Topics: Black Power Movement, Muhammad Ali, Angela Davis, James Brown, Sidney Poitier, and Flip Wilson. (Bonus Artists: hidingtobefound & Luck Pacheco)
1970
- Snapshots
- MLK birthday celebrated in many states
- Toni Morrison's 1st novel, "The Bluest Eye"
- Black Enterprise and Essence start
- Jimi Hendricks dies
- Cheryl Adrienne Brown (Miss Iowa) 1st black to compete in Miss America
- Social/Political Key Development:
Part 1: Black Power Movement
- The Black Power Movement focused on racial pride, self-sufficiency, and equality for all people of Black and African descent.
- It was led by a generation of black activists who had participated the Civil Rights movement.
- By the mid-1960s, a split developed among those activists and many no longer saw nonviolent protests as a viable way of combatting racism.
- Major turning point: The Watts riots, a 5 day "War" in 1965, that took place in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles. Dead: 34 / Injured: 1,032
- New organizations (the Black Panther Party, the Black Women's United Front, the Nation of Islam, and others) developed new cultural, political, and economic programs.
- Desegregation was insufficient. Deconstruction of the white power structures was the new focus.
- Because they wanted space for black political voices, collective black power, and social autonomy, the movement was often viewed as violent, anti-white, and anti-law enforcement.
- Key events: the 1965 assassination of Malcom X, and the 1968 assassination of MLK.
- Major accomplishment: raising the collective level of consciousness, pride, and interest in education.
- By the mid-1970s, the movement was in decline due to government repression, intragroup squabbles, and further assassinations. Also, police raids, arrests, and harassment.
- By 1973 African-American activists had begun to concentrate on getting blacks and progressive whites elected to public office. By 1976, the traditional movement was effectually dead.
- Legacy: Some have compared the modern movement Black Lives Matter to the Black Power movement noting a January 2015 community panel, hosted by the Garfield H.S. – B.S.U. (Seattle) titled: Black Power to Black Lives Matter, connecting the current youth-led struggle of BLACK LIVES MATTER to the Black Power movement of the 1960s-1970s.
Part 2: Conclusion
- The Black Power movement not only represented a change in tactical strategy, but also a change in the mind-set of African-Americans.
- For instance, the black music industry, with its roots in gospel and rhythm and blues became more nationalist. Songs like the Impressions' "We're a Winner" (1967), James Brown's "Say It Loud, I'm Black and I'm Proud" (1968), and the Temptations' "Message to a Black Man" (1969) helped establish a distinctive sound for a generation of politically conscious young black Americans.
- Some blacks chose to don African garb and adopt African names.
- The slogans "Power to the People" and "Black is Beautiful" became very popular.
- The movement's style and fashion (military berets, leather gloves and hats, bright powder-blue shirts, and Afro hairstyles were also symbolically important.
- The impact of this imagery was immediate and resonated across the United States as well as throughout the world.
Part 3: Important figures
- Nat Turner (d. 1841, American slave)
- Marcus Garvey (d. 1940, Black Nationalist political advocate)
- Frantz Fanon (d. 1961, Psychiatrist/Author – "This Wretched Earth: Algerian struggle against colonialism)
- W.E.B. Dubois (d. 1963, Historian)
- Malcolm X (d. 1965, Minister/Activist)
- MLK (d. 1968, Minister/Activist)
- 1968 Olympians Tommie Smith and John Carlos<