Thread by @_CharlesPreston

I took a 9-hour drive and listened to "The Huey P. Newton Reader" audiobook for the entire trip. It's special to listen to theory, and commentary, from people who've read, organized, and can point to praxis. A lot of what he said is relevant now.

Here are some key takeaways:

1. Prior to creating the Black Panther Party, Huey Newton and Bobby Seale went through a period of "deep exploration". They wanted to seek out a Black organization who would adopt their self-defense and police patrol program. They were rejected and called "suicidal".

2. "Our unique situation required a unique program."

Although Huey and Bobby read Mao, Fanon, and Guevara...they knew that Black people in Oakland, San Francisco, Berkely required a program different from other revolutionaries.

3. "...our ten-point program took like 20 minutes to write."

Huey and Bobby started off with two lists "What We Want" and "What We Believe". Both lists were synthesized into what is now known as the ten-point program.

4. "Bobby became Chairman and I chose the position of Minister of Defense. I was very happy with this arrangement; I do not like to lead formally..."

Huey's main concern was implementing the self-defense and police patrol program. He disliked public speaking and admin work.

5. Police brutality (Point 7 in the ten-point program) was the first point emphasized because, at the time, they saw it as a problem in every Black community and the most attention-grabbing. In 1966, Huey highlights how organizations failed to win citizen review boards.

6. "We recognized that it was ridiculous to report the police to the police, but we hoped that by raising encounters to a higher level, by patrolling the police with arms, we would see a change in their behavior."

Armed patrols were a means of recruitment for the party too.

7. "Bobby was in jail, and I was filling as many of these requests as possible, even though I am not very good at talking to large groups; nor do I enjoy it."

Huey points to one particular speaking engagement at San Francisco State. He called it "challenging". (cont next tweet)

It was "challenging " because he says many widely disagreed with his ideas. Huey spoke on Black people gaining control of institutions and starting cooperatives. After he spoke, Black students criticized the BPP's willingness to work in coalition with white people.

"Everywhere I went in 1967 I was vehemently attacked by Black students for this position; few could present opposing objective evidence to support their criticisms. The reaction was emotional: all white people were devils; they wanted nothing to do with them."

8. "...we are still in the elementary stage of throwing rocks, sticks, empty wine bottles and beer cans at racist police who lie in wait for a chance to murder unarmed Black people."

Huey didn't like spontaneous rebellions...(cont.)

"The racist police have worked out a system for suppressing these spontaneous rebellions that flare up from the anger, frustration, and desperation of the masses of Black people. We can no longer afford the dubious luxury of the terrible casualties wantonly inflicted upon us..."

"An unarmed people are slaves or are subject to slavery at any given moment."

He thought spontaneous rebellions brought more harm than good. Ideally, he wanted an armed and organized response to state violence. He believes the gun to be the basic tool for liberation.

9. "The people must oppose everything the oppressor supports, and support everything that he opposes. If Black people go about their struggle for liberation in the way that the oppressor dictates and sponsors, then we will have degenerated to the level of groveling flunkies..."

"When the oppressor makes a vicious attack against freedom-fighters because of the way that such
freedom-fighters choose to go about their liberation, then we know we are moving in the direction of our liberation."

"The oppressor must be harassed until his doom."

Huey believed that Black Americans have the potential to end US capitalism and globally unite all people oppressed by it. He states that America can't fight a civil war lead by the poor and simultaneously fight wars against the countries under its oppression.