BY I.V.
Racism
is defined as the belief or
doctrine that inherent differences among the various human racial groups
determine cultural or individual achievement, usually involving the idea that
one's own race is superior and has the right to dominate others or that a
particular racial group is inferior to the others. Growing up I wasn’t exposed
to racism until I came to the United States at the age of 4 or maybe I just
wasn’t aware of it. Kids would divide themselves according to their skin color
instead of playing with each other and I was so shocked because I would not
know what to do about that. Racism is a word that has long been rooted
in history, which includes many Latino and black communities. From the time of
slavery, people of color have always been treated as lesser individuals then
the white man. Even after the emancipation proclamation and the annexation of
the amendments issued by Lincoln, black people were mistreated just like all
other minorities.
The
Black Panther also so known as the Black Panther party was an African American
revolutionary group that original purpose was to patrol African American
neighborhoods and protect residents from police brutality. The Black Panther
came to light right after the assassination of the late Malcolm X. Similar to
the struggle black people endured for equality and equal rights, a movement
among the Puerto Ricans began in the United States in the late 1900’s. In wake
of their struggle as well the Puerto Ricans also founded their own revolutionary
group, called the Young lords that sought to end the means of unfair treatment
of the Puerto Rican people by the oppressors. Just like the Black Panther group
the Young lord group implemented their own methods of dealing with the
oppressors and even had a list called the “13 point program”. Stated in the “13
point program”, “We want liberation for all third world people-No Puerto Rican
is free until all people are free!. We are revolutionary nationalist and oppose
racism-Power to all oppressed people (Young Lord Party).
When people are backed into a corner I believe
that the only option there is to fight back. The Black Panther group would walk
around carrying guns at times in order to show the police that they were not
going to take it anymore. In the movie, “El Pueblo Se Levanta” the Young lords
went and occupied a church and threw the trash that the sanitation department
would not pick up in the streets to cause a roadblock. The two sides have
suffered greatly at the hand of their oppressors but have rounded up as a
community and fought back.
References:
Duncan, Garrett
Albert. “Black Panther Party.” Encyclopedia
Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2016.
“13 Point Program
and Platform of the Young Lords Party.” 13
Point Program and Platform of the Young Lords Party. Young Lord Party, n.d.
Web. 27 Oct. 2016.
Nice blog, I'm interested in what comparisons could be made between The Black Panthers and The Young Lords. Like to what extent did their views vary on things such as being violent vs being defensive, or how members were viewed by general society. I'm also curious if any comparisons could be made between the Black Lives Matter movement today and The Black Panthers, and if an increase in immigration issues could raise a new Latin@ movement, or increased Xenophobia could create a similar group fighting for Muslim rights/religious tolerance and acceptance. How far does a minority group need to be pushed to form a resistance group?
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your blog and can agree with the points that were made. Most of the time these groups of people are looked down at because of their skin color and the different stereotypes that are associated with them. Blacks and Latinos are both groups that have been greatly affected by this in the United States, leading to them creating resistant groups such as the Black Panthers and the Young Lords. Both groups were formed at different times, but what would you say led to the formation of these groups? What was their breaking point? Do you think it is possible for another resistant group to be formed against the new president elect?
ReplyDeleteE.E
ReplyDeleteWhat I love about the Young Lords is that they stood for the rights of every oppressed group. We've come a long way from the times when the Black Panthers and Young Lords roamed the streets, but my belief is that we still need them now. We still need people to advocate for those that face oppression every day. This is why movements such as Black Lives Matter, which someone in a comment above also mentioned, are so important today. Lets hope that people continue to come together and stand up for what's right, especially as we face the President-Elect and his ideas that perpetuate inequality.
I love in your blog post you related the Black Panthers and the Young Lords. While learning in class it showed how some latinos tried to separate themselves from the idea of "blackness" but here you showed how building upon one another has helped instead of hurt. I would also love to know your opinion on how fighting would help with the black lives matter movement and what you think would be the past ideas to help the movement.
ReplyDeleteThe line in this that caught my attention was when you said "when people are backed into a corner I believe their only option is to fight back". It seems that the Black Panthers and Young Lords both can understand, if not agree with, this point. However, I question that. These revolutionary groups of the 1900's and today such as the Black Panthers were/are certainly very important. However, I think that there are other ways to "fight back" without fighting. Political activism and peaceful protests are two ways that this may be done. So many people complain about things going on around them instituted by the local or federal governments, but is the only option really to fight? Maybe they can attend meetings, vote in elections, talk to senators.... Something to get their voice heard that isn't fighting. Just my thoughts, I thought that the rest of your post made a lot of good and factual points.
ReplyDeleteI like that there was a comparison made between The Black Panthers and The Young Lords party, which both were groups that helped out the injustices within their groups. You’re right that still to this day, even after all the history within colored people and the U.S., there is still mistreatment towards colored people. These two groups saw that and the injustices that occurred and wanted to stand up and fight back against it. By actually fighting back, being involved and showing their discontent with injustices, I feel it creates more of an impact on just how bad things are. Even now there are still cases of injustices, oppression that colored people face because of stereotypes, that’s why there are movements formed like the Black Lives Matter movement.
ReplyDelete