Revolution Televised.pdf

Was the Revolution Televised? 47
worth quoting at length, because it allows one to see the importance
of having this material aired on a national forum in counterbalance
with the negative views of the organization that were primarily
portrayed. The camera alternates between a close-up of Newton
and a medium shot, which allows the viewer to observe the cell in
which he sits.
commentator: The Panthers have a different version of their role.
Huey Newton, Panther leader, will soon be on trial for his life.
We asked him about the origins of the party and their concept
of self-defense.
newton: We use the Black Panther as our symbol because of the
nature of a panther. A panther doesn’t strike anyone, but when
he is assailed upon, he will back up first, but if the aggressor
continues, then he will strike out and wipe out his aggressor,
thoroughly, wholly, absolutely, and completely. I see the party
as a second party rather than a third party, because we see very
little difference as far as black people are concerned between the
Republican and the Democratic Party here in the United States.
We view ourselves as a colonized people, so we are in a situation
of a mother country and a colony, and the politics of the mother
country have not answered the needs of the black subjects in the
colony. So therefore this is a black political party, and it is a vanguard
group for the freedom of black people.
Originally our party was called the Black Panther Party for
Self-Defense. The name now has been changed to the Black
Panther Party, because many people misunderstood the scope
of self-defense. The power structure, the establishment, has
been aggressive towards us in every area: the social area, the
economic area, and the political area. Therefore, we felt it necessary
to erect a political party to defend and promote the general
interests of black people. Aggression in the economic area is as
real as aggression physically by the racist police that occupy our
community, as a foreign troop occupies territory.
Bobby Seale, Black Panther minister of information, is interviewed
on the streets. He reads the Panther 10 Point Program from the party’s
newspaper and shows how the group works to further community
aims. He cites participation in a boycott of an Oakland grocery store
because of unsanitary conditions and the lack of black employees. 45
There are discussions of the policing problems and suggestions that