Introduction

The UC Berkeley Social Activism Sound Recording Project is a partnership between the UC Berkeley Library, the Pacifica Foundation, and other private and institutional sources. The intent of the project is to gather, catalog, and make accessible primary source media resources related to social activism and activist movements in California in the 1960's and 1970's. Some recordings have been slightly edited for purposes of sound quality and continuity.

Sound files in this collection require the Real Media player:

Get it here

A Black Panther Chronology

Videos about the Black Panthers in the UCB Media Resources Center

Black Panthers site via California Heritage Project

Revolutionary Suicide: Controlling the Myth of Huey Newton

Black Panther Newspaper Collection (Maoist International Movement)

Year:

1960 | 1961 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969
1970 | 1971 |1972 | 1973 | 1974 |1975 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1986 | 1988 | 1989
1990 | 1993 | 1995 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999
2000 | 2001 | 2002 | Sources

"On February 1, 1960 group of black college students from North Carolina A&T University refused to leave a Woolworth's lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina where they had been denied service. This sparked a wave of other sit-ins in college towns across the South. The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, or SNCC...was created on the campus of Shaw University in Raleigh two months later to coordinate these sit-ins, support their leaders, and publicize their activities." [from ibiblio SNCC web site]

Oral histories, interviews, and songs related to SNCC via ibiblio SNCC web site

Huey Newton, a black militant activist student, meets Bobby Seale while attending Merritt College (Oakland, California). Both join the Afro-American Association, a black cultural organization led by Donald Warden.

At 3:10 P.M., just after he has begun to address an Organisation of Afro-American Unity (OAAU) rally at the Audubon Ballroom in Harlem, Malcolm X is shot several times; a black male later identified as Talmadge Hayer (a.k.a. Thomas Hagan) is arrested. Malcolm is taken to Columbia Presbyterian Hospital where he is pronounced dead on arrival. (see Malcolm X Research site chronology)

Lowndes County Freedom Organization, an independent political party in rural Mississippi, adopts the symbol of the black panther for its organization. Among the organizers of the group was Stokely Carmichael, a former Howard University student civil rights activist, who had been involved in Mississippi voter registration activities as a member of the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC).

Huey Newton's mentor, Donald Warden, creates Economic Night in a storefront located next door to the future Black Panther Party office on Grove Street, Oakland.

Berkeley police interupt an impromptu street corner poety recitation, resulting in the arrest of Bobby Seale, Huey P. Newton, and Gerald Horton (Rafeeq Naji); Charges are later dropped.

Stokely Carmichael elected Chair of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC).

500 people gather at San Francisco City Hall to protest arrest of sit-in demonstrators in 1964 at the Sheraton-Palace Hotel (in protest of unfair hiring practices)

Race-related rioting breaks out in forty-three US cities including Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Atlanta, and detroit; over 3,500 are arrested, and 7 killed.

Huey P. Newton, Bobby Seale and David Hilliard developed a skeletal outline for this organization. They finalize a draft of the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense 10 Point Program and Platform and founding of the Black Panther Party of Self Defense.

Photo of the six original members of the Black Panther Party for Self Defense (via Bobby Seale web site)

Eldridge Cleaver is released from Folsom Prision, paroled in San Francisco. Joins staff of Ramparts Magazine .

Sixteen year old Bobby Hutton becomes first male recruit of the Black Panther Party.

BPP opens first official headquarters in a storefront at 56th and Grove Streets in Oakland, Calif.; Kenny Freeman and Roy Ballard organize the Black Panther Party of Northern California in San Francisco.

Eldridge Cleaver joins the Panthers

Two years after the assassination of Malcolm X, armed BPP members are confronted by police outside the San Francisco offices of Ramparts magazine while escorting his widow, Betty Shabazz.

Black Panther United Front organizes demonstration and rally against the Vietnam war at the United Nations, New York.

Publication of first issue of Black Panther Party: Black Community News Service, the party's official news organ.

H. Rap Brown succeeds Stokely Carmichael as national chair of SNCC. Brown had first joined SNCC while attending Southern University (1960 to 1964). He became Alabama project director in 1966.

26 Panthers, lead by Bobby Seale, arrested in Sacramento, CA in conncection with Panther armed visit to State legislature hearing on gun-control legislation (the Mulford Act).

"So Huey says, 'We're going to the Capitol. Mulford's there, and they're trying to pass a law against our guns, and we're going to the Capitol steps. We're going to take the best Panthers we got and we're going to the Capitol steps with our guns and forces, loaded down to the gills. And we're going to read a message to the world, because the press is always up there. They'll listen to the message, and they'll probably blast it all across this country. I know, I know they'll blast it all the way across California. We've got to get a message over to the people.'”

[Seale, Bobby. Seize the Time: The Story of the Black Panther Party and Huey P. Newton. [1st ed.] Baltimore, MD : Black Classic Press, 1991.pp: 148-149 Moffitt E185.615.S37 1991 Main Stack E185.5.S4 1970 (another edition)]

Huey Newton responds to a citizen's complaint that the Oakland police department entered a neighborhood home without a warrant. Newton is arrested after ordering police to leave. Bobby Seale attempts to bail Newton out of jail and is arrested under 1887 law outlawing guns near jails.

The Peace and Freedom Party (PFP) was founded as a third party devoted to social and activism and opposition to the war in Vietnam. (see PFP web site for background on the Party)

California State Legislature passes anti-gun law, prohibiting carrying of firearms in any public place or street (the Mulford Act) Panther police patrols are effectively outlawed.

Mass arrests of anti-draft protestors at the Oakland induction center.

Oakland police officer John Frey is killed and officer Herbert Haines wounded in a predawn altercation after stopping Huey Newton and Gene McKinney. Newton is also critically wounded.

In Oakland, the Alameda County grand jury indicts Huey Newton on charges of first-degree murder, attempted murder, and kidnapping.

Video clip of Huey Newton interview in the Alameda County jail (also includes clip of Eldridge Cleaver). [From the video Black Panther. Permission to digitize courtesy of California Newsreel]

Video clip of Free Huey rally, Alameda County jail [From the video Black Panther. Permission to digitize courtesy of California Newsreel]

The Southern California branch of the Black Panther Party is organized by Alprentice "Bunchy" Carter. "Carter was the former head of the 5,000-strong Slauson gang and its 'hardcore,' the Slauson Renegades, and was therefore known as "the Mayor of the Ghetto." While spending four years in Soledad prison for armed robbery, he became a Muslim and a follower of Malcolm X. In 1967, Carter met Black Panther Party Minister of Defense Huey Newton and became a Panther on the spot. Carter formed and headed the Southern California chapter, taking position of Deputy Minister of Defense, announced in early 1968.

[See Elaine Brown. A Taste of Power: A Black Woman's Story. Doubleday, New York, 1992. pp. 18-24.
UCB Bancroft E185.97.B866; A3 1992 UCB Main E185.97.B866 A3 1992; UCB Moffitt E185.97.B866 A3 1992]

David Hilliard arrested for passing out leaflets at Oakland (CA) Technical High School

San Francisco police enter and ransack the apartment of Eldridge and Kathleen Cleaver without a warrant.

Rally for the Oakland 7. Includes speeches by Bobby Seale, Bettina Apthecker (Free Speech Movement), Robert Scheer (Managing Editor, Ramparts Magazine), Bob Avakian (Peace & Freedom Party), and John Kelly (Professor of Mathematics, UC Berkeley)

The Oakland 7 were anti-war protestors (members of the Campus [UC Berkeley] Stop the Draft Week Committee) arrested on October 17, 1967 at the Oakland, California induction center during "Stop the Draft Week" protest activities. The defendants were charged on January 28, 1969 by the Oakland Grand Jury with conspiracy to commit misdemeanors.

Listen to this recording

KPFA Radio, February 20, 1968 (Pacifica Radio Archives BB1783) 50 min.

© Pacifica Radio, 1968. All rights reserved.

Panel discussion of the alliance between the Black Panther Party and the Peace & Freedom Party. Participants include Bobby Seale (BPP Chairman), and Bob Avakian and Mike Parker, two organizers of the PFP.

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KPFA Radio, February 15, 1968 (Pacifica Radio Archives BB1632) 61 min.

© Pacifica Radio, 1968. All rights reserved.

Huey Newton Birthday Rally, Oakland. More than 5,000 supporters attend. Panther/SNCC coalition announced. Speakers include Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) leaders James Forman, H. Rap Brown, and Stokely Carmichael, as well as Eldridge Cleaver, Bobby Seale, Bob Avakian (Peace and Freedom Party), and Berkeley (California) Councilman Ron Dellums.

Oakland Auditorium Newton Rally or a similar rally held in Lost Angeles on February 2, 1968. Broadcast on radio station KPFA, Berkeley, 26 February 1968.

Listen to excerpts of Bobby Seale's address at Newton Rally (32 min.)

Pacifica Radio Archive BB 5471

© Pacifica Radio, 1968. All rights reserved.

Transcipt of Seale's speech

Listen to excerpts of H. Rap Brown and Stokely Carmichael addresses at Newton Rally (82 min.)

Pacifica Radio Archive BB 1708

© Pacifica Radio, 1968. All rights reserved.

Transcipt of H. Rap Brown's speech

Transcipt of Stokely Carmichael's speech

Black Panthers (Le Panthers Noir) [videorecording]

Original uncut international documentary directed by French filmmaker Agnes Varda of the "Free Huey" rally held at the Oakland Auditorium on February 17th 1968. VIDEO/C 7315 UCB Media Center

Examination of the Berkeley City Council's resolution by Berkeley (California) Councilman Ron Dellums for the release of Huey Newton.

"At a benefit rally at the Oakland Auditorium on February 17, Dellums had announced that he would be introducing a resolution at the next meeting of the Council calling for the freeing of Huey Newton, and the dropping of the murder indictment against him as having been voted by a grand jury that was not composed of his peers, and for a reconstitution of the Alamedia County Grand Jury so as to properly reflect a cross section of the community." (from reporter Colin Edwards' introduction).

Listen to this recording

KPFA Radio, February 20, 1968 (Pacifica Radio Archives BB1633) 60 min.

© Pacifica Radio, 1968. All rights reserved.

Bobby Seale is arrested after a raid on his apartment. Seale and his wife are charged with with conspiracy to commit murder. Charges are later dropped for lack of evidence.

After leaving the Seale's home, Bunchy Carter and others are arrested and charged with carrying concealed weapons.

Publication of Eldridge Cleaver's Soul on Ice, a collection of essays by the man who was named BPP minister of information.

Arthur (Glen) Carter, brother of Bunchy Carter, is shot and killed by "agents of the U.S. government." He is the first member of the BPP to be killed.

An FBI memo issued by J. Edgar Hoover mandating action against black militant groups: "Prevent the coalition of militant black nationalist groups. In unity there is strength...black nationalist groups must be the first step toward a real Mau Mau. Prevent the rise of a black Messiah who would unify and electrify the black nationalist movement."

COINTELPRO documents: "Black Nationalist-Hate Groups

At a conference sponsored by the Peace & Freedom Party (PFP) in Richmond, California, the organization announces its coalition with the BPP. The PFP slate includes BPP members, most notably Kathleen Cleaver, elected to run for the San Francisco 18th Assembly District, and Bobby Seale for Oakland's 17th Assembly District

Black Panther Party opens office in New York City.

Eldridge Cleaver's parole is revoked without a hearing

Martin Luther King is assassinated in Memphis, TN

Bobby Hutton, 17, the first member of BPP and its national treasurer, is killed by Oakland police following a shoot-out. Eldridge Cleaver is wounded and returned to prison for parole violation. Seven other Panthers are arrested. (For an interview with Cleaver regarding this event, see PBS/Frontline's "Two Nations of Black America" site)

Black Panther press conference: Attorney Charles Garry on behalf of Bobby Seale. Bobby Seale comments at Oakland (California) Hall of Justice regarding Eldridge Cleaver events of April 6 (see above). Interview with Rev. Earl Neil at St. Augustine Episcopal Church (Oakland)regarding police accusations regarding the Panthers and illegal weapons.

KPFK (Los Angeles) reporter Colin Edwards reports on Hutton funeral and on the rally that followed (Merritt Park, Oakland, CA). Speakers and commentators include Kathleen Cleaver, Bobby Seale, Marlon Brando (actor), Ron Dellums (Berkeley, CA Councilman, James Forman (SNCC)

Listen to interviews and speeches at this event

Pacifica Radio Archive BB 5474

© Pacifica Radio, 1968. All rights reserved.

Four Bay Area Panthers call press conference to repudiate confession made in connection with April 6th gun battle.

Interview with Huey Newton, Oakland (Alameda County)Jail; Elsa Knight Thompson, Interviewer

KPFA Radio; Pacifica Radio Archives BB5413 1:27:13 min.

© Pacifica Radio, 1968. All rights reserved.

Interview with Kathleen Cleaver; Julius Lester, Interviewer

Kathleen Cleaver, Minister of Information of the Black Panther Party (and wife of Eldridge Cleaver), discusses the history, political philosophy and strategies of the Black Panther Party. Discusses the Black Panther Party Ten Point Program. At the time of this interview, Kathleen Cleaver was a candidate for the California State Assembly, and Eldridge Cleaver was the Peace and Freedom Party candidate for US President.

KPFA Radio; Pacifica Radio Archives BB3788.02 32:30 min.

© Pacifica Radio, 1968. All rights reserved.

Alliance between SNCC and pathers dissolved; Carmichael ousted by SNCC, joins panthers.

Interview with Huey Newton in Alameda County jail, June 7, 1968. Alex Hoffman, interviewer. Newton discusses his imprisonment and impending trial, and the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy.

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KPFA Radio; Pacifica Radio Archives BB5463 23 min. (broadcast on 29 May 1970)

© Pacifica Radio, 1969. All rights reserved.

Bobby Seale convicted of carrying a loaded shotgun near jail and is sentenced to 3 years' probation.

Eldridge Cleaver released from prison.

Cleaver takes Black Panther case to United Nations

Newton trial opens in Oakland. More than 6,000 protesters come out in support on the steps of the Alameda County courthouse in Oakland.

Eldridge Cleaver nominated for President on the Peace and Freedom Party ticket.

L.A. shoot-out between police and panthers; two panthers killed

Three Panthers are killed by Los Angeles police at a service station.

Beginning of four days of anti-War/anti-Establishment rioting in Chicago at the Democratic National Convention.

Police stage raid/attack on Oakland, California Black Panthers headquarters.

Huey Newton, Bobby Seale, Eldridge Cleaver, and Panther attorney Charles Garry discuss the raid. Newton also talks about his conviction on charges of voluntary manslaughter and his position on foreign and domestic political issues. Interviews by Colin Edwards.

Listen to this recording

KPFA Radio, September 10, 1968 (Pacifica Radio Archives BB1782) approx. 56 min.

© Pacifica Radio, 1968. All rights reserved.

Stokely Carmichael ousted from SNCC

Panther George Murray, who had been teaching courses at San Francisco State University, is terminated by SFSU's Chancellor. SFSU Black Student Union strikes in protest.

UC Berkeley offers a series of lectures for no credit by Eldridge Cleaver. Governor Ronald Reagan and Superintendant of Education Max Rafferty refuse to pay Cleaver's salary and order Board of Regents to overturn the university's decision. Ultraconservative California Senator John Schmitz (Orange County) sponsors a bill to withhold next year's university budget if Cleaver is not fired at once. On October 23, UCB students sit-in in the administration building (Moses Hall)

Listen to recordings from the October 22, 1968 sit-in (part I)

Listen to recordings from the October 22, 1968 sit-in (part II)

KPFA Radio (Pacifica Radio Archives BB2365a) approx. 59 min.

© Pacifica Radio, 1968. All rights reserved.

Huey Newton sentenced to 2-15 years on manslaughter conviction; David Hilliard, Chief of Staff, takes over interim command of the Party.

San Francisco police officer Michael O'Brien kills Panther Otis Baskett. O'Brien is noted for wearing a "Gas Huey" button.

Eldridge Cleaver gives speech on "Blacks in America", UC Berkeley, noon rally

Listen to this recording

KPFA Radio; Pacifica Radio Archives BB5459 20 min. (broadcast on 12 December 1968)

© Pacifica Radio, 1969. All rights reserved.

Eldridge Cleaver gives first lecture on the UC Berkeley campus.

Huey Newton discusses his imprisonment in Vacaville (California) Medical Facility with Denny Smithson (KPFA Pblic Affiars Department), Karen Wald (San Francisco Guardian), and Joe Blum (editor, The Movement)

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KPFA Radio; Pacifica Radio Archives BB5412 43 min.

© Pacifica Radio, 1968. All rights reserved.

BPP adopts a "Serve the People" programmatic focus, which includes initiation of a free breakfast program for schoolchildren on welfare.

Video clip from MayDay concerning free breakfast program [Courtesy of Newsreel Collective/Roz Payne Archives]

Clip 1

Clip 2

Panther Raymond Johnson Jr. forces a National Airlines jet to Havana as it was flying from New Orleans to Miami. Johnson spends 18 years in Cuba. He returns in 1986 and pleads guilty of the highjacking.

Eldridge Cleaver speaks at a meeting at California Hall (San Francisco) sponsored by the Eldridge Cleaver Defense Committee. Originally scheduled at the Hall of Flowers in Golden Gate Park (San Francisco), the group's permit was cancelled by city officials. On November 26, 1968, Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall refused to extend Cleaver's liberty pending his upcoming trial, and his parole was technically reinstated. He failed to surrender himself on that date. This is the last speech he made prior to his disappearance. Introduction by Jessica Mitford.

Listen to this recording

KPFA Radio; Pacifica Radio Archives BB2438 43 min. Broadcast on KPFA Radio, November 21, 1968 (Pacifica Radio Archives BB2428)

© Pacifica Radio, 1968. All rights reserved.

The first BPP Free Breakfast for School Children Program is initiated at St. Augustine's Church in Oakland.

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Broadcast on KPFA Radio, August 14, 1970; Pacifica Radio Archives BB2540 25 min.

© Pacifica Radio, 1970. All rights reserved.

Students for Democratic Society (SDS) founder Tom Hayden replaces Eldridge Cleaver as lecturer in Participant Education Center course UC Berkeley (SEE September 11, 1968); Chancellor Roger W. Heyns asks faculty to inquire into possible abuse of university rules.

Bunchy Carter and John Huggins, leaders of the Southern California BPP are killed in shoot-out with Black nationalist group (US) at UCLA. Shoot-out is the result of a disagreement over appointment of an individual as director of the UCLA Afro-American Studies Center. Ericka Huggins and 12 others arrested and charged with assault with intent to commit murder.A Wall Street Journal article the following month details US leader Ron Karenga's involvement with the FBI.

Police arrest 17 Black Panther party members at John J. Huggins home in Oakland on charges which include conspiracy to commit assault with deadly weapons and violation of weapons laws; believe meeting was called to avenge murder of Huggins and Bunch Carter.

Over 100 Mills College (Oakland, CA) students, led by Black Students Union, seize president Robert J. Werk's office and hold him prisoner for several hours to press their demands for more involvement by minorities in college affairs; action follows speech on campus by Kathleen Cleaver.

Bobby Seale returns to the United States and is indicted and charged with planning riots at the 1968 Democratic National Convention.

Seale interview from the San Francisco County Jail. Discusses his life before his involvement with the Panthers, his introduction to Huey Newton, his political development, and the future of the Black Panther Party.

Listen to this recording

Pacifica Radio Archives BB2259 approx. 49 min.

© Pacifica Radio, 1969. All rights reserved.

Stokely Carmichael and his wife, South African singer Mariam Makeba, move to Guinea; Carmichael denounces Panthers.

District Attorney F. S. Hogan announces 12-count indictment against 21 Black Panther party members on charges of plotting to kill policemen, and bomb police stations and department stores during Easter season shopping. Eleven defendants plead not guilty and are held in $100,000 bail each over objections of defense lawyers, including William M Kunstler, who calls high bail unconstitutional. [NYT April 3, 1969, Thursday]

Bobby Seale speaks at Free Huey May Day Rally, May 11, 1969. San Francisco, California (?)

Transcipt of Seale's speech (from The Black Panther newspaper)

Eight Black Panther party members arrested, New Haven, Conn. (including Bobby Seale and Erika Huggins) and charged with murder of NYC BPP member Alex Rackley, who was allegedly 'tried' in kangaroo court of informing on the Panthers, and tortured. Rackley's body was found in Coginchaug River. Six of the suspects were seized at the New Haven Panther headquarters; police uncover tape recordings of trial and several weapons in making arrests.

Bobby Seale convicted of carrying weapon near jail, sentenced to 3 years probation

J. Edgar Hoover declares "…the Black Panther Party, without question, represents the greatest threat to internal security of the country." He pledges that 1969 would be the last year of the Party's existence.

Panther William Brent hijacks plane to Cuba.

Stokely Carmichael resigns from the Panthers

Stokely Carmichael and Eldridge Cleaver meet in Algiers and quarrel over various political and cultural issues. Cleaver favors selective cooperation with white radical groups and Carmichael favors stronger concentration on building a strong black nationalist movement before working with whites. Carmichael urges armed struggle by blacks in fields of power alignment and culture; says armed struggle means "you have gun and that you use it to struggle for what you believe in." [NYT July 25, 1969, Friday]

Eldridge Cleaver arrives in Algeria as guest of Algerian government to attend Pan-African Cultural festival. Cleaver makes public a summary of his open letter assailing Stokely Carmichael's contention that Black Panther party should be concerned mainly with struggle of nonwhites against 'Western imperialism'. Cleaver contends that "suffering is colorblind" and oppressed people need unity based on "revolutionary principles rather than skin color."

After three years in prison, Huey Newton wins an appeal and is released.

Bobby Seale arrested in Berkeley and charged with initiating 1968 Democratic National Convention riots, and with the murder of Alex Rackely, a New York Panthers accused of disloyalty to the Party [SEE May, 22, 1969]

Eldridge Cleaver calls Stokely Carmichael's charges that Black Panthers are "dogmatic" and "dishonest and vicious" secondary to Carmichael's "paranoia about white control" of black organizations and ignorance of "revolutionary process." Cleaver drafts open letter to Carmichael to be published in Ramparts magazine. [NYT August 18, 1969, Monday]

San Francisco School Board removes Eldridge Cleaver's Soul on Ice and LeRoi Jones play The Dutchman from reading list for special 'black authors' course for high school students; removal followed complaint by state Superintendant of Public Instruction Dr. M. Rafferty that books were obscene and pornographic and warning that teachers credentials would be endangered if books were assigned. Teachers groups and ACLU urged school district to resist. San Francisco Mayor Joseph Alioto accuses Rafferty of censorship.

New Haven grand jury indicts Bobby Seale on 1st-degree murder charge; he is charged with ordering the execution of Alix Rackley (See May 22, 1969)

BPP opens international section in Algeria under the aegis of Eldridge Cleaver.

US marshals move Bobby Seale from San Francisco to Chicago for Sept. 24 trial on charges of conspiracy to riot during '68 Democratic National Convention. Seale was in San Francisco jail being held for Connecticut authorities on murder warrant

David Hilliard goes to trial in Oakland in connection with charges stemming from April 6 shoot-out

Chicago 8 trial begins

For a more detailed chronology of the Chicago 7/8 trial and events leading up to it, See MRC's Vietnam War/Vietnam War Protest Chronology

See also

Chicago 8 Chronology

Bobby Seale testimony

The Chicago Seven Trial: Audio Clips (via University of Missouri, Kansas City Law School)

Panther Walter Pope killed by Los Angeles metro squad as he drops BPP newspapers off at store.

Bobby Seale chained and gagged at Chicago 8 trial

The Chicago 8 becomes the Chicago 7, when a mistrial is declared in the case of Bobby Seale and a new, separate trial is ordered. After repeatedly asserting his right to an attorney of his own choosing or to defend himself, Seale had been bound and gagged in the courtroom. He is sentenced to four years for contempt of court; the sentence is later reversed. Seale is never convicted of any Convention Week charges.

Black Panther Rally, Bobby Hutton Park, Oakland California

Speakers include Masai Hewett, Angela Davis, Terence Hallinan, and the Panthers' attorney, Charles Garry. Discussion is largely devoted to the relationship of the Panthers to the peace movement, and the stand of the Panthers on the war in Viet Nam.

Listen to this recording

KPFA Radio, November 14, 1969 (Pacifica Radio Archives BB5473) approx. 56 min.

© Pacifica Radio, 1969. All rights reserved.

David Hilliard arrested and held on $30,000 bail in San Francisco on charges of threatening Pres Nixon's life. Charges stem from s he made on November 15 Moratorium Day at San Francisco peace rally in which he referred to Nixon as one responsible for attacks on Panthers and was quoted as saying "we will kill Nixon." (Hilliard is acquitted of these charges in May 1971 after the Government prosecution team refused to disclose the contents of wiretaps involving Hilliard to defense [NYT December 4, 1969, Thursday]

Illinois Sate BPP leaders Fred Hampton, 21 (Chairman of the Illinois BPP), and Mark Clark, 22, are killed in Chicago by police raiders from the State attorney's office.

Sound clip of Fred Hampton on revolution

Los Angeles police and members of Black Panther party fight four hour gun battle following pre-dawn raid on Panther headquarters in search of illegal weapons and 2 Panthers wanted on assault charges. State Senator Marvin Dymally charges raid is part of a national plan of political repression against Panthers.

Black Panther party officer Fred Richardson, one of twenty-two defendants charged with a plot to kill policemen, bomb dept stores, police stations and other places, jumps bail; NY Superior Court Justice Murtagh declares $25,000 bail forfeit, issues an arrest warrant and continues to hold two other defendants without bail despite protests by defense attorneys.

David Hilliard gets 6 month jail term, fined $500 for carrying loaded gun in a public place.

California Governor Reagan grants request of Connecticut for extradition of Bobby Seale on murder and kidnapping charges stemming from '69 slaying of Panther A. Rackley of New York.

George Jackson and two other black prisoners, Fleeta Drumgo and John Clutchette (the "Soledad Brothers") at California's Soledad Prison allegedly kill a white guard.

Bobby Seale's Seize the Time, the story of the BPP and Huey Newton, is published.

Black Panther rally in New Haven, Connecticut draws about 12,000-15,000 (mostly students). Speakers include 'Chicago 7' defendants Jerry Rubin, Abbie Hoffman and David Dellinger and Panther official David Hilliard. The rally begins peacefully, but police later use tear gas to disperse bottle-throwing Panther sympathizers who staged evening march from Yale campus into downtown New Haven and confronted contingent of police and guardsmen. Disorders began following fiery speech by Rubin and false report of the arrest of three African Americans. In late April, Yale students strike in support of Panthers (including Bobby Seale) current on trial, causing class attendance to drop 50% to 75%. In April also, 3,000 protesters at led by Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and other radical groups wage a five hour battle with police in Harvard Square (Cambridge, Mass.). The Massachusetts National Guard are ordered to stand by. [NYT May 2, 1970, Saturday]

Federal grand jury issues unusual narrative report charging Chicago police grossly exaggerated Panther resistance in Fred Hampton shooting (SEE December 5, 1969), but does not indict any police for violation of victims' civil rights. The report says police riddled Panther apartment with at least 82 shots, while only 1 shot apparently was fired from inside, but speculates that police could have been returning one another's fire. Other rept highlights are: that report on alleged Panther stockpiling of weapons came from FBI, Hampton's body did not contain huge amounts of drug, internal probe by Chicago Police Dept. was so deficient as to suggest "purposeful malfeasance" and that news media and Panther lawyers engaged in publicity contest which resulted in improper and exaggerated news stories. [NYT May 16, 1970, Saturday]

At Kent State University, Ohio, National Guardsmen kill 4 unarmed white students during campus protest. California governor Ronald Reagan calls action "justifiable homicide."

California Appeals Court, citing omitted instructions to jurors, reverses voluntary manslaughter sentence of Huey Newton's 1968 conviction in slaying of officer John Frey (See October 28, 1967) [NYT May 31, 1970, Sunday]

Interview with Huey Newton, San Luis Obispo prison, four days after the California Court of Appeals reversed his voluntary manslaugher conviction.

(Note: first few minutes of recording are unclear)

Listen to this recording

KPFA Radio, June 2, 1968 (Pacifica Radio Archives AZ0896) approx. 12 min. This excerpt broadcast as part of Huey Newton funeral coverage, August 1989. Excerpt from Pacifica Archive recording BB5458.

© Pacifica Radio, 1970. All rights reserved.

Fred Hampton's estate files $3.75-million suit in Federal District Court, charging victims' civil rights were violated in raid (SEE December 5, 1969)[NYT]

FBI annual report calls Black Panther party nation's "most dangerous and violence-prone of all extremist groups." The report deplores the fact that party continues to receive substantial contributions from prominent donors despite its record of "hate, violence and subversion." and charges "foreign influences" are making inroads in black extremist groups in US, particularly Panthers. The report notes Eldridge Cleaver's residence in Algiers and "close ties' with Arab guerrilla organization Al Fatah. [NYT July 14, 1970, Tuesday]

Huey Newton is set free on $50,000 bail; still faces another trial in Frey shooting (SEE October 28, 1967)

Excerpt from press conference, August 5?, San Francisco, California. Office of Charles Garry, Newton's attorney

Listen to this recording

KPFA Radio, February 15, 1968 (Pacifica Radio Archives AZ0896) approx. 12 min. This excerpt broadcast as part of Huey Newton funeral coverage, August 1989. Excerpt from Pacifica Archive recording E2BC1453.

© Pacifica Radio, 1989. All rights reserved.

"Jonathan Jackson, George Jackson's seventeen year old brother who idolized him, tried to assist James McClain, on trial for an alleged attempt to stab an officer, escape from the courthouse. During the escape attempt Jonathan Jackson, with William Christmas and Ruchell Magee, two prisoners who were in the courtroom as witnesses for McClain, took five hostages: three jurors, the district attorney, and [the] Judge [Harold Haley]. To effect their escape, Jackson and his associates taped a shotgun to the judge's neck [the gun was purportedly supplied by Angela Davis, former assistant professor of philosophy at the University of California at Los Angeles, and co-Chair of the Soledad Brothers Defense Committee]. As they were leaving the Marin County courthouse with the hostages, Jackson and the others were reported to have shouted, "We want the Soledad Brothers freed by 12:30 today!," thus indelibly imprinting in the public mind a relationship between the kidnapping and the Soledad Brothers.

During the escape attempt the judge, Jackson and Christmas were killed in a shootout with the police; one juror and the district attorney were wounded. The guns used in the kidnapping were traced to Davis, implicating her in the escape attempt. A California warrant was issued for Davis' arrest in which she was charged as an accomplice to murder, kidnapping, and conspiracy. She fled Los Angeles and evaded arrest by seeking refuge in several places including New York City. A federal fugitive warrant was subsequently issued and she was placed on the Federal Bureau of Investigation's ten most wanted list." [from Angela Davis biography, New York Public Library Digital Library Collection]

Jonathan Jackson Memorial (1975) (Freedom Archives)

New York Times article on Angela Davis indictment on conspiracy charges(Nov. 12, 1970)UCB users only

Funeral of Jonathan Jackson and William Christmas. Held at St. Augustine's Episcopal Church, Oakland, California. Speakers include David Hilliard (BPP Chief of Staff), Father Earl Neil (St. Augustine's Church), and Huey Newton (BPP Minister of Defense).

Listen to this recording

KPFA Radio, August 17, 1970 (Pacifica Radio Archives BB2587) approx. 21 min. Produced by Denny Smithson and Bill Northwood, KPFA radio, Berkeley

© Pacifica Radio, 1970. All rights reserved.

Angela Davis is placed on FBI's list of 10 most-wanted fugitives.

Rally of 1,000 persons in Civic Center, San Francisco, to support Angela Davis ends in clashes between demonstrators and police; Davis, scheduled to speak at rally, does not appear.

Interviews with the Soledad Brothers: John Cluchette, Fleeta Drumgo, and George Jackson. David Stevens conducts interviews with the Soledad Brothers, who discuss their transfer to San Quentin (California) Prison, their experiences at Soledad Prison, and the prospects for their upcoming trial.

Listen to this recording

KPFA Radio, August 28, 1970 (Pacifica Radio Archives BB4202.04) approx. 21 min. Produced by David Stevens, KPFA radio, Berkeley.

© Pacifica Radio, 1970. All rights reserved.

Panther delegation leaves Hanoi for Peking and Algeria. Eldridge Cleaver says Black Panther delegation met with North Vietnamese leaders during visit to SE Asia. [NYT September 4, 1970, Friday]

Angela Davis is captured in New York City accompanied by a friend, David Rudolph Poindexter, who was charged with harboring a fugitive. When Davis was extradited to California she was charged, along with Ruchell Magee (a survivor of the August 3rd courthouse kidnapping attempt). While awaiting trial, and after a few joint court appearances, Davis separated her case from Magee's and their cases were tried separately. [NYT October 14, 1970, Wednesday]

New York Public Library Digital Library Collection biography of Davis

New York Times story on the issue of the warrant for Davis

[Davis, Angela] A Conversation with Angela Davis.

Interviewed by Rev. Cecil Williams. Davis speaks in jail during her incarceration in 1970 on charges of being an accomplice to conspiracy, kidnapping, and homicide in the Black Panther seige at the Marin County Hall of Justice (August 7, 1970). DVD 7496 [preservation copy]; vhs Video/C 2214

View this video online
Requires Windows Media Player or Flip4Mac

Conspiracy charges against Bobby Seale in the Chicago 8 trial are dropped.

Algerian press agency says that Algeria has granted polical asylum to Timothy Leary, who escaped from prison in California on Sept 13. US officials say that since US has no extradition treaty with Algeria, there will is no legal basis for requesting Leary's extradition. [NYT October 21, 1970, Wednesday]

Listen to this recording

KPFA Radio; Pacifica Radio Archives BB4374 25 min.

© Pacifica Radio, 1971. All rights reserved.

Eldridge Cleaver expels Huey Newton and David Hilliard from the BPP

"Cleaver-Newton dispute seen raising possibility that Black Panther Party may not be able to survive; Newton was particularly irked that Cleaver used a TV interview to demand David Hilliard's ouster and that Newton renounce many of Hilliard's actions; Newton, in response, read Cleaver out of party; Panther newspaper followed with charge that Cleaver is guilty of commiting number of counter-revolutionary acts; also charges him with holding his wife prisoner in Algiers; Cleaver and wife deny charges; Cleaver is quoted as saying he would 'eliminate' Newton and Hilliard; calls Oakland Panthers, headed by Newton, right wing of party; says he plans to open offices in NY to counter Oakland leaders; philosophical differences, including types of action Panthers should be involved in at this time, are also major factors in party dispute." [NYT March 7, 1971, Sunday]

David Hilliard sentenced to a one-to-ten year prison term in connection with shootout with Oakland, Calif, police, '68

Last interview with George Jackson (from The Freedom Archives) (37 min)

An Interview with George Jackson (with Karen Wald) 1971 [via Brown University]

Huey Newton discussing the Vietnam War, international solidarity and the significance of George Jackson's murder (from The Freedom Archives)

Unidentified Black Panther Party members discuss the formation of the BPP branch in San Quentin.

Interview with Ruchell Magee (from The Freedom Archives)

Twelve Panthers are found not guilty of attempt to murder five police officers in a New Orleans gun battle; trial was nation's first Panther case conducted by an African American judge. The jury consisted of jury of 10 African Americans and 2 whites. (See April 2, 1969) [NYT August 7, 1971, Saturday]

Panther George Jackson is killed in San Quentin prison during an abortive breakout attempt (three prisoners and three guards are killed in the attempt. Six prisoners are subsequently put on trial for the incident (Fleeta Drumgo, David Johnson, Hugo L.A. Pinell (Yogi), Luis Talamantez, Johnny Spain, and Willie Sundiata Tate). Spain was convicted of murder. The others were either acquitted or convicted of assault.

The Struggle Inside: 30 Years After the Murder of George Jackson (from The Freedom Archives) (37 min)

Features historical materials, including recordings of George Jackson, Angela Davis, Ruchell Magee, Georgia Jackson (George's mother), Harry Belafonte, James Baldwin and others.

Statement by Bobby Seale regarding the death of George Jackson

Pacifica Radio Archives BC0239.06 61 min.

© Pacifica Radio, 1971. All rights reserved.

George Jackson Funeral. (from The Freedom Archives) (37 min)

Includes music by Elaine Brown (off mike) with eulogies by Bobby Seale and Huey Newton. [Note: gaps in some portion of recording; some portions poorly recorded]

George Jackson Tributes. (from The Freedom Archives) (37 min)

Statements by James Baldwin, Jean Genet and Philippe Sollers about George Jackson directly after his death from gunshot wounds on August 21, 1971 as he attempted to escape from San Quentin prison. In English and French.

Illinois State Attorney Edward Hanrahan and 13 police officers and police officials are indicted on charges of conspiring to obstruct justice by attempting to thwart criminal prosecution of 8 Chicago patrolmen who raided the apartment of Fred Hampton [SEE December 5, 1969]

Attorney Stephen M. Bingham is officially charged with murder in deaths of 2 convicts and 3 guards at San Quentin. Bingham is charged with smuggling guns to George Jackson used in a August 21, 1971 San Quentin breakout attempt. Bingham subsequently flees the country, returning in 1984 to face charges.

On September 13, 1971, a four-day revolt at the Attica Correctional Facility (near Buffalo, NY) ended when over 1,000 state police and National Guardsmen stormed the complex. A total of 43 people were killed (including 10 of the 38 hostages) and 80 injured. The majority of prisoners at Attica were African American or Puerto Rican. The prisoners who demanded to be heard wanted better living conditions and many were willing to die rather than live in such conditions. One of the convicts stated, "We do not want to rule; we only want to live...but if any of you gentlemen own dogs, you're treating them better than you treat us." To document their claims of intolerable conditions, the rebelling inmates asked that outside observers inspect the prison, including civil rights attorney William Kunstler and Huey P. Newton of the Black Panther Party.

The five-day action by prisoners was suppressed when Governor Nelson Rockefeller ordered over 1,500 More than 1,500 state, local police to attack the prison. Initial reports given by prison officials to the news media falsely asserted that prisoners had slashed the throats of the hostages. Autopsies later proved that the hostages had been killed in the barrage of police gunfire during the confrontation.

30 Years After Attica (from The Freedom Archives) (37 min)

Attorney Stephen M. Bingham is officially charged with murder in deaths of 2 convicts and 3 guards at San Quentin. Bingham is charged with smuggling guns to George Jackson used in a August 21, 1971 San Quentin breakout attempt. Bingham subsequently flees the country, returning in 1984 to face charges.

Communist China's Premier Chou En-lai meets with about 60 Amers who are residents of or visiting in Peking, including Panthers Huey Newton and Elaine Brown.

Kathleen Cleaver...returns to New York with her two children from Zurich, Switzerland, after being out of the US for 2 1/2 yrs; says she will engage in speaking tour across country and an organizational effort toward restructuring and reorienting some of revolutionary forces that are presently in state of chaos. [NYT]

H. Rap Brown shot and captured with two others after an attempted bar hold-up, in New York. Brown had been on FBI's most-wanted list since he disappeared in April 1970, in connection with trial in Ellicott City, Md. on charges of inciting to riot and arson in Cambridge, 1967. Eventually sentenced to a term of from five to fifteen years in Attica Prison, Brown was paroled in 1976. Converting to Islam, he changed his name to Jamil Abdullah al-Amin. After his release he became a grocery store owner in Atlanta Georgia.

Black Panther Alex Rackley murder case, New Haven, Conn. ends with suspended sentences given last two defendants, Rory Hithe and Landon Williams, who had pleaded guilty to murder conspiracy charges [SEE May 5, 1969]

Huey Newton wins dismissal of charges that he killed Oakland, Calif. policeman John Frey (SEE October 28, 1968) [NYT December 16, 1971, Thursday]

To Die for the People , a collection of essays and speeches by Huey P. Newton, is published.

Huey Newton urges all African Americans, poor people and political progressives to back Representative Shirley Chisholm for Democratic presidential nomination; Newton contends that the BPP is "putting down the gun" to work within the system to advance black community. [NYT April 28, 1972, Friday]

Algerian police seal off headquarters of Black Panther Party in Algiers, putting those inside under house arrest. Action comes after authorities confiscated one million dollars in ransom money from five African Americans who hijacked Delta Air Lines plane to Algeria. Eldridge Cleaver demands that the money be returned and that hostages be allowed to take refuge somewhere else. [NYT August 11, 1972, Friday ]

Panther Elmer "Geronimo" Pratt, former Deputy Defense Minister of Black Panther Party, is sentenced to life imprisonment for '68 robbery and murder of school teacher C. Olsen; also faces one-to-five year prison term on conspiracy count stemming from shootout with police at Panther headquarters in Los Angeles in '69 [NYT August 29, 1972, Tuesday]

Huey Newton's autobiography Revolutionary Suicide is published.

Elaine Brown runs for Oakland City Council; Bobby Seale runs for mayor of Oakland

Former US Attorney General Ramsy Clark charges that there is "probable cause to believe" that Fred Hampton and Mark Clark were "murdered in legal sense of the word" [See December 5, 1969)[NYT November 8, 1973, Thursday]

Newton goes into exile in Cuba to avoid prosecution for pistol-whipping his tailor, Preston Callins, and the beating death of a female barroom customer, Kathleen Smith. Newton is formally charged with murder on November 2, 1974.

Elaine Brown succeeds Newton as Chairman of the BPP.

Eldridge and Kathleen Cleaver return from exile. Eldridge is a born-again Christian. Four years later he published Soul on Fire, an account of his religious conversion.

Eldridge and Kathleen Cleaver return to the United States from Paris

The BPP files a $100 million lawsuit against the FBI.

Newton returns from Cuba

Eldridge Cleaver endorses Ronald Reagan for President. Cleaver states that although he supported Jimmy Carter for President in 1976, "After watching him over the past four years I feel he hasn't lived up to expectations." Cleaver contends that "...[Carter] turned his back" on black Americans after his election and "has become the laughing stock of the international community" with his foreign policy."

Students at University of California protest a speaking appearance of Eldridge Cleaver on campus. Cleaver's speaking tour is purportedly sponsored by C.A.R.P., the Collegiate Association for the Research of Principles, an arm of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon's Unification Church. "About half the 220 people in the hall hissed and booed as Mr. Cleaver was introduced. Then a man wearing a T-shirt labled "Dead Kennedys"... took the microphone to say "Malcolm X is more alive" than Mr. Cleaver. One of the demonstrators attempted to strike Mr. Cleaver and campus police broke up the scuffle. A woman who said her name was Sonya carried a sign that said "Eldridge Cleaver - world record breaking belly crawler." She said the disruption was caused by members of the Revolutionary Communist Youth Brigade." [NYT May 20, 1982, Thursday, Late City Final Edition] Over the next several years, Cleaver would be similarly heckled on university campuses throughout the US.

Federal District Judge John F. Grady approves a $1.85 million settlement in a civil rights suit stemming from the shooting deaths of Mark Clark and Fred Hampton.

Stephen Bingham, accused of smuggling a pistol to George Jackson in San Quentin (SEE September 1, 1971) turns himself in at the Marin County (Calif.) Jail to face murder charges. "I can only say that I never smuggled a gun nor anything else into San Quentin, and I intend to testify under oath to that effect," he said. "I'm happy to be back and begin my life again." [NYT July 10, 1984, Tuesday]

At a Berkeley, Calif., City Council meeting, Eldridge Cleaver asks the council members if they were going to begin their meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance, a practice they abandoned several years ago. "Shut up, Eldridge," came the response from Mayor Gus Newport. "Shut up or we'll have you removed." [NYT December 9, 1984, Sunday, Late City Final Edition]

Stephen Bingham is cleared of murder charges related to the August 21, 1971 San Quentin Prison breakout attempt which resulted in the dealth of George Jackson

In separate incidents, Cleaver and Newton are arrested for drug possession.

Newton is killed on the streets of Oakland in a drug dispute; Tyrone Robinson, member of the Black Guerrilla family, is arrested for the killing.

Bobby Seale publishes cookbook, Barbeque'n with Bobby.

Huey Newton funeral, Allen Temple Baptist Church, Oakland, California.

Introduction to KPFA coverage of funeral: On-air promotion and introduction, Bari Scott; Introduction by on-site KPFA reporters, Wendell Harper and Bari Scott.

Speakers: Rev. J. Alfred Smith, and others. Song: "Precious Lord"

Speakers: Dr. Fred Heistand, Ms. Carol Hughes, Dr. Cecilia Arrington (Head of Black Studies at Merritt College, Oakland, California), Imam Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin (H. Rap Brown), Jo Nina Abron, Don Davis, Elaine Brown

(Elaine Brown sings the Black Panther National Anthem at the end of her talk)

(NOTE: power outage during the service prevented taping of several speakers, including Emory Douglas, Ericka Huggins, and David Hilliard) approx. 29:35 min.

Speakers: Johnny Spain, Father Earl Neil, Pastor J. Alfred Smith, Sr. (eulogy and closing prayer)

Transcripts of these talks

Speakers: Rev. Frank Pinkard (President, Baptist Ministers Union, Oakland, CA), Bobby Seale, Rev. Cecil Williams (Glide Memorial Church, San Francisco, CA), Congressman Ron Dellums

Transcripts of these talks

Pacifica Radio Archives AZ0896

© Pacifica Radio, 1969. All rights reserved.

December 1989

Bobby Seale, David Hilliard and Stephen Bingham announce the formation of a community group yesterday to address the needs of Oakland's disadvantaged neighborhoods after the October 17, 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. Backed by a six-point program reminiscent of the Black Panthers platform in the 1960s, Hilliard and Seale start People's Organized Response. Bingham, Hilliard and Seale charge that the Federal Emergency Management Agency and American Red Cross focused more attention on white, upper-income neighborhoods than on West Oakland's Cypress area, where a section of Interstate 880 freeway collapsed during the earthquake.

1990

The New Black Panther Party for Self Defense is formed. Its roots can be traced to the formation by a Milwaukee alderman of the "Black Panther Militia." The alderman warns that white America would face "urban guerilla warfare" if the government did not alleviate black poverty. Chapters formed in Indianapolis and Dallas, and the name eventually changed to the New Black Panthers.

April 1990

The U.S. Supreme Court lets stand a lower court ruling that Johnny Spain was denied a fair trial (1975-1976) on murder charges related to the August 21, 1971 San Quentin breakout attempt because he was forced to wear chains and shackles in front of his jury.

1993

May 19, 1993

Fred Hampton, Jr., President of the Chicago branch of the National People's Democratic Uhuru Movement (NPDUM), is indicted and sentenced to 18 years in prison for purportedly throwing Molotov cocktails into two Korean-owned businesses (Hampton had been arrested in 1992, on the day of the Simi Valley verdict in the Rodney King trial). Hampton's supporters claim that he was framed because of his political activism and his relationship to slain Panther, Fred Hampton, Sr.

1995

The movie "Panther" (dir. Mario Van Peebles) is released. The movie is generally slammed for being simplistic and historically incorrect. See, for example, Roger Ebert's Chicago Sun-Times review

View trailer from "Panther"

January 19, 1995

Former Panther Dhoruba Bin-Wahad (Richard Moore), convicted with three others in the 1973 of shooting the officers in 1971, is cleared by an appeals court. Bin Wahad had been released from prison in March 1990 by an appeals court after serving more than 18 years in prison.

1997

June 10, 1997

Former Black Panther leader Elmer Pratt was released from prison on Jun 10, 1997 on $ 25,000 bail by Orange County Superior Court Judge Everett Dickey. Dickey had reversed Pratt's 1972 conviction on charges of murdering school teacher Caroline Olsen in Santa Monica in 1968. The release, which came about as a result of possible prosecutorial and police misconduct during the original trial, came halfway through Pratt's 26 year sentence. (see August 28, 1972) [NYT June 11, 1997, Wednesday]

1998

May 1, 1998

Eldridge Cleaver dies at age 62 in Pomona, California.

November 15, 1998

Stokely Carmichael (Kwame Ture) dies in Guinea, West Africa.

1999

April 1999

David Hilliard, a member of Oakland's Human Rights Commission and a candidate for city council, and the Huey P. Newton Foundation were convicted Thursday by a jury of assault and battery for a 1996 attack on a man selling Huey Newton memorabilia at a Berkeley flea market.

2000

David Hilliard seeks seat on Oakland City Council

March 2000

H. Rap Brown (Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin) arrested for firing a high-powered assault rifle at two Atlanta sheriff's deputies, one of whom died from blood loss.

June 10, 2000

Elmer 'Geronimo' Pratt, longest-held political prisoner, released from prison after 27 years. In August, Los Angeles City Council OKs a $2.75 million wrongful imprisonment settlement.

2001

David Hilliard organizes Black Panther Legacy Tours. The tours, which visit sites in Oakland significant in the history of the Panthers, are, according to Hilliard, intended to "dispel some myths about the Black Panther Party." [NYT June 3, 2001 Sunday Five Star Lift Edition]

February 17, 2001

Khalid Abdul Muhammad, 53, former Nation of Islam activist and personal assistant to Louis Farrakhan; reportedly from a brain hemorrhage; in Marietta, Ga. Farrakhan dismissed Muhammad in 1993 after the latter insulted Catholics, whites and gays, calling Jews "bloodsuckers" and the Pope "a no-good cracker." As front man for the New Black Panthers in 1998, he led the contentious "Million Youth March" in New York City. [Time International, Feb 26, 2001 v157 i8 p15]

May 17, 2001

After 32 years as an international fugitive, former Panther Byron Booth is sentenced to 12 years in prison in connection with his hijacking of a plane to Cuba in 1969. U.S. District Judge Edward Rafeedie sentenced Booth, 56, after he pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of assault with a deadly weapon upon a flight crew member. Booth was originally charged with aircraft piracy, which is punishable by at least 20 years in prison. One day before the January 28, 1969 hijacking, Booth, then 19, and another inmate escaped from a California prison in Chino, where Booth had been serving a five-years to life prison term for armed robbery. Booth forced a Miami-bound National Airlines flight to Cuba.[NYT May 18, 2001, Friday]

2002

March 9, 2002

H. Rap Brown is convicted in Atlanta, Georgia of killing a sheriff's deputy and wounding another in a shootout in 2000. (see March 2000) The jury, made up of nine blacks, two whites and one Hispanic, began deliberating late Friday and took only 10 hours to reach its verdict. [NYT, March 10, 2002, Sunday]

March 14, 2002

H Rap Brown is sentenced to life in prison without parole. [NYT March 14, 2002 Thursday]

Sources:

Smith, Jennifer B.

An International History of the Black Panther Party. New York: Garland, 1999.

Taylor, Ula and J. Tarika Lewis.

"Black Panther Party: A Chronology." In: Panther: a Pictorial History of the Black Panthers and the Story Behind the Film. pp: 177-187. / Mario Van Peebles, Ula Y. Taylor and J. Tarika Lewis. New York: Newmarket Press, 1995.

References/Additional Reading/Viewing:

August 1964: Lowndes Country Freedom Party

Lowndes County Freedom Party. [Videorecording]

This program examines the rise of Stokely Carmichael and his Lowndes County Freedom Party, which he formed to get blacks registered to vote. These efforts are examined against the backdrop of murder and intimidation which accompanied the struggle for civil rights. None of the Party's candidates were ultimately elected, but the groundwork had been laid for the poor and disenfranchised in the South to gain political power. 25 min. UCB Media Resources Center Video/C 4139

May 1966: Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)

Decision in the Streets.

UCB Media Center Video/C 2795

Carson, Clayborne

In Struggle: SNCC and the Black Awakening of the 1960s / Clayborne Carson. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1981.

UCB Moffitt E185.92 .C37 1981

A Circle of Trust: Remembering SNCC.

Edited by Cheryl Lynn Greenberg. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, c1998.

UCB Moffitt E185.61 .C58 1998

Lewis, John.

Walking With the Wind: A Memoir of the Movement / John Lewis with Michael D'Orso. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, c1998.

UCB Main E840.8.L43 A3 1998

UCB Moffitt E840.8.L43 A3 1998

Schmeidler, Emilie.

Shaping Ideas and Actions: CORE, SCLC, and SNCC in the Struggle for Equality, 1960-1966 / Emilie Schmeidler. 1980.

UCB NewsMicro MICROFICHE.6030.Unit.141

Sellers, Cleveland.

The River of No Return; the Autobiography of a Black Militant and the Life and Death of SNCC / by Cleveland Sellers with Robert Terrell. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, c1990.

UCB Main E185.97.S44 A3 1990

UCB Moffitt E185.97.S44 A3 1990

Stoper, Emily.

The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee: The Growth of Radicalism in a Civil Rights Organization / Emily Stoper; preface by David J. Garrow. Brooklyn, N.Y.: Carlson Pub., 1989.

UCB Main E185.61 .S876 1989

UCB Moffitt E185.61 .S876 1989

The Student Voice, 1960-1965 : Periodical of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee

Compiled by the staff of the Martin Luther King, Jr., Papers Project ; sponsored by the Martin Luther King, Jr., Center... Westport, CT: Meckler, c1990.

UCB Main E185.61 .S916 1990

United States. Federal Bureau of Investigation.

FBI File on the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), [1964-1973] 19 sect.

UCB NewsMicro MICROFILM.53047 Shelved in Desk Reserve Section of Periodical Room; sections 1-19 ([1991?])

June/July 1966: Sheraton Palace Hotel (San Francisco) Protests

Berkeley in the Sixties [Videorecording]/ Kitchell Films in association with P.O.V. Theatrical Films. New York, NY : First-Run Features, 1990.

UCB Media Ctr Video/C 1761

Includes brief segment on Palace Hotel demonstrations and other civil rights movements which antedated the Free Speech Movement at Berkeley.

Decision in the Steets

Media Resources Center Video/C 2795

Covers the tumultuous beginnings of the Bay Area civil rights and peace movements from 1960 to 1965. Segments include 1960's anti-House Un-American Activities Committee demonstrations; Hands-Off-Cuba demonstrations in 1962 and 1963; the 1963 march protesting the Birmingham church bombings; mass arrests of protesters sitting in at the Sheraton Palace Hotel over racist hiring practices; the 1964 anti-Goldwater Republican convention protests; the Free Speech Movement at Berkeley, California and more. 35 min. Video/C 2795

Student Activism in the 1960's. Part 1. [Videorecording] [San Francisco, CA] : KRON-TV, [1964?]. 1 videocassette (30 min.) : sd., b&w ; 1/2 in. VHS.

UCB Media Ctr VIDEO/C 5711

Primary news footage of various activist activities in the Bay Area.

December 1966

Ramparts Magazine

UCB Main AP2 .R25 Bound 1(May 1962)-8, 10-13(Sept 1975)

UCB Bancroft f A6.1 R3 Bound 1(May 1962)-3(Apr 1965), 4:2(June 1965)-4:3(July 1965), 4:5(Sept 1965)-4:8(Dec 1965)

April 25, 1967

Black Panther Party: Black Community News Service

UCB Bancroft ff E185.5 .B551

May 2, 1967

"Black Panthers' Capitol Arrest Made Headlines." Sacramento Bee, Dec. 31, 1999

July 26, 1967

"Senate OKs Law Banning Loaded Guns on Streets." Los Angeles Times Jul 27, 1967. p. 3 (2 pages)

October 28, 1967

Williams, Yohuru R.

"In the Name of the Law: The 1967 Shooting of Huey Newton and Law Enforcement's Permissive Environment." Negro History Bulletin v61, n2 (April-June, 1998):6. UCB users only

Black Panther leader Huey Newton's 1967 arrest for the murder of an Oakland, CA, policeman was a miscarriage of justice. The history of FBI civil rights abuses in the 1960s is analyzed, revealing a permissive climate that rarely investigated law enforcement abuses of the civil rights of political activists.

January 26, 1968

The Activist: Hell No, Nobody Goes: Mike Smith and the Oakland 7 [Videorecording] 198? 51 min. Video/C 3797 Media Center

Bannan, John F.

Law, Morality, and Vietnam; The Peace Militants and the Dcourts [by] John F. and Rosemary S. Bannan. pp: 107-23. Bloomington, Indiana University Press [1974]

Moffitt KF221.P6.B3

Barkan, Steven E.

Protesters on Trial: Criminal Justice in the Southern Civil Rights and Vietnam Antiwar Movements / Steven E. Barkan. pp: 142-3. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press, c1985. Crime, law, and deviance

Main Stack KF9390.B371 1985

March 1968

Soul on Ice With an introd. by Maxwell Geismar. [1st ed.]. New York, McGraw-Hill [1967, c1968].

UCB Bancroft F870.N38 C52

UCB Main E185.97 .C6

UCB Moffitt E185.97 .C6

April 1968: COINTELPRO

Churchill, Ward.

The COINTELPRO Papers: Documents From the FBI's Secret Wars Against Domestic Dissent

By Ward Churchill and Jim Vander Wall ; foreword by John Trudell ; preface by Brian Glick. Boston, MA : South End Press, c1990.

UCB Ethnic HV8144.F43 C48 1990

UCB Main HV8144.F43 C48 1990

Excerpt from The COINTELPRO Papers Chapter 5: COINTELPRO - Black Liberation Movement

Listen to audio program on COINTELPRO (from Pacifica Radio program, Democracy Now)

Cointelpro: The Counter-intelligence Program of the FBI.

Wilmington, Del.: Scholarly Resources, Inc., 1978.

30 reels ; 35 mm.

UCB NewsMicro MICROFILM.18097.JK

August 1968

Chicago 1968 (American Experience)[Videorecording] Explores the atmosphere surrounding the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Insight into factors contributing to events is provided through interviews with writers, politicians, anti-war activists and historians. 57 min. UCB Media Resources Center Video/C 4851

January 17, 1969

"2 Black Panther Students Slain in UCLA Hall;" Los Angeles Times Jan 18, 1969. p. A1 (2 pages)

January 16, 1970: Soledad Brothers

Black Journal. Soledad Brothers [Videorecording] / WNET. New York, NY: Educational

UCB Media Ctr VIDEO/C 150

The Case of Steve Bingham. [Soundrecording] Los Angeles: Pacifica Radio Archive, 1983 50 min.

Recently, the George Jackson case came to light again with the reappearance of Steve Bingham, the person who allegedly smuggled a gun into George Jackson at San Quentin prison in 1971. Here a panel of prison movement activists, lawyers, and Bingham supporters discuss his trial and the case's implications for the criminal justice system and American civil liberties. UCB Bancroft Phonotape 1831 C

Soledad Three.

Los Angeles: Pacifica Tape Library, 1970? UCB Bancroft Phonotape 596 A

Durden-Smith

Who Killed George Jackson? / Jo Durden-Smith. 1st ed. New York : Knopf: distributed by Random House, 1976.

UCB Bancroft F870.N38.9.J3D87

UCB Law Lib KF9731 .D87

UCB Moffitt HV9468.J3 D87

Jackson, George

Soledad Brother; The Prison Letters of George Jackson. Introd. by Jean Genet. New York, Coward-McCann [1970].

UCB Main HV9468 .J3

UCB Moffitt HV9468.J3 1970

UCB Moffitt HV9468 .J3 1972 (another edition)

Jackson, George

Blood in My Eye. [1st ed.]. New York, Random House [1972].

UCB Bancroft F870.N38 J29

UCB Main E185.615. J28 1972

UCB Moffitt E185.615 .J28

Liberatore, Paul.

The Road to Hell: The True Story of George Jackson, Stephen Bingham, and the San Quentin Massacre / Paul Liberatore. 1st ed. New York: Atlantic Monthly Press, c1996.

UCB Main HV9468.J3 L53 1996

UCB Moffitt HV9468.J3 L53 1996

March 1970

Seale, Bobby

Seize the Time; The Story of the Black Panther Party and Huey P. Newton. [1st ed.]. New York, Random House [1970].

UCB Bancroft F870.N38 S4

UCB Bancroft F870.N38 S4 1970

UCB Main E185.5 .S4 1970

December 5, 1969: Fred Hampton

The Murder of Fred Hampton[Videorecording]

Mike Gray started out to make a film about the Black Panther Party, but on Dec. 4, 1969, the Chicago police raided a Panther apartment and his film became a documentary about the murder of Fred Hampton, chairman of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party. The film footage of the raid directly contradicted the State Attorney's version of the raid and so filmmakers and Panthers came together to prove that Hampton had been the designated target of the violent, punitive raid. The film's inquiry pursues official spokesmen and traps them in their attempts at covering up an orchestrated assassination. Mike Gray & Associates. Hollywood, Calf.: VDI Multimedia [distributor], 1991. Originally produced in 1971. VHS. Media Center VIDEO/C 7577

February 1972

Newton, Huey P.

To Die For the People; the Writings of Huey P. Newton. Introd. by Franz Schurmann. [1st ed.]. New York, Random House [1972].

UCB Main E185.615 .N4

UCB Bancroft p F870.N38N47.1972b (another edition)

March 1973

Revolutionary Suicide [by] Huey P. Newton, with the assistance of J. Herman Blake. [1st ed.]. New York, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich [1973].

GTU Library E185.97.N48 A37

UCB Bancroft F860.N49 A3

Fall 1974

Cleaver, Eldridge

Soul on Fire / Eldridge Cleaver. Waco, Tex.: Word Books, c1978.

UCB Bancroft BV4935.C54 .A3

UCB Main BV4935.C6 A3

UCB Main BV4935.C54 .A3

UCB Moffitt BV4935.C6 A3

Sept. 17, 1980: Cleaver Supports Reagan

"Black Panther Figure Supports Reagan Drive." New York Times, September 17, 1980, Wednesday, Late City Final Edition; SECTION: Section A; Page 24, Column 1

UC users only

August 22, 1989: Huey Newton Death and Funeral

Clark, Robin.

"Bobby Seale has Praise, No Tears for Huey Newton." Washington Post v112 (Thu, August 24, 1989):A3, col 1, 12 col in.

Crouch, Stanley.

"Huey Newton, R.I.P." (obituary) New Republic v201, n12-13 (Sept 18, 1989):10 (2 pages).

Gorney, Cynthia.

"Huey Newton, cofounder of Black Panthers, is slain in Oakland. " Washington Post v112 (Wed, August 23, 1989):A6, col 1, 28 col in

Gorney, Cynthia.

"Slain ex-panther Eulogized as Source of Black Pride; mourners also address Newton's abuse." (Huey P. Newton) Washington Post v112 (Tue, August 29, 1989):A2, col 5, 16 col in.

Hevesi, Dennis.

"Huey Newton symbolized the rising black anger of a generation." (Black Panther leader killed) (obituary) New York Times v138 (Wed, August 23, 1989):A15(N), B7(L), col 1, 30 col in. UCB users only

"Huey Newton, head of Black Panthers, found shot to death." (Oakland, California) New York Times v138 (Wed, August 23, 1989):A1(N), A1(L), col 4, 15 col in. UCB users only

Malnic, Eric; Stein, Mark.

"Suspect admits killing Newton, police report." (Tyrone Robinson claims he shot Huey P. Newton) Los Angeles Times v108, secI (Sat, August 26, 1989):1, col 3, 18 col in. UCB users only

"Newton, Huey Percy." (obituary) Current Biography v50, n10 (Oct, 1989):59 (1 page).

"The Panthers' Lost Leader." (Huey Newton dead) Time v134, n10 (Sept 4, 1989):17 (1 page).

Pollack, Andrew.

"Crowd Pays Respects to Newton." (Huey P. Newton) (National Pages) New York Times v138 (Mon, August 28, 1989):A6(N), A12(L), col 5, 8 col in. UCB users only

Pollack, Andrew.

"Ex-Panthers, As If At a Rally, Honor Slain Leader." (Huey Newton) (obituary) New York Times v138 (Tue, August 29, 1989):B12(N), B6(L), col 3, 15 col in. UCB users only

Stein, Mark A.; Basheda, Valerie.

"Black Panther Founder Huey Newton is Killed." (in Oakland) Los Angeles Times v108, secI (Wed, August 23, 1989):1, col 2, 33 col in.

Stein, Mark A.

"Even in death, Newton stirs sparks; family, friends bitter at those who label him a criminal." (Huey Newton ) Los Angeles Times v108, secI (Thu, August 24, 1989):3, col 1, 24 col in.

Stein, Mark A.

"Newton's Deeds Inspired Hope, Mourners Told." (funeral of Huey Newton) Los Angeles Times v108, secI (Tue, August 29, 1989):1, col 2, 26 col in.

Turque, Bill.

"A Fast Rise, A Long Fall: Former Black Panther Huey Newton Dies at 47. Newsweek v114, n10 (Sept 4, 1989):27 (1 page).

Zonana, Victor F.; Hager, Philip.

"Newton - a struggle to live up to the legend." (life and death of Huey Newton) Los Angeles Times v108, secI (Wed, August 23, 1989):3, col 1, 31 col in.

January 19, 1995: Dhoruba Bin-Wahad

Framing the Panthers. [Videorecording]

Through the words of Black Panther Dhoruba Bin Wahad, and archival footage of meetings, rallies and street scenes, the story of the Black Panther's struggle to strengthen the civil rights of African Americans unfolds. Examines the FBI's treatment of the Black Panther Party. 30 min. Video/C 2464

Passin' it On. [Videorecording]

Examines urban Afro-American life by surveying the story of Black Panther leader, Dhoruba Bin Wahad. Film offers a view of where American society has been and a glimpse at where it may be going. 57 min. Video/C 3248

March 22, 1998: Eldridge Cleaver Dies

Barnes, Bart.

"Eldridge Cleaver, author and Black Panther leader, dies." (Obituary) Washington Post v121, n122 (Sat, May 2, 1998):D6, col 1, 32 col in.

"Eldridge Cleaver dies at 62: Black Panther became born-again Republican." CNN report May 1, 1998

McDonnell, Patrick J.

"Ex-Panther is mourned." (funeral for Eldrige Cleaver in Los Angeles) Los Angeles Times v117 (Sun, May 10, 1998):B1, col 3, 21 col in.

Morrison, Patt.

"A former Black Panther diversifies." (appreciation of Eldridge Cleaver upon his death)(Column) Los Angeles Times v117 (Sun, May 10, 1998):MAG11, col 1, 16 col in.

Warren, Jenifer.

"Former Black Panther Eldridge Cleaver dies at 62." (Obituary) Los Angeles Times v117, n153 (Sat, May 2, 1998):A1, col 5, 36 col in.

November 15, 1998: Stokely Carmichael Dies

Barry, Marion S.

"Eulogy." (Stokely Carmichael, or Kwame Ture, is remembered)(Brief Article) Time (Nov 30, 1998):35 (1 page).

"Former Black Panther Stokely Carmichael Dies In Guinea." World African Network

"From Stokely Carmichael to Kwame Ture: 'Tribute to a Life of Struggle.'" (Kwame Ture/Stokely Carmichael: Tribute to a Life of Struggle) Black Scholar v27, n3-4 (Fall-Winter, 1997):2 (30 pages).

Goldman, John J.

"Stokely Carmichael, black activist, dies." (Kwame Toure, the 1960s black power activist once known as Stokely Carmichael, has died in Guinea of prostate cancer)(Cover Story) Los Angeles Times (sun, Nov 16, 1998):A1, col 4, 31 col in.

Kaufman, Michael T.

"Stokely Carmichael, rights leader who coined 'black power,' dies at 57." (Obituary) New York Times v148 (sun, Nov 16, 1998):B10(L), col 1, 52 col in. UCB users only

Span, Paula.

"The undying revolutionary: as Stokely Carmichael, he fought for black power; now Kwame Ture's fighting for his life." (battle with prostate cancer) Washington Post v121 (Wed, April 8, 1998):D1, col 1, 75 col in.

Bailey, Eric.

"A radical change for ex-Panther; former member seeks seat - on Oakland council - in establishment he scorned." (David Hilliard) Los Angeles Times (Thu, March 2, 2000):A3, col 3, 28 col in.

Nieves, Evelyn.

"Ex-Black Panthers look hopefully at Oakland." (under new mayor Jerry Brown)(National Report Pages) New York Times v148 (sun, Jan 7, 1999):A14(L), col 2, 17 col in. UCB users only

March 2000: H. Rap Brown Arrested in Atlanta Murder Case

Firestone, David.

"For Former Radical, Old Battleground Became Refuge." New York Times, March 21, 2000

Firestone, David

"Prosecutors seek death for ex-radical in deputy's slaying." (Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin, the former H. Rap Brown, charged with killing Officer Ricky Kinchen in Atlanta)(National Report Pages) New York Times, sec0 (Fri, May 5, 2000):A14(N), A18(L), col 2, 10 col in. UCB users only

Brown, now known as Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin, arrested in Alabama) New York Times (Tue, March 21, 2000):A1(N), col 6, 25 col in.

Smothers, Ronald.

Former black radical of 60's is held in an Atlanta shooting." (Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin, once H. Rap Brown, accused of wounding William Miles) (National Report Pages) New York Times v144 (Wed, August 9, 1995):A12(N), A12(L), col 1, 26 col in. UCB users only

Copyright Information

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All Pacifica Radio Archives recordings are copyright by Pacifica Radio. These materials may not be downloaded, recorded, reproduced, transcribed, or otherwise used, all or in parts, in any form or format, without express written permission from Pacifica Radio. Contact the Pacifica Radio Archives, 3729 Cahuenga Blvd. West, North Hollywood, CA 91604, (800) 735-0230, Fax (818) 506-1084; email: pacarchive@aol.com