WHAT DID YOU DO IN THE PANTHERS AND WHY DID YOU LEAVE? In the turbulent 1960s, change was coming to America and the fault lines could no longer be ignored — cities were burning, Vietnam was exploding, and disputes raged over equality and civil rights. I THINK THEY'RE RIGHT ON AND WHAT THEY'VE DONE IS AMAZING. Filmmaker Stanley Nelson describes his seven year effort to capture a fair view of the complex Black Panther Party. SO WHO AM I TO SAY, YOU KNOW, THERE IS A DIFFERENT WAY TO DO IT. YOU KNOW, THEY KNEW THAT SOMETHING WAS HAPPENING, BUT NOBODY UNDERSTOOD THAT, YOU KNOW, THE FBI AND THE POWERS THAT BE COULD BE SO SINISTER, BUT ALSO SO PETTY, YOU KNOW. I THINK SO MANY TIMES, YOU KNOW, THESE MOVEMENTS ARE MOMENTS IN HISTORY COME DOWN TO KIND OF, YOU KNOW, THIS MYTH AND WE FORGET THE REALITY. Featuring Kathleen Cleaver, Jamal Joseph, Ericka Huggins, and dozens of others, as well as archival footage of the late Huey P. Newton and Eldridge Cleaver, tells the story of a pivotal movement that gave rise to a new revolutionary culture in America. Use this guide to facilitate dialogue and deepen understanding of the complex topics explored in the film. “The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution” by Stanley Nelson is a documentary about a Black revolutionary organization in a revolutionary time. PEABODY AND EMMY AWARD WINNING FILMMAKER STANLEY NELSON WROTE, PRODUCED AND DIRECTED THE FILM AND JOINS US NOW. I WONDER IF YOU SEE -- IF YOU CAN ELABORATE, I GUESS, IF YOU SEE THAT THAT COULD BE A THREAT TO THIS -- TO THE DEMONSTRATIONS AND THE PROTESTS NOW. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT THEY WERE BAD AT IS THAT THEIR MESSAGE HAD TO KIND OF ESCALATE, CONTINUE TO ESCALATE. YOU KNOW, SO THAT WAS A CRUCIAL -- I THINK ALSO, YOU KNOW, FOR BETTER OR WORSE THE PANTHERS WERE VERY MUCH DRIVEN BY PERSONALITIES, BY THEIR LEADERS, AND THAT WAS GREAT IN THE BEGINNING AND SLOGANISM, YOU KNOW, YOU COULD SAY FREE HUEY WHEN NOBODY REALLY KNEW WHO HUEY WAS, YOU KNOW, LET'S FREE HUEY. What can the Panthers teach us about agitating for change? I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT'S HAPPENING IN THE MOMENT THAT WE'RE LIVING IN NOW IS THE POWERS THAT BE ARE SAYING, YOU KNOW, GIVING THE MOVEMENT ITS HEAD.
THE BLACK PANTHER PARTY FOUGHT RACIAL OPPRESSION IN THE LATE 1960s AND '70s SERVING AS A CATALYST FOR SOCIETAL CHANGE WHILE ALSO AT TIMES RESORTING TO VIOLENCE. The Black Panthers condemnations of injustice, oppression and brutality in the late '60s and early '70s reverberate again in one city after another. With all eyes on the United States as it reels from current acts of police brutality, THE BLACK PANTHERS: VANGUARD OF THE REVOLUTION is an essential primer for giving the power back to the people. YOU KNOW, THE PROTESTS OVER GEORGE FLOYD'S DEATH IN POLICE CUSTODY HAVE IGNITED WHAT SOME HAVE CALLED THE NEXT CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT. SO I THINK THERE WILL BE, YOU KNOW, A STRONG -- IT'S NOT EVEN A BACKLASH -- A STRONG COUNTER TO WHAT'S GOING ON NOW AND I THINK IN SOME WAYS WE'RE LIVING IN SUCH A STRONG MOMENT THAT -- THAT, YOU KNOW, THE POWERS THAT BE ARE JUST KIND OF LETTING PEOPLE HAVE THEIR REIGN. OUR MAIN GOAL IS NOT FOREIGN POWERS, OUR MAIN GOAL IS NOT TERRORISM, OUR MAIN GOAL IS TO DESTROY THE PANTHERS AND THEY HAD THEIR PHONES BUGGED, THEY HAD INFILTRATORS, THE INFILTRATORS WOULD SAY, HEY, I SAW YOUR HUSBAND WITH ANOTHER WOMAN. Their causes, with slogans like "power to the people" and "creating a better world" are relevant again in an era that has seen the rise of the "Black Lives Matter" movement and tense relations between African American communities and the police. THE PANTHERS CHANGED THE WAY WE RESPOND AS AFRICAN-AMERICANS. All rights reserved.Be more independent.
AND I THINK THAT'S WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW, PEOPLE ARE SEEING IT AND I DON'T THINK THEY WILL BE ABLE TO UNLEARN IT.