The Ten-Points Party

But it wasn’t until October of 1966 that the B.P.’s were born. The name of the party was inspired by the Freedom Organization of Lowndes County (LCFO), Alabama. Their campaign symbol was a panther and what the panther stood for was determination, freedom, and courage. And that was how the B.P.’s got their name. Nonetheless, Newton, the main visionary of the group, formulated the B.P.’s Ten-Point Platform and Program which basically expressed the major needs and wants of the Party, as well as for the black community. The Ten-Point Platform and Program that the B.P.’s adhered to and observed, each point stated in a sense what the party “wanted” for blacks, and why the party thought how and why such conditions should be met. The points which were …show more content…
Nevertheless, the party’s ideologies were an extension of the practices of the late Malcolm X, and the precepts of Maoism and Marxism. The Malcolm X – based belief that “…by any means necessary…” was much embraced among the B.P.’s, and was the main reason why the B.P.’s carried guns in public; it was on the basis of self-defense. Newton explained how the nature of the black panther was similar to how the party and its individuals were. Like the black panther, the B.P.’s were pretty solitary and weren’t really aggressive unless …show more content…
Even the co-founders of the B.P.’s I had no knowledge of, however, I figured that they had to be black. Nonetheless, there were so many fascinating things that I learned about the B.P.’s that unfortunately I didn’t get to write about. One thing that struck an accord with me is that the B.P.’s gained so much popularity not just in America, but internationally. Like I said in the beginning, the influence that the B.P.’s had in the black community was amazing. To get thousands of people together and to unite on the basis of freedom, justice, and equality, I have a lot of respect for the B.P.’s. That is not to say that they didn’t have their flaws. Up until a certain point, in all honesty, I thought the Black Panthers was just another pro-black organization that was going to further the agenda of the civil rights activists and leaders. The only twist was that they were armed and ready to defend themselves beyond any measure. I have to take into consideration the times that the B.P.’s were living in; I can only imagine that it was very scary living in a town/city where you could lose your life any minute because of your skin color. And I think what the B.P.’s accomplished in their time was so significant because they established within the black community a sense of boldness and