led it "ju

stifia

ble

."

Joh

n H

ug

gin

s, 23

, sho

t to d

ea

th,

UC

LA

lunch

room

, January 1

969.

Riv

al b

lack m

ilitan

ts c

on

vic

ted

.

Wa

lter P

op

e, 2

0, s

ho

t by p

o-

lice, L

os A

ngele

s, Octo

ber 1

969.

Inquest: "ju

stifia

ble

hom

icid

e."

Alp

rentice

Carte

r, 26, sh

ot, U

CLA

lu

nchro

om

, January

1969. R

i- va

l bla

ck milita

nts w

ere

con

victed

.

We

lton

Arm

stead

, 17, sh

ot b

y po

- lice, S

eattle, October 1969. Inquest

rule

d it "ju

stifia

ble

ho

mic

ide

."

Fre

d H

am

pto

n, 2

1, sh

ot b

y po

lice,

Ch

icag

o, D

ece

mb

er 1

96

9. In

qu

est

term

ed

it "justifia

ble

ho

mic

ide

."

Sid

ne

y Mille

r, 21

, sho

t by sto

re-

kee

pe

r, Se

attle

, No

vem

be

r 19

69

. T

he sto

reke

eper w

as n

ot ch

arg

ed.

Ma

rk C

lark

, 22

, sh

ot b

y p

olic

e,

Chica

go, D

ece

mber 1

969. In

quest

ca

lled

it "justifia

ble

ho

mic

ide

."

Tom

my L

ew

is, 18, sh

ot b

y police

, Los A

ngele

s, August 1

968. In

quest

rule

d it "ju

stifia

ble

ho

mic

ide

."

CO

NT

INU

ED

It only

giv

es th

e c

ops a

chance to

kill m

ore

of u

s, th

ey w

arn

ed

. An

d I

tho

ug

ht it s

ign

ifica

nt th

at a

fter a

stu

dy o

f viole

nce

, the L

em

berg

Cen-

ter a

t Bra

ndeis

Univ

ers

ity re

porte

d

that "o

f 381 ra

cia

l dis

ord

ers

occur-

ring

betw

ee

n J

an

ua

ry a

nd A

ug

ust

1969, o

nly

17 in

volv

ed B

lack P

an-

thers a

nd o

f those

17 o

nly e

ight w

ere

vio

lent co

nfro

nta

tions b

etw

een p

o-

lice a

nd

Bla

ck Pa

nth

ers."

But th

e p

olice

ha

ve d

em

ande

d th

e

Panth

ers' h

eads, a

nd th

e P

anth

ers

prid

efu

lly tell th

e p

olice

to co

me a

nd

. .

There

he w

rote

Soul on Ice, a

pow

-erfu

l and re

mark

ably

frank in

sig

ht

into

him

self. H

e h

ad b

een in

and o

ut

of ja

il since

he

wa

s 16

, an

d w

he

n h

e

left p

riso

n, a

t 31

, he

go

t invo

lve

d in

th

e b

lack re

volu

tion

, po

litics an

d th

e

Bla

ck P

an

the

r pa

rty.

"An

d fro

m th

en

on

," he

said

wist-

fully

, "the p

aro

le a

uth

oritie

s g

ave

me

mo

re tro

ub

le th

an

the

y did

wh

en

I w

as a

robber. T

he co

ps trie

d to

kill m

e o

ne n

ight in

a p

lanned a

mbush

. T

he

y m

urd

ere

d little

Bo

bb

y H

utto

n

inste

ad

. Th

ey sla

mm

ed

me

into

Va

-

These four policem

en died in

We

lton

Arm

stea

d, 1

7, sh

ot b

y po

- lice, S

eattle, October 1969. Inquest

rule

d it "ju

stifia

ble

ho

mic

ide

."

Fre

d H

am

pto

n, 2

1, sh

ot b

y police

, C

hica

go

, De

cem

be

r 19

69

. Inq

ue

st te

rme

d it "ju

stifia

ble

ho

mic

ide

."

Sid

ne

y Mille

r, 21

, sho

t by sto

re-

keeper, S

eattle

, Nove

mber 1

969.

Th

e sto

reke

ep

er w

as n

ot ch

arg

ed

.

Mark

Cla

rk, 2

2, s

hot b

y p

olic

e,

Chica

go, D

ece

mber 1

969. In

quest

calle

d it "ju

stifia

ble

hom

icid

e."

Tom

my L

ew

is, 18, sh

ot b

y police

, Los A

ngeles, August 1968. Inquest

rule

d it "ju

stifia

ble

hom

icid

e."

CO

NT

INU

ED

It only g

ives th

e co

ps a

chance

to

kill mo

re o

f us, th

ey w

arn

ed

. An

d I

thought it s

ignific

ant th

at a

fter a

stu

dy o

f viole

nce

, the

Le

mb

erg

Ce

n-

ter a

t Bra

ndeis U

nive

rsity reporte

d

that "o

f 381 ra

cial d

isord

ers o

ccur-

ring b

etw

een Ja

nuary a

nd A

ugust

1969, o

nly 1

7 in

volve

d B

lack P

an-

thers a

nd o

f those

l7 o

nly e

ight w

ere

vio

lent co

nfro

nta

tions b

etw

een p

o-

lice a

nd

Bla

ck Pa

nth

ers."

But th

e p

olice

have

dem

anded th

e

Panth

ers' h

eads, a

nd th

e P

anth

ers

prid

efu

lly tell th

e p

olice

to co

me a

nd

ge

t the

m. A

s I sat th

ere

with

Cle

av-

er, I th

ought th

at to

avo

id th

e e

ven

gre

ate

r trag

ed

y, all o

f us w

ou

ld h

ave

to

be

com

e m

ore

tha

n id

le w

itne

sses.

The p

olice

must b

e u

rged n

ot to

pro

-vo

ke th

e b

lack re

volu

tion in

to a

fe-

rocious blindness; the Panthers m

ust re

alize

that th

ey h

ave

em

erg

ed a

s a

vital p

art o

f ou

r figh

t, bu

t tha

t rea

-so

n, m

ore

tha

n to

ug

h rh

eto

ric, is the

ord

er o

f those

thousa

nds, b

lack o

r w

hite

, who w

ould

support u

s. Sure

-ly, I th

ou

gh

t, som

ew

he

re in

ou

r his-

tory o

f ha

tred

an

d d

ea

th fo

r on

e a

n-

other, there must be an even greater

pla

ce fo

r coura

ge a

nd lo

ve.

"Wha

t is the fu

ture

of th

e yo

ung

bla

ck man in

Am

erica

?" I

said. "R

ight n

ow

their fu

ture

is in th

e

hands of the Wallaces, A

gnews, N

ix-ons, R

eagans, M

cCle

llans a

nd th

eir

cops. T

he b

lack yo

uth

s in B

abylo

n

won't have a future unless they have

the

gu

ts to fig

ht fo

r it." S

o many tim

es during his own life,

I thought, C

leave

r has a

ppeare

d to

have

had n

o fu

ture

. He h

ad fo

und

him

self w

hile

behin

d p

rison w

alls.

There

he w

rote

So

ul o

n Ic

e, a

pow

-erfu

l and re

marka

bly fra

nk in

sight

into

him

self. H

e h

ad b

een in

and o

ut

of jail since he was 16, and w

hen he le

ft priso

n, a

t 31, h

e g

ot in

volve

d in

th

e b

lack re

volu

tion

, po

litics an

d th

e

Bla

ck Panth

er p

arty.

"And fro

m th

en o

n," h

e sa

id w

ist-fu

lly, "the

pa

role

au

tho

rities g

ave

m

e m

ore

trouble

than th

ey d

id w

hen

I wa

s a ro

bb

er. T

he

cop

s tried

to kill

me

on

e n

igh

t in a

pla

nn

ed

am

bu

sh.

They m

urd

ere

d little

Bobby H

utto

n

inste

ad. T

hey sla

mm

ed m

e in

to V

a-

caville

with

a s

hot-u

p le

g a

nd re

-vo

ked

my p

aro

le w

itho

ut a

he

arin

g."

1 was in

Califo

rnia

when S

uperio

r C

ourt Ju

dge R

aym

ond J. S

her-

win

free

d h

im o

n a

writ o

f ha

be

as

corp

us, o

bse

rving th

at C

leave

r had

be

en

a m

od

el p

aro

lee

. I told

Cle

av-

er th

at I

was su

rprise

d a

t this ru

ling

—sin

ce th

e a

uth

oritie

s from

Reagan

on d

ow

n h

ad lin

ed u

p a

gain

st him

. "T

hat d

idn't sto

p th

em

," he w

ent

on. "T

hey tru

mped u

p so

me m

ore

charges and ordered m

e back to pris-on. I kn

ew

that if I

went back to pris-

on I w

ould

be k

illed. S

o I s

plit."

Now

, desp

ite su

ggestio

ns th

at, fo

r his o

wn sa

fety, h

e p

rolo

ng h

is "va-

catio

n fro

m B

abylo

n," C

leave

r told

m

e, "I'm

goin

g b

ack h

om

e to

San

Fra

ncisco

. Tw

o-se

ven

-seve

n-se

ven

P

ine is m

y addre

ss. Nobody is g

o-

ing

to ke

ep

me

aw

ay fro

m it."

I aske

d h

im if h

e co

uld

n't d

o th

e

pa

rty mo

re g

oo

d b

y writin

g fro

m A

l-g

iers, citin

g a

s an

exa

mp

le th

e tre

-m

en

do

us sa

le o

f his b

oo

ks ba

ck in

the S

tate

s. He b

ristled. "Y

ou ca

n't

figh

t pig

s with

elo

qu

en

ce. I've

go

t to

physica

lly com

mit m

yself."

If he co

mes b

ack, a

nd I a

m su

re

he w

ill, I belie

ve it is

to a

void

an-

oth

er kin

d o

f de

ath

. Th

e d

ea

th in

-side him

in exile is as bad as the other kin

d o

f death

I fear a

waits h

im b

ack

he

re. C

lea

ver is a

rmo

red

with

the

bru

tal tru

th o

f Panth

er h

isto

ry, o

f hard

streets a

nd to

ugh p

risons. Y

et

a b

asic n

aive

té m

ake

s him

vuln

er-

able

at tim

es. "D

o yo

u th

ink R

ea-

gan a

nd h

is c

ops re

ally

want m

e

back?" he asked me w

ith all serious-n

ess, "o

r do

you

thin

k the

y wo

uld

sle

ep b

ette

r if I staye

d lo

st?"

I did

n't kn

ow

. "Bu

t do

you

wa

nt

them

to sle

ep b

ette

r?" I a

sked.

"I want th

em

in a

consta

nt sta

te

of nightmare," he answ

ered icily. He

sat d

ow

n, lit a

noth

er cig

are

tte a

nd

crosse

d h

is legs. T

hen, e

yein

g m

e

close

ly, he

told

me

tha

t the

Bla

ck P

anth

ers w

ould

like fo

r me to

join

th

eir p

arty. "Y

ou

cou

ld se

rve a

s a

min

ister o

f info

rmatio

n." I sp

ent a

n

un

co

mfo

rtab

le m

om

en

t thin

kin

g

that o

ne o

ver. "A

lot o

f young ca

ts w

ould

be g

lad to

follo

w yo

u in

." "I'm

honore

d," I fin

ally

said

, "b

ut—

" "W

e n

ee

d yo

u m

ore

tha

n th

e E

s-ta

blish

ment d

oes."

"I'm h

on

ore

d," I re

pe

ate

d, "b

ut

you

mu

st rea

lize th

at a

s a jo

urn

alist

I'd lo

se o

bje

ctiv

ity." O

bje

ctiv

ity, I

thought, the word he hated so m

uch. "I h

ave

thin

gs I w

an

t to re

po

rt to

These four policem

en died in

John Frey, 23, shot arresting H

uey N

ew

ton, O

akla

nd, 1

967. N

ew

ton

was co

nvicte

d o

f mansla

ughte

r.

Fra

ncis R

appaport, 3

2, in

Chica

- go g

un b

attle

, Nove

mber, 1

969.

A P

an

the

r cha

rge

d w

ith m

urd

er.

22

gunfights with the Panthers

MI A

A

IIli N

ath

an

ial C

lark, 1

9, sh

ot b

y wife

, w

ho P

anth

ers sa

y is police

agent,

in L

os A

ngele

s, Septe

mber 1

969.

Air

La

rry Ro

be

rson

, 20

, sho

t by C

hi-

cago p

olic

e, J

uly

1969, d

ied in

S

ep

tem

be

r. Jud

ge

d "ju

stifiab

le."

iii1111=111 R

obert L

aw

rence

, 22, sh

ot b

y po-

lice, L

os A

ngele

s, A

ugust 1

968.

Inq

ue

st ru

led

it "justifia

ble

."

Arth

ur M

orris

, 28, s

hot in

1968

Los A

ngele

s gun fig

ht n

ot in

volv-

ing p

olice

. No o

ne w

as ch

arg

ed.

Ale

x Ra

ckley, 2

4, to

rture

d, sh

ot,

New

Haven, C

onn., M

ay 1

969.

Panthers are charged w

ith murder.

Jo

hn

Gilh

oo

ly, 2

1, s

ho

t gu

n b

at-

tle in

Chic

ago, N

ovem

ber 1

969.

A P

anth

er c

harg

ed w

ith m

urd

er.

as b

ig a

n a

udie

nce a

s p

ossib

le."

"I'm m

ore

concern

ed a

bout

young stro

ng ca

ts follo

win

g yo

u in

to

the p

arty

." He h

ad m

e th

inkin

g

—back to

the in

flexib

le M

alco

lm X

. C

leaver was proving to be even m

ore in

tran

sige

nt—

the

mo

st un

com

pro

-m

ising in

divid

ual I e

ver m

et.

I exp

lain

ed th

at m

y inte

rests g

o

be

yon

d th

ose

of th

e B

lack P

an

the

rs, to

oth

er m

inoritie

s a

nd fa

ctio

ns o

f th

e b

lack m

ove

me

nt w

ho

wa

nt

change. He eased off, suggesting that

we le

ave

it open. I w

ondere

d w

heth

-er h

e fe

lt my p

ositio

n w

as a

cre

d-

itable

one. L

ookin

g b

ack to

that m

o-

ment I fin

d th

at I a

m d

isple

ase

d w

ith

my a

nsw

er. I sh

ou

ld h

ave

said

: Bo

th

of u

s a

re c

aught u

p in

the tru

th o

f

the b

lack m

an's o

rdeal. B

oth

of u

s are possessed by that truth w

hich we

de

fine

thro

ug

h se

pa

rate

exp

erie

nce

. H

ow

we

cho

ose

to a

ct it ou

t is the

only d

iffere

nce

. You re

cognize

my

scars a

nd I a

cknow

ledge yo

urs. Y

ou

are 35. I am 57. W

e meet over a deep

chasm

of tim

e, th

e e

vents o

f which

fo

rged d

iffere

nt w

eapons fo

r us. If I

we

re 2

0 ye

ars o

ld n

ow

I wo

uld

pro

b-

ably b

e a

Bla

ck Panth

er. I re

mem

-ber a

s a kid

I alw

ays to

ok th

e first

lick befo

re I fo

ught b

ack. B

ut a

fist is n

ot a

bu

llet. I to

o w

ou

ld sh

oo

t a

cop, o

r anyo

ne e

lse, w

ho fo

rced h

is w

ay in

to m

y ho

use

to kill m

e. Y

ou

a

re riskin

g e

veryth

ing

by g

oin

g b

ack

to ch

alle

nge a

system

we b

oth

dis-

like. I w

ill contin

ue to

fight a

lso, b

ut

on m

y te

rms. I p

refe

r to c

hange

thin

gs w

ithout vio

lence

—pro

vidin

g

violence is not thrust upon me. If this

is y

ou

r po

sitio

n, to

o, th

en

yo

ur

weapons a

nd m

ine a

re n

ot a

s irrec-

oncila

ble

as yo

u m

ight th

ink.

Cle

ave

r went o

n: "B

lack p

eople

a

re a

fraid

to jo

in a

milita

nt g

rou

p.

Th

ey're

afra

id th

e co

ps w

ill sho

ot

them

. That's ju

st why w

e m

ade th

e

cops o

ur p

olitica

l targ

et—

to p

rove

to

the b

roth

er th

at co

ps a

re ju

st fat,

gristle

and b

lood."

I asked him w

hat chances the Pan-

thers h

ad a

gain

st the o

verw

helm

ing

police

pow

er. "If w

e w

orrie

d a

bout

the odds, we w

ould be defeated from

the sta

rt," he sa

id.

It was d

usk. K

ath

leen b

rought in

a

bow

l of la

mb s

tew

. Cle

aver

reach

ed o

ver a

nd sp

ooned a

mouth

-fu

l, talkin

g a

ll the w

hile

. "We w

on't

be a

lone. A

lot o

f white

s rela

te to

th

e sa

me

issue

s tha

t we

do

. Th

ey're

ju

st as u

ptig

ht. T

he E

stablish

ment

will h

ave

to d

eal w

ith th

em

as w

ell.

Enough te

ar g

as a

nd h

ead w

hip

pin

g

will e

stablish

the co

mm

on e

nem

y." "D

o yo

u w

elco

me w

hite

s to th

e

fight?

" "O

f course. There has to be som

e in

terco

nnectio

n. W

e h

ope th

rough

som

e s

ort o

f coalitio

n to

brin

g a

ch

ange fo

r eve

ryone. I ju

st don't b

e-

lieve

that m

ost w

hite

s will sta

nd b

y and se

e a

min

ority w

iped o

ut w

ith-

out tryin

g to

put a

stop to

it." "A

nd th

e C

om

munists?

There

are

a lo

t of re

ports th

at th

ey a

re tryin

g

to in

filtrate

your p

arty."

"Bla

ck people

don't n

eed C

orn

-

munists to

teach

them

about tro

u-

ble

. The ja

ils in B

abylo

n p

roduce

m

ore rebels and revolutionaries than th

e C

om

munis

ts c

ould

dre

am

of

pro

du

cing

ba

ck the

re. A

n in

cred

ible

num

ber o

f those

rebels a

re b

lack,

and th

eir n

um

bers a

re g

row

ing b

y th

e h

our. W

e a

re o

ut to

tear d

ow

n

the s

yste

m n

ot w

ith fire

, not w

ith

gu

ns—

bu

t with

solid

po

litical a

nd

scie

ntific kn

ow

-how

. If it com

es to

guerrilla

warfa

re, in

div

iduals

will

die

. But in

div

idual tra

gedy c

an't

blo

ck libera

tion fo

r the m

asse

s." "A

nd

wh

at w

ill yo

u b

uild

in th

e

rubble

?"

"Socia

l justice

. If the b

lacks to

ok

pow

er to

morro

w a

nd tre

ate

d th

e

white

s like th

e w

hite

s have

treate

d

us for 400 years, I'd try to crush them

too. W

e p

rom

ise to

repla

ce ra

cism

with

racia

l solid

arity. T

here

are

no

bette

r weapons. W

e a

re d

isciplin

ed

revo

lutio

narie

s who h

ate

viole

nce

. T

hat's w

hy w

e a

im to

stop it a

t our

front and back doors. Then w

e won't

have

to w

orry a

bout o

ur ch

ildre

n d

y-in

g in

blo

od-d

rench

ed b

eds."

That n

ight I le

ft Cle

ave

r on a

wet,

win

d-sw

ep

t stree

t. It wa

s stran

ge

th

at h

is last w

ord

s were

about so

-cia

l justice

, the kin

d th

at is irre

spec-

tive o

f a m

an's

colo

r. I thought

about o

ther b

rilliant y

oung b

lack

men like

Sto

kely C

arm

ichael, M

al-

colm

X a

nd M

artin

Luth

er K

ing,

one s

elf-e

xile

d, tw

o lo

ng s

ince

gunned d

ow

n. I co

uld

n't h

elp

but

feel that Cleaver's prom

ise, like their dre

am

s, would

go u

nfu

lfilled. S

ocia

l ju

stice, it se

em

s, is much

more

dif-

ficult to

com

e b

y than m

artyrd

om

. ■

23

Ne

lson

Sa

sscer, 2

4, sh

ot, S

an

ta

Ana, C

alif., J

une 1

969. P

anth

er

was a

ccuse

d, is still a

waitin

g tria

l.

Sylvester B

ell, 34, beaten and shot, S

an D

iego, A

ugust 1

969. R

ival

black militants have been accused.

Bobby H

utton, 17, shot by police, O

aklan

d, A

pril 1

968. G

rand ju

ry

rule

d it 'ju

stifiable

hom

icid

e."

Stev

e Barth

olo

mew

, 21, sh

ot b

y

police, Los A

ngeles, August 1968.

Inquest ru

led it "ju

stifiable

."

John S

avag

e, 21, sh

ot o

n S

an D

i- eg

o street in

May

1969.

Riv

al

black

militan

t is awaitin

g trial.

Fran

k D

igg

s, 40

, fou

nd

sho

t to

death

in L

ong B

each, C

alif., De-

cember 1968. A

ssailant unknown.

Nathanial C

lark, 19, shot by wife,

who P

anth

ers say is p

olice ag

ent,

in L

os A

ngeles, S

eptem

ber 1

969.

Larry

Roberso

n, 2

0, sh

ot b

y C

hi-

cago p

olice, Ju

ly 1

96

9, d

ied in

S

eptem

ber. Ju

dged

"justifiab

le."

Robert L

awren

ce, 22, sh

ot b

y p

o-

lice, Los A

ngeles, A

ugust 1

968.

Inquest ru

led it "ju

stifiable

."

Arth

ur M

orris, 2

8, sh

ot in

1968

Los A

ngeles gun fight not involv- in

g p

olice. N

o o

ne w

as charg

ed.

Alex

Rack

ley, 2

4, to

rtured

, shot,

New

Hav

en, C

onn., M

ay 1

969.

Panthers are charged w

ith murder.

gunfights with the Panthers

on m

y te

rms. I p

refe

r to c

hange

things without violence—

providing violence is not thrust upon m

e. If this is y

our p

ositio

n, to

o, th

en y

our

weap

ons an

d m

ine are n

ot as irrec-

oncilable as you might think.

Cleav

er wen

t on: "B

lack p

eople

are afraid to

join

a militan

t gro

up.

They

're afraid th

e cops w

ill shoot

them

. That's ju

st why w

e mad

e the

cop

s ou

r po

litical target—

to p

rov

e to

the b

roth

er that co

ps are ju

st fat, gristle an

d b

lood."

I asked

him

what ch

ances th

e Pan

--

munists to

teach th

em ab

out tro

u-

ble. T

he jails in

Bab

ylo

n p

roduce

more rebels and revolutionaries than

the C

om

munists co

uld

dream

of

producing back there. An incredible

num

ber o

f those reb

els are black

, an

d th

eir num

bers are g

row

ing b

y

the h

our. W

e are out to

tear dow

n

the sy

stem n

ot w

ith fire, n

ot w

ith

guns—

but w

ith so

lid p

olitical an

d

scientific know-how

. If it comes to

guerrilla w

arfare, indiv

iduals w

ill die. B

ut in

div

idual trag

edy can

't block liberation fo

r the m

asse

s."

Inside Black P

anther national head-quarters in

Berk

eley (left), P

anth

er L

aury

n W

illiams frisk

s a wh

ite girl

visito

r for arm

s, or d

op

e that m

igh

t

be p

lanted

to p

rov

ok

e a po

lice raid.

In a San F

rancisco warehouse, volun-

teers work on T

he B

lack P

anth

er, the

party

's new

spap

er and p

ropag

anda

organ. Each w

eek 100,000 copies are d

istribu

ted n

ation

ally an

d o

verseas.

him

a b

attle

pla

n d

raw

n u

p b

y the B

erke

ley

po

lice fo

r an

assa

ult o

n th

e n

atio

na

l Pa

n-

ther h

eadquarte

rs: "Assig

n tw

o-m

an sq

uad

to fro

nt w

ith sh

otg

un

(solid

slug

s) an

d a

r-m

or-p

iercin

g rifle

to b

last a

rmo

r pla

te o

ff upper w

indow

s.... Use

bucksh

ot to

shoot

out a

ll low

er w

indow

s. Use

rifle slu

gs to

try and k

nock o

pen m

ain

front d

oor. ... A

s-

sault sq

uad (th

ree m

en) a

rmed w

ith su

b-

machin

e g

uns . . . e

nte

r build

ing. . . .

Tw

o m

en ... fire

30 ro

unds e

ach

thro

ugh

seco

nd-sto

ry floor a

nd re

load. ... T

he e

n-

tire building should be flooded with tear gas.

The e

ntire

upper flo

or sh

ould

be co

vere

d

with

inte

nse

fire.... A

ssault sq

uad w

ill then

pro

ceed u

psta

irs a

nd b

ring d

ow

n th

e

wo

un

de

d a

nd

/or d

ea

d." B

erke

ley P

olice

C

hief Bruce B

aker said he had not seen the p

lan

, bu

t ad

mitte

d it w

as "p

rob

ab

ly th

e

work o

f our se

rgeants." S

o fa

r that a

ttack

ha

sn

't co

me

. "Bu

t," sa

ys P

ark

s, "it w

as

so m

uch

like th

e o

ne in

Chica

go th

at d

id

ha

pp

en

—e

xcep

t for th

e te

ar g

as—

tha

t I co

uld

n't g

et it o

ut o

f my m

ind

. I sat in

the

P

anthers' headquarters and looked at floors w

here

60 ro

unds w

ere

to b

urst th

rough, a

t

Atto

rne

y Ch

arle

s Ga

rry, wh

om

the

P

anthers call "the White P

anther" be-cause he has defended so m

any of th

em

in co

urt, co

nfe

rs with

Bo

bb

y S

eale in a San F

rancisco jail. Above,

Seale's w

ife Artie and their son M

alik, 3, visit B

erkeley headquarters, where

Mrs. S

eale remains an active P

anther.

says P

arks, "yo

u h

ave

to u

ndersta

nd ra

c-ism

as a

bla

ck ma

n kn

ow

s it. Th

eir e

ne

my

is the

po

lice. A

nd

if you

are

pa

rt of th

at si-

len

t ma

jority th

at w

an

ts the

po

lice to

wip

e

them

out, th

en yo

u a

re th

eir e

nem

y too."

Le

ss tha

n fo

ur ye

ars o

ld, th

e P

an

the

r or-

ga

niz

atio

n is

alre

ad

y ric

h in

leg

en

d. In

B

erke

ley, D

avid

Hillia

rd d

escrib

ed

to P

arks

the

first con

fron

tatio

n b

etw

ee

n p

olice

an

d

Hu

ey N

ew

ton

, the

Pa

nth

ers' ch

arism

atic

founder. A

rmed w

ith a

n M

-I and a

law

book, N

ew

ton h

ad fa

ced d

ow

n se

ven co

ps

in fro

nt o

f a b

lack s

tree

t cro

wd

. "Hu

ey

did

what th

ose

people

had w

ante

d to

do

for a

lon

g tim

e. H

e to

ld a

bu

nch

of co

ps

that h

e w

as th

rough b

ein

g kicke

d a

round

by th

em

. Th

e b

lack b

roth

ers g

ot th

e m

es-

sage. S

o d

id th

e co

ps."

New

ton is n

ow

in p

rison. S

o is B

obby

Seale, a P

anther leader who, as a defendant

in th

e C

hica

go

con

spira

cy trial, w

as se

n-

tence

d to

four ye

ars fo

r conte

mpt a

nd a

t one p

oin

t was o

rdere

d b

ound a

nd g

agged

in court by Judge Julius Hoffm

an. Seale also

is fightin

g e

xtraditio

n to

Connecticu

t where

th

ere

is a m

urd

er ch

arg

e a

gain

st him

. P

arks in

tervie

wed S

eale

in a

San F

ran-

cis

co

jail. "O

ur g

oa

ls," S

ea

le to

ld h

im,

"are

the

sam

e o

ne

s the

wh

ite m

an

figh

ts fo

r. A d

ece

nt e

duca

tion fo

r our ch

ildre

n,

good jobs, good housing. We have a break-

fast p

rog

ram

to fe

ed

po

or kid

s. We

wo

rk fo

r vote

r registra

tion so

that e

ventu

ally w

e

can w

rest c

ontro

l of b

lack c

om

munitie

s

from

the p

olice

. In fa

ct we w

ant ju

st about

the

sam

e th

ing

s Ma

rtin L

uth

er K

ing

wa

nt-

ed. It's o

nly o

ur ta

ctics that d

iffer. T

here

are

som

e stre

et cro

ssings in

bla

ck neig

h-

bo

rho

od

s tha

t ne

ed

traffic lig

hts. O

ur kid

s h

ave

to ru

n like

he

ll to ke

ep

from

ge

tting

h

it. We

'll he

lp th

em

ge

t acro

ss safe

ly eve

n

if we h

ave

to u

se g

uns."

Pa

rks fou

nd

the

sam

e co

ntra

st be

twe

en

vicio

us rh

eto

ric and e

arn

est g

oals in

all

the

gro

up

s he

visited

. He

also

no

ted

tha

t P

an

the

r influ

en

ce is sp

rea

din

g in

the

bla

ck com

munity

. "At firs

t I thought m

y s

on

Jam

es w

as ju

st infa

tuate

d w

ith th

e b

lack

leath

er ja

cket a

nd b

ere

t,- M

rs. D

oro

thy

Wood, th

e m

iddle

-class m

oth

er o

f a re

cruit,

told

him

. "But a

fter h

e e

xpla

ined a

bout th

e

bre

akfa

st pro

gra

m a

nd so

me o

f the o

ther

aims it w

as easier for me to accept. N

atural-ly I w

orry fo

r his sa

fety. H

e's b

ee

n a

rreste

d

thre

e tim

es, ju

st fo

r sellin

g th

e P

anth

er

new

spaper. T

hey d

ropped th

e ch

arg

es, b

ut

it'll pro

ba

bly

ha

pp

en

ag

ain

ne

xt w

ee

k."

25

We w

ant the same things King

wanted. O

ur tactics are different' R

eturning from A

lgiers, Parks sought out

Panthers in the U

.S. to see how

the orga-nization w

orks and to get a sense of why

young blacks join it. In California D

avid H

illiard, the Panther chief of staff, show

ed him

a battle plan drawn up by the B

erkeley police for an assault on the national P

an-ther headquarters: "A

ssign two-m

an squad to front w

ith shotgun (solid slugs) and ar-m

or-piercing rifle to blast armor plate off

upper window

s. . . . Use buckshot to shoot

out all lower w

indows. U

se rifle slugs to try an

d k

no

ck o

pen

main

fron

t do

or. .. . A

s-sau

lt squad

(three m

en) arm

ed w

ith su

b-

mach

ine g

uns . . . en

ter build

ing. . . .

Tw

o men . . . fire 30 rounds each through

second-story floor and reload. . . . The en-

tire building should be flooded with tear gas.

The entire upper floor should be covered

with intense fire.. .. A

ssault squad will then

pro

ceed u

pstairs an

d b

ring d

ow

n th

e w

ounded and /or dead." Berkeley P

olice C

hief Bruce B

aker said he had not seen the plan

, but ad

mitted

it was "p

robab

ly th

e w

ork of our sergeants." So far that attack

hasn

't com

e. "But," say

s Park

s, "it was

so much like the one in C

hicago that did hap

pen

—ex

cept fo

r the tear g

as—th

at I couldn't get it out of m

y mind. I sat in the

Panthers' headquarters and looked at floors

where 60 rounds w

ere to burst through, at

window

s that buckshot would blast out."

The fear o

f surp

rise attack is a fact o

f life for the P

anthers and helps explain their conviction that the w

hole white w

orld is against them

. "To understand these kids,"

says Parks, "you have to understand rac-

ism as a black m

an knows it. T

heir enemy

is the police. And if you are part of that si-

lent majority that w

ants the police to wipe

them out, then you are their enem

y too." L

ess than four years old, the Panther or-

gan

ization is alread

y rich

in leg

end. In

B

erkeley, David H

illiard described to Parks

the first confrontation between police and

Huey

New

ton, th

e Pan

thers' ch

arismatic

fou

nd

er. Arm

ed w

ith an

M-1

and

a law

book, New

ton had faced down seven cops

in fro

nt o

f a black

street crow

d. "H

uey

d

id w

hat th

ose p

eop

le had

wan

ted to

do

fo

r a long tim

e. He to

ld a b

unch

of co

ps

that he was through being kicked around

by them. T

he black brothers got the mes-

sage. So did the cops."

New

ton is n

ow

in p

rison. S

o is B

obby

Seale, a P

anther leader who, as a defendant

in the Chicago conspiracy trial, w

as sen-ten

ced to

four y

ears for co

ntem

pt an

d at

one point was ordered bound and gagged

in court by Judge Julius Hoffm

an. Seale also

is fighting extradition to Connecticut w

here there is a m

urder charge against him.

Parks interview

ed Seale in a S

an Fran-

cisco jail. "O

ur g

oals," S

eale told

him

, "are th

e same o

nes th

e white m

an fig

hts

for.• A decent education for our children,

good jobs, good housing. We have a break-

fast program to feed poor kids. W

e work

rnr v

nfP

r rea

ktra

tinn

cn

th

at e

ventlin

fly

In th

eir c

hapte

r headquarte

rs in

San

Fran

cisco, fiv

e Pan

thers stare straig

ht

into

Park

s's camera. "A

fter 400 y

ears

of s

truggle

and d

eath

," says C

hie

f of

Sta

ff David

Hillia

rd (c

ente

r), "revo-

lutio

n is

the o

nly

thin

g le

ft. - T

he P

an-

thers

are

care

ful to

dis

tineuis

h b

e-

In th

eir ch

ap

ter h

ea

dq

ua

rters in

Sa

n

Fra

ncisco

, five P

anth

ers sta

re stra

ight

into

Pa

rks's cam

era

. "Afte

r 400 ye

ars

of stru

gg

le a

nd

de

ath

," says C

hie

f of

Sta

ll David

Hillia

rd (c

ente

r), "revo-

lutio

n is th

e o

nly th

ing le

ft." The P

an-

the

rs a

re c

are

ful to

dis

ting

uis

h b

e-

twe

en rio

t—w

hich

they fe

el th

e w

hite

com

munity

will a

ccept, s

o lo

ng a

s it

occu

rs in th

e g

he

tto—

an

d re

volu

tion

, w

hic

h im

plie

s a

far m

ore

sw

eepin

g

an

d vio

len

t, bu

t pe

culia

rly Am

erica

n,

change. "It w

on't b

e a

revo

lutio

n like

th

ose in

Chin

a, R

ussia

, Cuba o

r Af-

rica," B

obby S

eale

told

Park

s. "J

ust

a Y

an

kee

Do

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