The past isn't over; it isn't even past.  --William Faulkner
What's past is prologue.  --William Shakespear


I interpreted these following quotes as history repeats itself.  The past will have influence on the present.  We can never forget the past.  Our past sets our future.  How we interpret the past will affect how we conduct our present and thus our future.  And finally, the ever cliche, without the past, there is NO future.

"You are becoming more and more like your father everyday!"  My mother sporadically proclaimed this in one of our conversations one afternoon as she noticed that me and my father are so very similar.  Not only is he my twin with a beard, my father has a big influence over the things I do, the ideas I have and the decisions I make.  Many of the things he enjoys I follow suit and end up liking them.  We do many of the same activities and are interested in some of the same topics.  One thing my father is interested in is the movements for freedom and equality Blacks have made and are making.  He idolizes leaders and speakers such as Malcolm X (Nation of Islam), Martin Luther King Jr. (Nonviolent protests of the 1950s and 1960s), Bob Marley (Rastafari Movement), and Huey P. Newton (Black Panther Party).  Since I have grown up around him and have learned so much from him, I have been able to expand my knowledge on those people and those groups.

Huey P. Newton

Malcolm X

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Bob Marley

The group I have chose to focus on for this paper is the Black Panther Party.  This organization, active from the mid 1960s-1970s, advocated self-defense.  Blacks, after Martin Luther King Jr.'s anti-racists and anti-segregationists movements, were still heavily discriminated upon.  One group that delivered much of this unequal treatment where the police.  The police harassed and attacked Blacks and killed many innocent people.   To combat this the Black Panther Party advocated protection.  Many times, this protection would be with firearms.  They believed in the philosophy an eye for and eye, a tooth for a tooth.  

The Black Panther Party is associated with negativity.  They are viewed as a militant group and are commonly seen wielding large guns and wearing and mean, hostile expressions.  However, one major thing about the party is overlooked.  They believed in protection, not spontaneous violence.  They were associated with negativity because of this despite the fact that this is one of the rights all American's are entitled to, a right to bear arms and protect oneself.

Aside from this the group also believed in lifting up the Black race and educating their Black communities.  They fed the hungry and were against drug abuse.

Black Panther Party Free Breakfast Club

2006 Black Panther Party Reunion