Hello and welcome to this lesson on: The Black Panther Party.

This lesson is part of a broader inquiry looking at how the civil rights movement changed after 1965.

In the course of this inquiry, we'll be covering lots of different things.

The role of Malcolm X in the civil rights movement, the emergence of the Black Power movement, but also lots of other things, including the Kern Report of 1968, the assassination of Martin Luther King following his campaign in the North.

But for this lesson, we're just going to be focusing on the Black Panther Party.

And in order to do that, we're going to need a piece of paper and a pen.

If you don't have one, not to worry at all, just pause the video now, get everything you need, and come back and press play when you're ready to go.

Great, now we're all set and ready to go with our piece of paper and a pen for the lesson.

We can have a look at a lesson outcome on the slide here.

For today, we are going to make sure that you can describe the contributions of the Black Panther Party, and in order to do that, we're going to need some key words, and for today, we have two.

Black power and establishment.

Black power is the political name for groups aiming for self-determination among Black Americans, and the establishment is a system of politics and government that some argue enables racial and economic inequality.

Now you've had a look at these two key words, we'll see them again in the context of the lesson, but we are good to go for now.

And in the first part of the lesson, we're going to be looking at the formation of the Black Panther Party.

Now, the Black Panther Party emerged out of growing support for the Black Power movement in the late 1960s.

The party was founded by Bobby Seale and Huey Newton in 1966, based in Oakland, California.

Both of these men were influenced by the ideas, values, and beliefs of Malcolm X, who had been assassinated the year before.

And we can see a photograph of them here on our slide.

This is a party poster showing Bobby Seale and Huey Newton.

Now the Black Panther Party was different to other civil rights organisations in many ways, where organisations such as CORE, SNCC, the SCLC, and the NAACP had focused solely on addressing racial injustice, the Black Panther Party looked to undo the establishment.

Remember, that's the system of politics and government that many believe enables racial and economic inequality.

So for the Black Panther Party, the establishment was the entire system of government in the United States, and it supported a capitalist system and corrupt democracy that enabled poverty and racism to exist.

So, the leaders of the Black Panther Party believed that their main fight was against class inequalities, and so they were willing to work with white American groups who supported their goals.

Now, in terms of what their goals were, they had a 10-point programme that made their goals very, very clear.

Several points in this programme centred on achieving freedom for the Black community through full employment, better housing, and educational facilities.

They also called for the exemption of Black men from military service, justice for imprisoned Black Americans, and an end to police brutality.

In order to achieve these aims, the Black Panther Party was willing and prepared to use revolutionary means.

The Black Panthers had a uniform that clearly identified them as members of the Black Panther Party.

They often carried weapons and trained their members in the use of these weapons.

Now before we go on to look at the achievements of the Black Panther Party and how people responded, we're going to pause and check our understanding so far.

So firstly, I'd like you to tell me whether this statement is true or false.

Malcolm X founded the Black Panther Party.

Pause the video now, make a decision, and come back when you've got an answer for me.

Great, we know that this statement is false.

Malcolm X did not found the Black Panther Party.

But as always, it's not enough to just say whether a statement is true or false; we need to say why.

Is it false because the ideas of Malcolm X inspired the formation of the party the year after his death? Or is it because the ideas of Malcolm X were contradictory to the core beliefs and values of the party? Pause the video now, make a decision, and come back when you've got an answer for me.

Excellent, we know this statement is false because it was the ideas of Malcolm X that inspired the formation of the party the year after his death, and it was Bobby Seale and Huey Newton who had founded the party in 1966.

Now I'd like you to have a quick discussion with the person next to you, or if you're doing this lesson by yourself, not to worry, just have a go at articulating your response out loud or jotting it down for me.

So I'd like you to tell either the person next to you, or have a go at telling me out loud, How was the Black Panther Party different to other civil rights organisations? So pause the video now, have a quick minute, or two discussion with the person next to you, or have a go at explaining an answer out loud, and then come back and press play when you're done.

Brilliant.

So you might have mentioned any of the following.

You might have said that it was different because it emerged out of the Black Power movement.

You might have said that it was different because it did not focus solely on addressing racial inequalities.

You might have said that it was because they looked to undo the establishment.

Remember, that's a system of government and politics that some believe enable racial and economic inequality.

You might have said it's because they believe their main fight was against racial inequalities, whereas many civil rights organisations focus solely on racial inequalities, or that it was formed later in 1966 compared to parties at the NAACP and SNCC.

One more question Which two of the following statements about the Black Panther Party are correct? A.

Their 10-point programme made their aims clear.

B.

They encouraged self-sufficiency in the Black community.

C.

The Black Panther members couldn't carry weapons.

Or D.

They supported the enrolLment of Black men in the military.

So, I want you to tell me which two of these statements are correct.

So pause the video now, and when you think you have an answer or when you know you have an answer, come back and press play.

Great work, we know that A and B are true.

Their 10 point programme made their aims very clear, and they encouraged self-sufficiency in the Black community.

Really well done.

We know that Black Panther members were trained in the weapons that they carried, and therefore could carry weapons.

We also know that one of the points in their 10-point programme called for the exemption of Black men from military service.

So, really well done.

Let's have a go at putting this into practise now.

So have a look at the following statements.

Every single one of them is incorrect.

What I'd like you to do now is identify the error and rewrite the statement as a correct sentence.

So pause the video now, correct each of the statements from A to G, and then come back when you're done.

Excellent.

Now we can have a look at what your correct answers should have looked like.

So for A, you should have said that the Black Panther Party emerged out of the Black Power movement.

B, Bobby Seale and Huey Newton founded the Black Panther Party in 1966.

The Black Panther Party was very different to other civil rights organisations.

The Black Panther Party looked to undo the establishment.

The Black Panther Party's aims were made clear in a 10-point programme, and the Black Panther Party was willing and prepared to use revolutionary means.

Finally, party members would wear a uniform that clearly identified them.

Really well done, let's move on to the second part of our lesson.

Now in the second part of our lesson, we're going to be looking at the achievements of the Black Panther Party.

Now although the Black Panther Party is often remembered solely for their advocacy of self-defence and use of weapons, they achieved many things for the Black community that were entirely unrelated to the use of weapons.

This included setting up community services in order to help the Black community achieve some of the aims set out in the Black Panther Party's 10 point programme.

The most popular of these achievements was setting up the Free Breakfast Programme for Children.

Starting in St.

Augustine's Church in Oakland in January 1969, the Black Panthers looked to address the issue that many Black children were facing.

Increasing poverty levels meant that families could not afford breakfast and lunch, and so learning in school was difficult because the children were hungry for the entire day.

By the end of this year, this programme had reached 23 different cities and fed more than 20,000 children, and was receiving donations from local businesses, churches, and other organisations.

The US government even went on to admit that the Black Panthers had fed more children than the state of California.

By 1971, two years after the programme started, it had spread to 36 cities.

Now, this was a huge success and, like I said, completely unrelated to their advocacy of self-defense and carrying of weapons, which they are typically more well known for.

So, when thinking about the achievements of the Black Panther Party, especially within the local community, the free breakfast programme for children started in Oakland, California, is one of their greatest successes.

Now before we go on to look at how people responded to the Black Panther Party, we're going to pause, check our understanding, and put our learning in this part of the lesson into practise.

So, I'd like you to tell me whether this statement is true or false.

The Black Panther Party focused solely on their support of self-defense and use of weapons.

So pause the video now, make a decision, and when you think you know whether this statement is true or false, come back and press play.

Excellent, we know that this statement is false, but we need to go a bit further than just saying this statement is false, you need to be able to tell me why.

So, is it false because they did not support self-defence and the use of weapons? Or is it false because they also focus on achieving things for the Black community, completely unrelated to the use of weapons? Pause the video again, and when you've got an answer, come back and press play.

Excellent, so we know that this statement is false because they also focus on achieving things for the Black community, completely unrelated to the use of weapons.

Really, really well done.

So now I'd like you to have another discussion with the person next year.

Or if you're doing this lesson alone, not to worry, have a go at explaining out loud for me.

So the discussion is, what was the free breakfast for children programme? So remember to explain it to me in the context of most people only remembering the Black Panther Party for their advocacy of self-defence.

So pause the video now, give yourself one or two minutes to explain what this programme was, and why it's considered one of the greatest achievements of the party, and then come back and press play when you're done.

Brilliant! So in your discussions, you might have said they were started in Oakland, California, in January 1969.

They looked to address the impact of increasing poverty levels on children's education.

By the end of 1969, so within only a year, it had reached 23 cities and fed more than 20,000 children.

You might have mentioned that they received donations from local businesses, churches, and other organisations.

You also might have mentioned that they fed more children than the state of California, So really well done on this part of the lesson.

Let's put what we've learned so far into practise.

So one of our students here at Oak, Sofia, has said that the Black Panther Party was founded in 1966.

Their public advocation of self-defense and their use of weapons was their main achievement.

What I'd like you to do here is explain why Sofia's account of the Black Panther Party is an oversimplification of their contribution to the civil rights movement.

Give yourself five to 10 minutes to complete this explanation, and then come back when you're done.

Brilliant work, so now we can have a look at what your answer might have included.

So you may have said, while Sofia is correct to acknowledge the Black Panther Party's advocacy of self-defense and use of weapons, she underplays their impact on the Black community, especially at a local level.

By simplifying their achievements to their use of violence, she misses out the success of programmes like the Free Breakfast for Children programme.

The programme looked to address the impact of increasing poverty on children's education in Oakland.

By the end of 1969, this programme had spread to 23 different cities and fed more than 20,000 children.

They would go on to feed more children in the state of California, so hopefully you got all of those details in there in explaining why Sophia's account wasn't oversimplification, ultimately reducing the achievements of the Black Panther Party to their support of self-defense just doesn't give you a clear enough picture.

So really well done, now we can move on to the third and final part of today's lesson.

So in this third and final part of the lesson, we're going to be looking at the responses to the Black Panther Party.

So by the end of 1968, the Black Panther Party had 5,000 members and had spread to several states across the US.

However, the response from the police, U.

S.

government and FBI eventually resulted in the disbanding of the Black Panther Party.

From the beginning, the group was targeted by the FBI.

This was largely the result of the Black Panthers attacking communism, which in the context of the Cold War framed them as communists, and communists were the FBI's enemy.

The Black Panther Party's use of weapons intimidated state police, and where they sometimes worked in their favour and enabled them to protect Black Americans against police brutality.

In other instances, it led to violent responses to the Black Panther Party.

By the late 1960s, 27 members of the Black Panther Party had been killed and 700 injured.

But then in 1969, two leading members of the Black Panther Party in Chicago were shot and killed while asleep in their apartment.

These attacks resulted in decreasing support for the party, bringing an end to the Black Panther Party in the 1970s.

So just to recap quickly, although the membership had grown to 5,000 members across many different states, they were continually targeted by the government, FBI and the police.

And violent outbreaks would eventually lead to decreasing support and their eventual disbanding in the late 1970s.

We can see a photograph here of our Black Panther members interacting with police officers.

And although, as already mentioned, sometimes their carrying of weapons worked in their favour, it did often lead to violent outbreaks.

Now before we finish for today, we're gonna check our understanding one last time and put what we've learned into practise.

Is this statement true or false? The membership of the Black Panther Party had increased by 1968.

Pause the video now and come back when you think you know whether this statement is true or false.

Excellent, we know that this statement is true, but now we need to think about why.

Is it true because they had 5,000 members by the end of 1968? Or is it true because they had 500 members by the end of 1968? Pause the video now and come back when you've got an answer for me.

Excellent, we know that it's true because they had 5,000 members by the end of 1968.

Now their membership had been growing and spreading to different states.

What I'd like you to do with the person next to you, or if you're doing this lesson alone, have a go at articulating it out loud, is to explain to each other, or to me, out loud, why the Black Panther Party was targeted by the FBI.

So, pause the video now and give yourself a couple of minutes to have a discussion about why the Black Panther Party was targeted by the FBI, and then come back when you're done.

Excellent, so hopefully your response included the party attacked capitalism, leading them to be framed as communists.

In the context of the Cold War, communists were seen as the enemy, but also that the Black Panthers' use and carrying of weapons intimidated the police.

Hopefully, you got all these ideas mentioned in your discussion.

So, putting our learning into practise is going to require us to have a look at a couple of student contributions.

So Jun has said, the Black Panther Party is best remembered for their advocacy of self-defense, and willingness to use revolutionary means to support the Black community and undo the establishment.

And we also have Izzy, who says that, "The Black Panther Party is often remembered for their advocacy of self-defense, but should be remembered for their work in local communities, especially Oakland." Now what I'd like you to do, having had a look at those student contributions, is explain who you think makes the more convincing argument about the contributions of the Black Panther Party.

So pause the video now, give yourself five to 10 minutes to write a response explaining who you think makes the more convincing argument, and then come back when you're done.

So, let's have a look at what your answer might have included.

You might have said, Izzy makes the more convincing argument.

This is because she acknowledges that the Black Panther Party is often remembered for their support of self-defense, but should also be remembered for their work in local communities.

This is clear as the greatest impact of the Black Panthers was through the Free Breakfast for Children Programme that began in Oakland, California in January 1969.

By the end of 1969, they had fed over 20,000 children across 23 different cities, more than the state of California.

Therefore, to remember the party only for their advocacy of self-defense is to downplay their impact in the local community.

Really well done if you were able to explain why Izzy made a more convincing argument, or you might have said that Jim made the more convincing argument.

Either way, you need to make sure that you supported it with clear and specific examples from today's lesson.

Now what I'd like you to do is to explain why someone might disagree with your response.

So if, in the first place, you said that Izzy made the more convincing argument, you're now going to write a paragraph as to why someone might say Jim made the more convincing argument.

And if you had previously said that Jim had made the more convincing argument, you're now going to write a paragraph explaining why Izzy made the more convincing argument.

Or why someone might say that Izzy made the more convincing argument.

So, pause the video now, give yourself 5-10 minutes to write up a second response, and then come back and press play when you're done.

Great work.

Let's have a look at what your answer might have included.

So if, like our other example, you'd first said that Izzy made the more convincing argument, you would now be talking about Jun.

So you might have said something like this.

Jun's argument acknowledges some of the core beliefs and methods of the party.

Their support of self-defence and use of revolutionary means to undo the establishment must have been significant for it to lead to targeting by the FBI, police, and U.

S.

government.

This targeting and constant surveillance led to violent outbreaks and clashes as the police were intimidated by the Panther's uniform and carrying of weapons.

So, these features of the party should also be recognised as important.

Police violence led to decreasing support for the party, and its eventual disbanding in the late 1970s.

That tells us something important about the party too.

So, really well done if you were able to get two paragraphs done supporting either student's contribution with clear, and specific examples from throughout the lesson.

I'm so impressed with the work you've done today.

The final thing we're gonna do is look at a summary of what we've learned.

So, today we learned the Black Panther Party was founded in 1966 by Bobby Seale and Huey Newton, and was inspired by the beliefs of the Black Power movement and Malcolm X.

We also learned that the Black Panther Party encouraged self-sufficiency in the Black community and sought to take down the establishment.

For some, the Black Panther Party's biggest contribution to the civil rights movement was the Free Breakfast for Children Programme.

And we also learnt that the Black Panther Party eventually disbanded after constant targeting from the FBI and the murder of 27 Black Panthers.

Really well done.

I'm so impressed with the work you've done today.

You should be very, very proud of yourselves.