Although aggression against white people was prevalent in
1964 and 1965, it was largely unorganized and did not follow any rules of
conduct. The people who founded the
Black Panther Party in October of 1966 sought to change that. Although not officially dealing directly in
the business of inciting riots, the founders of the Black Panther Party were
not opposed to using any means necessary to ensure civil liberty. In fact, one of the rules of the Black
Panther Party is that all members must be trained in the use of firearms. Although a Black Panther member could not
fire a weapon at anyone “unnecessarily or accidentally,” there were no rules
against harassing or harming whites. The
party’s members drew inspiration from Malcolm X, and saw themselves as
revolutionaries. Police and FBI agents
targeted suspected members and leaders of the party. Various clashes with the government officers
ensued after its founding. The Panthers
allied themselves with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC),
which supported the idea of “Black Power.”
From its founding in Oakland, the Black Panther Party would spread
across the nation and bring with it the will to stand together and fight
against oppression.
Bobby Seale, co-founder of Black Panther Party, outlines the ten point program
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