Edited by Charles E. Jones
Black Classic Press
2005
SKU: 9780933121973
This volume begins the process of reconstructing the history of the Black Panther Party, perhaps the most visible and controversial radical organization of the Black liberation struggle. It is a combined effort of former Panthers and scholars, and breaks new ground by uniting the two groups to tell the Panther story. Its aim is not to deify the Panthers, but rather to offer a critical and balanced analysis of their activities and politics. The BPP remains haunted by widespread scholarly dismissiveness undergirded by the criminal-laden interpretations of the organization. Equally troublesome is the tendency to romanticize the Panthers uncritically as error-free super-Black revolutionaries. In this volume, contributors seek to challenge both caricatures of the BPP through systematic inquiry.