New Black Panther Party
New Black Panther Party | |
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Chairperson | Krystal Muhammad[1] |
Founder | Aaron Michaels |
Founded | 1989 |
Headquarters | Dallas, Texas, U.S. |
Ideology | |
Colors | Red Black and Green |
Slogan | "Freedom or Death" |
Party flag | |
Website | |
www |
Part of a series on |
Discrimination |
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The New Black Panther Party (NBPP) is an American
The
The NBPP traces its origins to the Black Panther Militia created in 1990 by original Panther Michael McGee in Milwaukee. However, as McGee expanded his organization, it later came under the control of Aaron Michaels in Dallas. In turn, Aaron Michaels lost control of the leadership of the group to Khalid Abdul Muhammad, a former leading member of the Nation of Islam, who proceeded to fill the ranks of the New Panthers with ex-Nation of Islam members and other Black Muslims. Under Muhammad and his successors' leadership, the New Panthers shifted radically from the ideology of the original Black Panther Party towards an extremist form of Black nationalism.[12]
The NBPP is currently led by Krystal Muhammad.[1] Malik Zulu Shabazz announced on an October 14, 2013 online radio broadcast that he was stepping down and that Hashim Nzinga, then national chief of staff, would replace him.[13] This move created a schism within the group. A vote was held and Krystal Muhammad was elected leader of the group. However, those loyal to Nzinga left and formed a splinter group called the "New Black Panther Party for Self Defence" or "NBPP SD".[14]
History
In 1987, Michael McGee, an
Over time, McGee lost influence over the overall groups while Michaels' grew, and eventually, it would be Aaron Michaels who took overall leadership of the Panthers groups, now using "New Black Panther Party" as their banner.[16] Michaels became increasingly radical, and so too did the group.
In 1994, Khalid Abdul Muhammad, a prominent member of the Nation of Islam, survived an assassination attempt from a former member of that group. Following the attempt on his life, Muhammad left the Nation of Islam and went to Dallas to recover, and it was during this time that Muhammad became aligned to Aaron Michaels, and subsequently joined the NBPP. By 1998 Muhammad had seized entire control of the NBPP from Michaels by filling with former members of the Nation of Islam and other Black Muslims.[16] In 2012, Michaels claimed it was at this point he departed from the NBPP.[17]
In 1998, Khalid Abdul Muhammad brought the organization into the national spotlight when he led an armed group of NBPP members to provide armed protection to the family of
Khalid Muhammad died of a brain aneurysm on February 17, 2001,[19] and was succeeded by Malik Zulu Shabazz, a protege of Muhammad's as well as his personal attorney. Like Muhammad, Shabazz continued to push the NBPP in an increasingly anti-Semitic and racial segregationist direction.[16] Under Shabazz's leadership, the group would continue to appear across America during instances of racial tension and conflict, however, Shabazz was never able to return the group to the high profile it had in the media and public's mind during Muhammad's time.[16]
Ideology
The New Black Panther Party identifies with the original
Although the NBPP says it sees capitalism as the fundamental problem with the world and revolution as the solution, the new party does not draw its influences from Marxism or Maoism as the original party did. Instead, it promotes the Kawaida theory of Maulana Karenga, which includes black unity, collective action, and cooperative economics.[21] The NBPP says it fights the oppression of black and brown people and that its members are on top of current issues facing black communities across the world. Also, it notes that not all of its members are members of the Nation of Islam, although the group acknowledges universal spirituality practices within the organization.[22]
Over time, many groups subscribing to varying degrees of
Organization
Membership size
As of 2009, the NBPP claimed a few thousand members organized in 45 chapters, while independent estimates by the Anti-Defamation League suggest that the group is much smaller but is nevertheless able to attract a large turnout of non-members to its events by focusing on specific issues of local interest.[27]
French Wing
In April 2010, Malik Zulu Shabazz appointed French Black leader Kémi Séba as the representative of the movement in France.[28] However, Séba left the position in 2011.
2013 schism
In October 2013, Malik Zulu Shabazz announced he was stepping down as leader of the organization. He attempted to place Hashim Nzinga as his main successor. However, this move prompted a body of the group to gather for a meeting, where they elected Krystal Muhammad as their new chairperson. These events prompted a split of the organization into two competing factions. Muhammad's faction retained the name "New Black Panther Party", while the Nzinga faction dubbed themselves "The New Black Panther Party for Self Defence" or "NBPP SD". The two groups remain at odds, each attempting to control the name recognition of "The New Panthers".[14][29]
Controversies
The New Black Panther Party became involved in a melee outside Congresswoman
In 2006, the New Black Panther Party regained the media spotlight by intervening in the
On April 12, 2007, after the case brought by Nifong collapsed and the Duke Lacrosse players were exonerated, Malik Zulu Shabazz appeared on
Calling the NBPP extremist, critics have cited Muhammad's Million Youth March in
King Samir Shabazz, a former Nation of Islam member and head of the New Black Panther Party's Philadelphia chapter, has a long history of confrontational racist behavior. He advocated racial separation and made incendiary racial statements while promoting anti-police messages in the media and on the streets of Philadelphia. He publicly announced, "I hate white people. All of them." He also suggested the killing of white babies.[5][35][36][37][38] Shabazz was arrested in June 2013 for carrying a loaded, unlicensed weapon.[39] The party has claimed his arrest is part of an "onslaught of attacks against the New Black Panther Party."[40]
Alleged voter intimidation in Philadelphia
During the
On January 7, 2009, the
According to an April 23, 2010 press release from the New Black Panther Party, the Philadelphia member involved in the nightstick incident was suspended until January 2010. "The New Black Panther Party made it clear then and now we don't support voter intimidation ... The charges against the entire organization and the chairman were dropped. The actions of one individual cannot be attributed to an entire organization any more than every act of any member of the Catholic Church be charged to the Vatican."[49]
Bounty for George Zimmerman's capture
Another controversy occurred in 2012 after the NBPP offered a $10,000 bounty for the
Prevented from entering Canada
In May 2007, Chairman Shabazz was invited by Black Youth Taking Action (BYTA)
Shabazz arrived at
The rally at Queen's Park went ahead without Shabazz, with approximately 100 people, plus at least two dozen journalists. Ryerson University canceled the planned lecture.[54][56] The university administration alerted the RSU that it had received e-mails of threats of violent disruption of the event. The RSU canceled Shabazz's lecture because of safety concerns. Heather Kere, RSU's Vice-President of Education, said, "We definitely recognize there was some criticism of his views" and "we were endorsing the campaign's goals and not the individual speaker." Kere added, "He deflected attention away from the main point of the campaign. We still strongly believe in the campaign."[52]
Hashim Nzinga, Shabazz's chief of staff, blamed Jewish groups for the incident, stating in a telephone interview, "They let these groups like the ADL (
Involvement of Micah Xavier Johnson
Micah Xavier Johnson, who ambushed and shot at police officers in Dallas, Texas, in July 2016 after a peaceful protest against police killings of African-American men elsewhere in the United States, had "liked" the Facebook pages of several black nationalist organizations, including the NBPP, Mauricelm-Lei Millere and African American Defense League, who according to the Southern Poverty Law Center may have radicalized Johnson.[58] Quanell X, the leader of the NBPP in Houston, Texas, said Johnson had been a member of that city's chapter several years earlier, for about six months.[59] He also said Johnson had been asked to leave the group for espousing dangerous rhetoric and violating the organization's "chain of command", and that Johnson questioned NBPP's tactics, asking why they had not purchased more weapons and ammunition.[60][61][62] In a written statement, the NBPP said Johnson was not a member of the organization and that "a simple like ... via a social media website does not represent membership, affiliation, or endorsement. It simply is what it is ... a like on the page."[61]
Criticism
Criticism by former members of the original Black Panther Party
The Huey P. Newton Foundation issued a news release denouncing the New Black Panther Party. Its release read in part:
As guardian of the true history of the Black Panther Party, the Foundation, which includes former leading members of the Party, denounces this group's exploitation of the Party's name and history. Failing to find its own legitimacy in the black community, this band would graft the Party's name upon itself, which we condemn. ... [T]hey denigrate the Party's name by promoting concepts absolutely counter to the revolutionary principles on which the Party was founded. ... The Black Panthers were never a group of angry young militants full of fury toward the "white establishment." The Party operated on love for black people, not hatred of white people.[63]
[W]e will never, ever stoop to the low level of the mentality of a racist to just hate another person because of the color of their skin or ethnicity. We don't do that. That's not the goal objective. The goal objective is human liberation. The goal objective is the greater community cooperation of humanism. The goal objective is to get rid of institutionalized racism.[64]
Reacting to a video of two NBPP members positioned outside of a polling place on Election Day in 2008 in Philadelphia, Seale agreed with CNN Newsroom anchor Kyra Phillips "to some degree" that the incident was voter intimidation.[64] He also described what he saw as significant differences between the original Black Panthers and the New Black Panthers, particularly between their respective Ten-Point Programs.[64]
2002 intimidation of original Panthers
In April 2002, an event was held in Washington, D.C. to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the creation of the Black Panther Party. Ron Scott, a co-founder of the Detroit chapter of the Panthers, was a guest speaker, and many in attendance were also original members of the Black Panther Party. During the course of the night, the event was interrupted by 30 members of the New Black Panther Party dressed in motorcycle helmets and steel-capped boots, led by Malik Zulu Shabazz. Shabazz and his NBPP member seized control of the event and ordered under threat of violence that the original Panthers cease criticism of the New Panthers.[12]
2015 assault of Dhoruba Bin Wahad
On August 19, 2015,
See also
- Black Nationalism
- Black Power
- Black Separatism
- Ethnic nationalism
- NFAC
References
- ^ a b "New Black Panther Party". SPLcenter.org. Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved June 8, 2019.
Major conflict arose in October 2013 when Shabazz announced he was stepping down from the group to pursue his law career. His second in command, Hashim Nzinga, was named as chairperson, and longtime NBPP group member Chawn Kweli became chief of staff. A portion of NBPP's membership had not been previously apprised of his decision nor did they approve. In reaction, this faction attended an NBPP summit and appointed all new leadership, voting in Krystal Muhammad as their chair.
- ^ a b c "New Black Panther Party - Southern Poverty Law Center".
- ^ "New Black Panther Party". Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved June 25, 2019.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-4129-8016-6.
Despite the name, however, there is no direct connection between the NBPP and the original BPP.
- ^ a b c "New Black Panther Party." Southern Poverty Law Center. Accessed September 3, 2017.
- ^ "New Black Panther Party for Self-Defense Archived January 4, 2013, at the Wayback Machine." Anti-Defamation League. Retrieved March 17, 2011.
- ^ U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, interim report, November 23, 2010 [1]. Retrieved August 13, 2011.
- ^ "New Black Panther Party Rally Features Elected Officials, Anti-Semitism". Archived from the original on January 29, 2022.
- ^ "New Black Panthers Exploit Gaza Conflict To Promote Anti-Semitism". Archived from the original on January 28, 2022.
- ^ "Panthers Blame Jews for Congresswoman's Defeat".
- ^ "New Black Panther Party For Self Defense" (PDF).
The NBPP's bigotry is further evident in its positions on Jews and Zionists. It accuses them of exerting undue influence over national and world affairs to the detriment of minorities in the U.S. and around the world. In promoting this position, the group often evokes classic anti-Semitic stereotypes of Jewish power.
- ^ doi:10.1086/705022.
- ^ "New Black Panther Party Announces New Chairman, Same Hateful Message". Access ADL. Archived from the original on October 17, 2013. Retrieved October 17, 2013.
- ^ a b "New Black Panther Party". SPLcenter.org. Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved June 8, 2019.
Malik Shabazz and Hashim Nzinga started a new group with longtime NBPP members Chawn Kweli and King Samir Shabazz. They called it the New Black Panther Party for Self Defense, but their antics were regularly mistaken by the media as those of the New Black Panther Party, a mistake the new group did not bother to correct.
- ^ "Official: Aid Inner City Or Face Warfare". tribunedigital-chicagotribune. Retrieved February 7, 2017.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "New Black Panther Party". encyclopedia.com.
- ^ "New Black Panther founder to keep homeland security post for at least a week". January 24, 2012. Retrieved April 22, 2021.
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- ^ Local Objectives Archived July 1, 2006, at the Wayback Machine at official Web site
- ^ 10 Point Platform Archived July 18, 2006, at the Wayback Machine at official website
- ISBN 978-1-4051-9807-3, retrieved February 13, 2022
- ^ Erica Evans (July 24, 2016). "Who are the New Black Panthers? '60s radicals say new group doesn't embody their ideals". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 8, 2017.
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- ^ Inside the New Black Panthers, National Geographic (aired 2009). Discussion of membership size starting at 07:40.
- ^ "Kemi Seba nommé par le NEW BLACK PANTHER PARTY, basé à Washington, Ministre francophone" Archived August 19, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, Official Web site of MDI
- ^ "New Black Panther Party for Self Defence". SPLCenter.org. Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved June 8, 2019.
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- ^ Biesecker, Michael. "New Black Panthers demonstrate, but not on Duke campus" Archived March 19, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, The News & Observer, May 2, 2006.
- ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: NBPP Malik Shabazz on Fox with Michelle Malkin. The O'Reilly Factor. April 12, 2007. Event occurs at 3:30.
- ^ "Racial dialogue? Don't bet on it". The Washington Times. April 16, 2007.
- ^ "Justice Department Files Suit Against New Black Panthers". Anti-Defamation League. January 9, 2009. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved August 5, 2011.
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- ^ "King Samir Shabazz, NBPP National Field Marshall, Arrested On Weapons Charge". June 25, 2013. Retrieved June 26, 2013.
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- ^ Justice Department Seeks Injunction Against New Black Panther Party: Lawsuit Seeks to Prohibit Voter Intimidation in Future Elections", US Department of Justice, January 7, 2009.
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- ^ a b c Morrow, Adrian (August 21, 2007). "While you were sleeping: summer in review". The Eyeopener. Retrieved September 3, 2017.
- ^ a b c Greenberg, Lee (May 16, 2007). "Black activist barred from entering Canada". CanWest News Service. Archived from the original on February 4, 2009.
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