Birth of The Black Panther Party

Malcolm X was a crucial force. In my view he is one of the most underestimated forces in the whole revolutionary process. Malcolm X. It was Malcolm who made the critique of the civil rights movement. It was Malcolm. It was Malcolm who criticised this whole liberal bourgeois thing, even though he did not characterise it in just those terms, but you understood quite clearly the problems with that. It was Malcolm, and in the process of doing that when John F. Kennedy…

John Fitzgerald Kennedy is the person who initiated for US imperialism, in this last period, counterinsurgency. The counterinsurgency that was used against the people in Vietnam. The counterinsurgency against the people in Cuba.  John Fitzgerald Kennedy was the person who consolidated that process inside the US foreign policy. It was Kennedy who created, who created the Green Berets. It was Kennedy who personally chose the M16, the weapon that they would use. So Kennedy was a terroristic force, and he was responsible for causing mayhem all round the world and in particular in Vietnam.

So when Kennedy was killed an order came out from Elijah Muhammad that they shouldn’t say anything about it. And somebody came up to Malcolm and asked him about it. And Malcolm said, “Well, actually I’m an old farm boy myself, and what I would like to say is that I believe it’s a case of the chickens coming home to roost.” In other words, what goes around comes around. “And I’m never sorry when the chickens come home to roost, I’m Glad.” And so Elijah Muhammad used this as an excuse to silence Malcolm X.

A whole lot of people wanted Malcolm X silenced, do you understand that? A lot of people wanted Malcolm X silenced, and Elijah silenced Malcolm X. That was in November, and as you know by March Malcolm was moving on his own, had broke from the Nation of Islam. Had moved first to create another Islamic organisation, and then, about a week or so later he said that’s not good enough and he created the Organisation of Afro American Unity. Trying to hook up the revolutionary process of African people around the world. That’s what Malcolm was doing. He travelled all over the world trying to bring us together. He said that if you understand the significance of this African power. African power is more powerful that atomic power. Once we understand our connectedness there’s nothing that we can’t do. Malcolm did more than that, it was Malcolm who said that every African man – when criticising the non-violent policies of the civil rights movement – it was Malcolm who said that every African man should have a shotgun. He said a shotgun is legal. He said we should organise rifle clubs and have a shotgun – everybody!