This morning I came across a story that brought me back to my days of learning about the various movements of the 1960′s. I’ve said it many times before, I absolutely love history and can learn talk about it forever with anybody.
So when I read this morning that Shepard Fairey (the guy behind the very famous Obama “Hope” posters) came up with another poster depicting a Black woman who could easily pass for a member of the Black Panther Party, I was brought back to a little known fact during the 1960′s.
Let’s look at what fueled the protests of the 1960′s. For starters, America was in the middle of the very unpopular Vietnam war, we had a popular president that was assassinated along with his brother (Robert), Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, and other civil rights icons. The battle against Jim Crow (REAL laws against Black folks, not this “covert” racism crap) was also coming to a head along with all that comes with generations colide. The frustrations generated from all of this change is what helped shape future generations. Why else do you think that people like Donny Deutsch are suggeting that #OccupyWallStreet needs a “Kent State” moment where a student was killed by the Ohio National Guard. Deutsch and others like him know full well that without a violent flashpoint, these kids are just hanging out until they get bored.
What we have with the #OccupyWallStreet moment (not movement) are a bunch of kids — and kid-minded — who claim to hate capitalism so much. Yet they have to rely on the fruits of capitalism (cable news, smartphones, Facebook, Twitter and other social media tools) to help get out their message out to the masses.
Where the Black people at?
While we constantly hear about how the Tea Party lacks Black faces, what we don’t hear is that back during the early stages of the student protests on the campus of Berkeley back in the 60′s, they also had a diversity problem when it came to Black people. While these mostly White kids had a worry-free life and had the resources to attend a school like Berkeley, Black folks in the area (Oakland, CA) where too busy dealing with police brutality, a broken down school system, deep poverty among other things. The Berkeley kids had another problem: No central message. You had kids protesting everything from atomic bombs, the war, poverty, women’s rights, you name it. Such is the case with the #OccupyWallStreet crowd: No clear message. Enter the Black Panther Party.
The Black Panther Party was known at that time for both it’s militancy , strict discipline, and their ability to bring order. This was something the Berkeley movement desperately needed. The following is an excerpt of a video that I actually own and apparently someone posted it on YouTube. 60′s political activist Michael Rossmann talks about how they reached out to the Black Panther Party.
Today, much of White media is in somewhat of a panic because (gulp!) they cannot seem to convince Black folks en masse to quit their day job and slum it with rest of the protestors. Black media outlets like TheRoot.com, commentators like Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, Boyce Watkins, and others are all doing their part to make the sale with Black folks. While most of us tend to have a mistrust for BOTH the banking and political system in this country, based on the unemployment numbers we are doing our best “activism” by doing all we can to make next month’s rent. Chillin’ out on the street around the clock is called “homelessness”, especially when a Black person does it. For these lilly White kids, it’s called “protest”. Go figure.
This brings us back to Shepard Fairey. Apparently, a Black woman with a fro and Black Panther garb is a sign that this wayward moment (not movement), like their predecessors back in the 60′s are calling for strength and order. The fact that he opted for the icon to be a woman also shows that they are in need for someone who could play the role of mommy.
History tries to repeat itself with #OccupyWallStreet
by Duane on October 15th, 2011 at 12:56 pmThis morning I came across a story that brought me back to my days of learning about the various movements of the 1960′s. I’ve said it many times before, I absolutely love history and can learn talk about it forever with anybody.
So when I read this morning that Shepard Fairey (the guy behind the very famous Obama “Hope” posters) came up with another poster depicting a Black woman who could easily pass for a member of the Black Panther Party, I was brought back to a little known fact during the 1960′s.
Let’s look at what fueled the protests of the 1960′s. For starters, America was in the middle of the very unpopular Vietnam war, we had a popular president that was assassinated along with his brother (Robert), Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, and other civil rights icons. The battle against Jim Crow (REAL laws against Black folks, not this “covert” racism crap) was also coming to a head along with all that comes with generations colide. The frustrations generated from all of this change is what helped shape future generations. Why else do you think that people like Donny Deutsch are suggeting that #OccupyWallStreet needs a “Kent State” moment where a student was killed by the Ohio National Guard. Deutsch and others like him know full well that without a violent flashpoint, these kids are just hanging out until they get bored.
What we have with the #OccupyWallStreet moment (not movement) are a bunch of kids — and kid-minded — who claim to hate capitalism so much. Yet they have to rely on the fruits of capitalism (cable news, smartphones, Facebook, Twitter and other social media tools) to help get out their message out to the masses.
Where the Black people at?
While we constantly hear about how the Tea Party lacks Black faces, what we don’t hear is that back during the early stages of the student protests on the campus of Berkeley back in the 60′s, they also had a diversity problem when it came to Black people. While these mostly White kids had a worry-free life and had the resources to attend a school like Berkeley, Black folks in the area (Oakland, CA) where too busy dealing with police brutality, a broken down school system, deep poverty among other things. The Berkeley kids had another problem: No central message. You had kids protesting everything from atomic bombs, the war, poverty, women’s rights, you name it. Such is the case with the #OccupyWallStreet crowd: No clear message. Enter the Black Panther Party.
The Black Panther Party was known at that time for both it’s militancy , strict discipline, and their ability to bring order. This was something the Berkeley movement desperately needed. The following is an excerpt of a video that I actually own and apparently someone posted it on YouTube. 60′s political activist Michael Rossmann talks about how they reached out to the Black Panther Party.
Today, much of White media is in somewhat of a panic because (gulp!) they cannot seem to convince Black folks en masse to quit their day job and slum it with rest of the protestors. Black media outlets like TheRoot.com, commentators like Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, Boyce Watkins, and others are all doing their part to make the sale with Black folks. While most of us tend to have a mistrust for BOTH the banking and political system in this country, based on the unemployment numbers we are doing our best “activism” by doing all we can to make next month’s rent. Chillin’ out on the street around the clock is called “homelessness”, especially when a Black person does it. For these lilly White kids, it’s called “protest”. Go figure.
This brings us back to Shepard Fairey. Apparently, a Black woman with a fro and Black Panther garb is a sign that this wayward moment (not movement), like their predecessors back in the 60′s are calling for strength and order. The fact that he opted for the icon to be a woman also shows that they are in need for someone who could play the role of mommy.
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