-- 2 --

Editorial: TOWARD APRIL 18th

John Reading, mayor of Oakland, told an East Oakland Rotary audience last week that Bobby Seale is his primary opponent in the field of four for the upcoming April 17 municipal election for his seat. He also told the Rotarians that if the election was held today, Bobby Seale would win.

As mayor of Oakland, Reading is in the unique position of being able to receive day-to-day reports on the whirlwind campaign Bobby Seale has been waging for weeks around this port city of 300,000 souls; more than half are Black and Mexican - American and most are poor.

Consequently, his admission should silence forever those in Oakland and throughout the Bay Area who justify their hesitancy to actively support Bobby with the declaration: "But, he don't have a snowball's chance in hell winnin'." Reading, the incumbent, thinks he has.

It's time that our friends throughout the Bay Area and America realize that Bobby Seale and his running mate for Councilwoman, Elaine Brown, can win on April 17, and help make sure they do.

It is the nickles, dimes, quarters and dollar bills contributed by Oakland residents who can least afford it that are paying the mounting bills our community-wide campaign is collecting. The entire Bay Area's Black and enlightened community should flood the COMMUNITY COMMITTEE FOR THE ELECTION OF BOBBY SEALE AND ELAINE BROWN with financial and other contributions in order to clinch the landslide victory the People's Candidates predict.

By doing so we will all face each other proudly on the morning of April 18.

-- 2 --

LETTER TO THE EDITOR: PRAISING JIMMY ESSEX

Dear Sir:

…Concerning your article about Jimmy Essex. He was courageously and brilliantly expressing the unrighteousness and injustices that have stagnated the world concerning our Black race. I know exactly how he felt. I was born and raised in New Orleans. I joined the Navy there, and spent seven years in the Navy, honorably discharged. I served aboard the battleship U.S.S. Idaho for four years, 10 months and 19 days. I hated - every minute of it.

If anyone has never come face to face with racial hate, bias, prejudice, bigotry and all of the other evils of the white man, he will find it in the U.S. Navy… Many a time I felt and wanted to do exactly the same thing Jimmy Essex did -- might there aboard ship. At the time I was in the Navy, from February 1938 to 1945, it was much worse than now. Now its not much better, in spite of the integration of various skills for the Black sailor.

At that time, the U.S. Navy forced upon the Black sailors only one job: we were sea-going bell-hops, stateroom maids…cooks and all around flunkies. We went on duty in the kitchen and wardroom-mess from 10 a.m. in the morning to 10 a.m. the next morning, every other day. Our bodies and minds would be racked with pain and exhaustion. And if we were caught sleeping, they would put us on report and bring us before mast -- for court-martial -- as if we had blown up the ship.

The struggle was going on then among the Black sailors. We fought back, loud and clear, the best we knew how. We wrote Black newspapers: the Chicago Defender, N.A.A.C.P., and we wrote many Black men with positions and high reputations who were afraid for their jobs. They told us to cool it, it takes time.

Thank God that in this generation of Black men and women we have torn off the yoke of complacency. As the mother of Jimmy Essex said: "No,

Jimmy didn't hate the white man", -- neither did my grandfather, who spent his first ten years as a slave on a Louisiana plantation. Before he died, at 80, he told my father and us children to exterminate the evil of the white man, if you have to die doing so.

Sincerely yours,
George W. Gibson

-- 2 --

598 BLACK PEOPLE WIN IN SOUTH

In 1972, 598 Black men and women were elected to public office throughout the eleven Southern states. In Alabama, the state realizing the greatest gains, 117 Blacks won elected posts. Blacks were elected for the first time to the Arkansas General Assembly, the last Southern state house without Black representation.

In Alabama, the total of Black elected officials includes eight mayors, 44 city councilmen, 50 constables and nine county commissioners.

In Arkansas, 99 Blacks were elected to offices, including five mayors, 36 aldermen, 19 justices of the peace and 12 school board members.

In Georgia, the sixty-three Black elected officials included two state senators, 14 state representatives, 17 school board members, nine city council members and five justices of the peace.

In Louisiana, a total of 87 positions included eight state representatives, 30 school board members and 29 police board members were elected.

In the following states, the numbers of Black people elected were: North Carolina, 24; South Carolina, 59; Tennessee, 37; Texas, 46; and Virginia, 20.

Clearly, there is little or no debate among southern Black people over the need to participate in local politics toward the election of representatives from among themselves.

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DAVID HILLIARD DENIED PAROLE

(Sacramento, California) - The California Adult Authority (parole board) on January 30th denied the application of David Hilliard of the Black Panther Party for parole. The Authority listed as its reasons: "consideration of public protection and the shortness of David's period of confinement."

The statement went on to say a further period of observation was deemed necessary by the board, so as to be sure not to jeopardize "public safety".

The Adult Authority's denial of David's parole was announced by Phillip Guthrie, Public Information Officer of the California Department of Corrections, while the Adult Authority was saying "no decision has been made as yet". This appears strange since, theoretically, the Adult Authority and the Department of Corrections are separate institutions. Joseph Spangler, Administrative Officer for the Adult Authority, told the Black Panther Intercommunal News Service that because of the great interest of the press and public in the results of the David Hilliard parole hearing, the Authority authorized Guthrie to make statements on its decision.

The Black Panther Intercommunal News Service was curious to know why Guthrie, whose department is a completely separate entity from the Adult Authority, should have spoken for the Authority. It is apparent that the Adult Authority is insensitive to the public's right to know of its decisions which, in most cases, affect the lives of Black and poor people.

On that same day the Adult Authority denied the parole request of Black Panther Party member Charles Bursey and refused to take action to make parole possible for Wesley Robert Wells, a Black man who has served 45 years in prison. (Wesley Robert Wells was sentenced to death in 1947 for assault on a guard. However, the sentence was altered to life without parole. The Authority members decided not to ask Ronald Reagan to commute Brother Wells sentence to allow parole. See page 9.)

David Hilliard and Charles Bursey are incarcerated at Vacaville Medical Facility on charges stemming from the 1968 incident when Oakland police officers ambushed members of the Black Panther Party and murdered Little Bobby Hutton.

David will not be able to apply for parole again until December 1973. (His first application in December 1971 was also denied.) The Adult Authority ignored 50,000 signatures on petitions demanding David's release and the Community of Concern for David Hilliard which was responsible for numerous letters requesting his release.

The California judicial structure considers David Hilliard a "threat" because of his effectiveness in educating and organizing people in the Black and poor communities. David guided the Black Panther Party through a very difficult period when both Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale were incarcerated. He is a source of inspiration to everyone around him and his presence is sorely missed. David's wife and children need the love and guidance that only a husband and father can provide.

The Adult Authority made reference to David's short "period of confinement". Even one day is too long for David Hilliard to be away from his people. The action of the Adult Authority must serve as a lesson to us. We must work harder to implement the ideas David expressed when he was with us. By doing so, we can begin to organize, to reverse racist decisions by boards such as the Adult Authority.

ALL POWER TO THE PEOPLE

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STATEMENT BY HUEY P. NEWTON

"Decisions of reactionaries are predictable. It is their decision to remain intact, in power. It must be the decision of the oppressed to oppose, to challenge the reactionary oppressors and create a new arrangement whereby our voices can be heard and our decisions felt.

"It comes, therefore, as no surprise that the California Adult Authority (parole board) has denied parole/release to Brother David Hilliard. We can no longer seriously expect that good faith, good luck or innocence of charges will deliver our incarcerated brothers and sisters out of the hands of the Fascist State. We must carry out our decisions, organizing, demanding, pushing the State to compromise.

"It made no difference that over 50,000 people had signed petitions for the release of Brother David. It made no difference that 600 prominent personalities sent letters to the Adult Authority in David's behalf. It made no difference that jobs and college scholarships had been offered him. What mattered is that Ronald Reagan, Richard Nixon and the entire band of criminals that run this country had decided to keep David behind bars. They had been able to decide that we, the people, did not matter.

"They say another turn will come in December, 1973. The future of Brother David Hilliard can be decided, must be decided, will be decided, by the people."

-- 4 --

UNDECLARED JOB WAR FACES BLACK VIETNAM VETERANS

The signing of the cease-fire agreement in Vietnam, America's official acknowledgement of the victory of the Vietnamese people, raises a serious problem. The war fought with bullets and guns in Vietnam will only be slightly transformed for countless thousands of returning Black Vietnam war veterans. Upon their return, Black Vietnam veterans will be faced with another of America's undeclared wars, the war of survival -- the war against Black unemployment.

During the bloodiest phases of the Vietnam war, Black soldiers accounted for a disproportionately high number of front line assignments, numbering at times over 75% of the front line troops in some particular units. Black soldiers fought with honor and courage, and expectedly, accounted for a disproportionately high number of combat deaths.

Many Black G.I.'s have already returned to the Black communities of their birth; now, the last of the Black ground troops in Vietnam are scheduled to follow. Together, they face the increasingly difficult problem of lack of employment and educational opportunities.

Few jobs are available for the Black community generally, the current unemployment rate for non-whites is twice the rate of that for whites. In some cities, like Oakland, Black unemployment ranges from 14 - 17%, almost triple the city-wide rate. Because many Black soldiers served primarily in the infantry and received virtually no job training of any kind, they are consequently ill-prepared to bargain for jobs. Many of those Black G.I.'s who did receive job-training in the service, have found that preparation "unacceptable" to many employers who have termed it inadequate and out-dated.

A second major problem facing the Black Vietnam veterans is the great number who have received less than "honorable" discharges. While only one of every 18 whites receives this type of discharge, the rate is 6 times as high for Black servicemen. Many highly decorated Black soldiers -- especially Marines -- have survived the rigors of Vietnam, only to be dismissed with less than an honorable rating, because they allegedly violated some minor direct order while they awaited their discharge. The vast majority of Black G.I.'s who receive this type of discharge are simply victims of sentences passed by non-peer military trials. Once a veteran and particularly the Black veteran, is branded in this way, he becomes ineligible for many G.I. benefits including educational ones. In some states, men who receive less than honorable discharges cannot even receive workingman's compensation.

The Black Panther Party feels that the time has come for the entire Black community to speak out in support of our returning Black Vietnam veterans. We take the position that these men, our brothers, who were at one time considered only cannon fodder for the American Empire's war machine, deserve the best that this country has to offer. Special governmental and city agencies should be immediately created to deal with their particular problems. Relevant job training, on-the-job training, and apprenticeship job programs should be immediately begun and offered to our Black Vietnam vets. These programs must also receive adequate and substantial government, state and local funding to maintain themselves as well as the veterans whom they serve.

In taking this position, the Black Panther Party firmly upholds the principle that all humankind has the right to live and therefore the right to work, to survive and maintain one's family. We call upon all progressive people, both within the Black communities and within other poor communities in the U.S., to support the rights of returning Vietnam veterans.

ALL POWER TO THE PEOPLE

-- A --

OAKLAND - A BASE OF OPERATION!

CITY MEDICAL CARE:
PRIVATE WEALTH OVER
PUBLIC HEALTH

In the city of Oakland, as in all other urban areas of this country where poverty and racism are inflicted upon Black and poor people, among our most urgent needs is adequate medical care. The facts are clear. The Black and poor communities are beset with unemployment, inadequate family income, poor nutritional status, low immunization levels, a high rate of infant mortality, tuberculosis, sickle cell anemia and a number of other illnesses and disabilities. These criminal circumstances are a reflection of America's neglect in regards to the health and other needs of its Black and poor population.

In the following article, Part XXIX of Oakland - A Base of Operation!, the Black Panther Intercommunal News Service examines the lack of medical care for the poor of Oakland. Those with the greatest need for medical services actually receive the least health attention. The medical hierarchy in this country has made no secret of the fact that it is more concerned with private wealth than with public health. The hospitals of Oakland reflect this policy.

The provision of health care in the United States has been like most other things in this society -- a means of reaping huge profits from the needs of the people. In America, health care is primarily a business and secondarily a social service. In order to insure that the business stays "healthy" and that the profits continue to flow, the American Medical Association (AMA), private doctors, executives of huge drug combines, insurance companies and the U.S. government itself, systematically deny or limit the supply of health services and at the same time push up the price of those services provided. The result of this is that if you are able to pay the exorbitant medical and hospital bills, you can then receive medical attention when you need it; if, however, you happen to be Black and poor and cannot afford to pay high medical bills, you end up at places like Highland Hospital in Oakland.

Highland, like other county or city hospitals, is especially reserved for the urban poor, for the Black and Brown communities of the city which have a high incidence of deaths from sickness and disabling diseases.

The majority of those who are forced to go to Highland Hospital, because they are poor, are on some form of government "assistance", such as Medi-Cal or Medi-Care. Most of the doctors and nurses employed at Highland are aware of this fact and exhibit their racism and contempt towards the

-- B --
poor by treating them coldly and with disrespect. This abusive treatment reflects the lack of concern of the hospital for the welfare of the patients.

The quality of patient care at Highland has deteriorated in recent years to such a low level that even the Joint Commission of Accreditation for Hospitals reduced Highland's accreditation from three years to one year. The Commission said that Highland had made few efforts to seriously evaluate its methods of patient care.

No doubt the cruelest practice at Highland Hospital is its so-called teaching function. Since few patients at Highland can afford to pay the high medical costs, the hospital and medical profession squeezes value from them by turning them into laboratory models or guinea pigs. Confinement for patients, for example, is much longer at Highland than at other local hospitals because this serves the needs of its in-service teaching program. The longer poor patients remain at Highland, the longer the doctors can experiment on them with repeated tests and examinations. (This brings to mind the infamous Tuskegee Study, in which Black men were subjected to syphillis experimentation, in Tuskegee, Alabama, "for the benefit of science".)

There are no evening clinics at Highland. This means if outpatient service is required the person must see a doctor only during the day regardless of the illness. If you manage to make it to Highland, the waiting period to see a doctor is extremely long -- even if you have an appointment. This also applies to emergency cases. You must first wait to establish your "eligibility" -- that is, your "poverty" -- and then wait again to see a doctor. To make this situation even worse, the waiting rooms are exceptionally narrow corridors which seem to have been stock in by the builder as an afterthought.

The blame for little or no medical service for the poor cannot be placed on Highland Hospital itself; every hospital in Oakland is the same in its dealings with the poor. Rather, it is the fault of the entire public health care system in Oakland.

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Highland Hospital is highlighted because it is literally all that Oakland offers the poor in public health. It is extremely difficult to receive health care services, other than hospitalization, outside of Highland Hospital. For many people, especially those without a car, the location of the hospital readers it almost inaccessable. For this reason, most poor people only go to Highland with serious medical problems or when surgery is needed. Thus, Black and poor people in Oakland receive little in the way of preventative, ambulance or after-care services. Most poor women who give birth at Highland, for example, have had no prenatal care. This increases the possibility of a difficult delivery and brain damage for the baby.

Centralized medical facilities and disregard for community health needs seem to be the hallmark of the Alameda County Health Services Agency, which runs Highland Hospital. The Agency is headed by Director David Odell and run by the Health Care Services Commission. This commission sets policy for the director to administer. The commission is made up of 13 members, mainly doctors, lawyers and businessmen. All (except a housewife) are white males. Recently, the County expanded the commission from 13 to 15 members, but the two additional appointments have been slow in coming. The two new members of the commission are supposed to be minority "representatives".

It is no accident that the County Health Services Agency, which controls public health care in Oakland, is indifferent if not hostile to community health care services. Some administrators have reluctantly admitted the need for city health departments to provide preventative health services and meet local community needs, but nothing has been done about it. Community Health Clinics are vital because they allow the people to control the type of health care they receive. The city of Oakland has the means available to create an entire network of such clinics. Not only would this help solve the people's dire health problems, but it could also provide training and jobs for many of Oakland's chronic, unemployed residents. Hospitals like Highland would then be limited to medical emergencies, hospitalization and other specialized services. Of course, unconcerned doctors in Oakland would object to this because community health care clinics would increase the supply of health services for the people and make medical attention considerably less expensive than it is now.

The Black Panther Party long ago began serving the health needs of the Black and poor community by establishing People's Free Medical Research Health Clinics across the country, in poor urban communities. It is clear that the governments of the cities in which these free clinics are located did not have enough humanity to implement them. Oakland is no different. However, the adverse, anti-people medical situation in Oakland can be changed. Bobby Seale and Elaine Brown, people's candidates for Mayor and City Council-woman, once elected, will institute free, community health clinics for the benefit of the poor citizenry of Oakland. They believe that not only should people have adequate medical attention when sick, but that preventative medicine should be implemented on a mass seale to keep people out of the hospitals. These things can be done with a mandate from the people of Oakland in the April 17, 1973, city elections.

BOBBY SEALE FOR MAYOR OF OAKLAND
ELAINE BROWN FOR CITY COUNCIL WOMAN

-- D --

BLACK PANTHER PARTY PROGRAM MARCH 29, 1972 PLATFORM: WHAT WE WANT, WHAT WE BELIEVE

1. WE WANT FREEDOM. WE WANT POWER TO DETERMINE THE DESTINY OF OUR BLACK AND OPPRESSED COMMUNITIES.

We believe that Black and oppressed people will not be free until we are able to determine our destinies in our own communities ourselves, by fully controlling all the institutions which exist in our communities.

2. WE WANT FULL EMPLOYMENT FOR OUR PEOPLE.

We believe that the federal government is responsible and obligated to give every person employment or a guaranteed income. We believe that if the American businessmen will not give full employment, then the technology and means of production should be taken from the businessmen and placed in the community so that the people of the community can organize and employ all of its people and give a high standard of living.

3. WE WANT AN END TO THE ROBBERY BY THE CAPITALIST OF OUR BLACK AND OPPRESSED COMMUNITIES.

We believe that this racist government has robbed us and now we are demanding the overdue debt of forty acres and two mules. Forty acres and two mules were promised 100 years ago as restitution for slave labor and mass murder of Black people. We will accept the payment in currency which will be distributed to our many communities. The American racist has taken part in the slaughter of over fifty million Black people. Therefore, we feel this is a modest demand that we make.

4. WE WANT DECENT HOUSING, FIT FOR THE SHELTER OF HUMAN BEINGS.

We believe that if the landlords will not give decent housing to our Black and oppressed communities, then the housing and the land should be made into cooperatives so that the people in our communities, with government aid, can build and make decent housing for the people.

5. WE WANT EDUCATION FOR OUR PEOPLE THAT EXPOSES THE TRUE NATURE OF THIS DECADENT AMERICAN SOCIETY. WE WANT EDUCATION THAT TEACHES US OUR TRUE HISTORY AND OUR ROLE IN THE PRESENT-DAY SOCIETY.

We believe in an educational system that will give to our people a knowledge of self. If you do not have knowledge of yourself and your position in the society and the world, then you will have little chance to know anything else.

6. WE WANT COMPLETELY FREE HEALTH CARE FOR ALL BLACK AND OPPRESSED PEOPLE.

We believe that the government must provide, free of charge, for the people, health facilities which will not only treat our illnesses, most of which have come about as a result of our oppression, but which will also develop preventative medical programs to guarantee our future survival. We believe that mass health education and research programs must be developed to give all Black and oppressed people access to advanced scientific and medical information, so we may provide ourselves with proper medical attention and care.

7. WE WANT AN IMMEDIATE END TO POLICE BRUTALITY AND MURDER OF BLACK PEOPLE, OTHER PEOPLE OF COLOR, ALL OPPRESSED PEOPLE INSIDE THE UNITED STATES.

We believe that the racist and fascist government of the United States uses its domestic enforcement agencies to carry out its program of oppression against Black people, other people of color and poor people inside the United States. We believe it is our right, therefore, to defend ourselves against such armed forces, and that all Black and oppressed people should be armed for self-defense of our homes and communities against these fascist police forces.

8. WE WANT AN IMMEDIATE END TO ALL WARS OF AGGRESSION.

We believe that the various conflicts which exist around the world stem directly from the aggressive desires of the U.S. ruling circle and government to force its domination upon the oppressed people of the world. We believe that if the U.S. government or its lackeys do not cease these aggressive wars that it is the right of the people to defend themselves by any means necessary against their aggressors.

9. WE WANT FREEDOM FOR ALL BLACK AND POOR OPPRESSED PEOPLE NOW HELD IN U.S. FEDERAL, STATE, COUNTY, CITY AND MILITARY PRISONS AND JAILS. WE WANT TRIALS BY A JURY OF PEERS FOR ALL PERSONS CHARGED WITH SO-CALLED CRIMES UNDER THE LAWS OF THIS COUNTRY.

We believe that the many Black and poor oppressed people now held in U.S. prisons and jails have not received fair and impartial trials under a racist and fascist judicial system and should be free from incarceration. We believe in the ultimate elimination of all wretched, inhuman penal institutions, because the masses of men and women imprisoned inside the United States or by the U.S. military are the victims of oppressive conditions which are the real cause of their imprisonment. We believe that when persons are brought to trial that they must be guaranteed, by the United States, juries of their peers, attorneys of their choice and freedom from imprisonment while awaiting trials.

10. WE WANT LAND, BREAD, HOUSING, EDUCATION, CLOTHING, JUSTICE, PEACE AND PEOPLE'S COMMUNITY CONTROL OF MODERN TECHNOLOGY.

When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume, among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; that, whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute a new government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and, accordingly, all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But, when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security.

-- 5 --

GETTING THE VOTE OUT

THE CAMPAIGN GOAL IS 50,000
NEW REGISTERED VOTERS

Bobby Seale's and Elaine Brown's activities last week campaigning for Mayor and City Council woman of Oakland were highlighted by a voter registration class at which over 150 people became voter registrars. The meeting was held at St. Augustine's Episcopal Church on Thursday night, February 1st.

These registrars, in addition to those already working in the campaign, will provide the major thrust for the voter registration drive. This will be the center of activity in the campaign this month. It was evident to this BPINS reporter (who accompanied Bobby and Elaine throughout the week) that the enthusiasm shown by those present will enable the drive to reach its goal of registering 50,000 people in the next month.

During the first part of the meeting those present were given instruction on filling out the registration affidavits. They listened intently to the instruction, for if an affidavit is not filled out correctly, they were told, the registration will be invalid and a person won't be able to vote. The smiling faces of those present revealed a cross-section of the Oakland Community; Blacks, Mexican-Americans and whites.

After the voter registration class, Bobby and Elaine conducted a special kind of class-instruction in establishing People's Power. Elaine spoke of the importance of massive voter registration at this particular time. Bobby reiterated her words, and outlined exactly how the voter registration drive would be conducted. Eyes followed Bobby's expressive gestures while listening to every word as he explained how the people's political machine would continue to move.

"We found out that people in the Black community, Mexican-American community and the youth are largely unregistered to vote inside the city. If we make over 50,000 residents of Oakland registered voters, it's over for Reading, and it's a new day (city

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government) for the people. We must make Black people. Chicano people and white youth the majority of the registered voters in the city of Oakland, 125,000 voters in all. The next step is to pull out 90% of that vote on April 17th.

"In the past Black people generally haven't voted in city elections. There has never been a people's political machine in our communities to get the vote out. Reading won at the last election, with what was called a landslide, with only 65,000 votes. This was 64% of the number of people who voted at the time. We're talking about 125,000 votes for us.

"There are approximately 150,000 - 155,000 people registered to vote now, and we're going to put another 50,000 people on the rolls. We'll have over 200,000 people registered to vote in the city of Oakland. Anytime a candidate receives 60% of the total vote, it constitutes a landslide. We will definitely landslide. We predict a people's earthquake in Oakland, and the only thing that's going to shake hard is City Hall. It's going to shake Reading right out of office."

After speaking, Bobby joined everyone in singing the campaign song, This Little Light of Mine, while Elaine accompanied at the piano. The beaming faces showed that all those present were confident that their candidates will win.

Earlier that week, on Sunday, Bobby and Elaine were guests at Glide Memorial Methodist Church in San Francisco. The church, pastored by the Reverend Cecil Williams, has two morning services because of its large membership. At both services Elaine sang and played the piano.

Bobby spoke to the congregation of over 1,500 people composed of white, Black, Mexican-American and Asian youth. Even the balcony was crowded with people. Bobby, wearing a handsome light brown suit, spoke to the spirited crowd on how the election of Elaine and himself would be the first step in bringing about people's power in Oakland and all over the world. The congregation responded with thunderous applause, giving Bobby a standing ovation.

Following the last service, the people's candidates remained and shook almost everyone's hand as they descended a narrow staircase on their way out. Everyone smiled warmly while pausing to shake hands with Bobby and Elaine. Many complimented him on his message and offered various words of encouragement. The candidates spent over 15 minutes shaking hands and talking to the congregation as they were leaving.

The following evening Elaine Brown addressed a group of students at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California. She explained how students on the campus at Stanford could aid in the Oakland election.

That morning, Bobby and Elaine met with the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance at St. Phillip's Church at 42nd and Grove Streets in Oakland. Bobby explained to them the methods that were to be employed to

-- 11 --
win the election. Their faces displayed serious interest in the programs he talked of. The ministers seemed both amazed and pleased when they heard of the intricately organized political machine that was being built. One Pastor commented, "I see you've got your organization together."

Last Thursday Elaine was interviewed by a newswoman from the Sun Reporter, a local Black newspaper. The interview is scheduled to appear on the Woman's Page. The interview was a beautiful conversation between two Black women. Elaine explained her background, and how she was motivated to dedicate her life to her people.

The next day, Elaine spoke to a class of Asian students at the University of California in Berkeley. A key point was made when she told of her visits to China. "In a country of over 800 million people, there are no people hungry. That can be done here, also. It is possible to establish people's power here in Oakland and the entire country. Electing Bobby Seale and Elaine Brown is the first step in that process", she said.

On Saturday, February 3rd, the candidates attended the grand opening of another campaign office at 5229 East 14th Street. While they talked with various people who came by, campaign workers explained election strategy to others. Music and a free dinner provided a relaxed and friendly atmosphere, which proved conducive to the political conversations going on. One brother commented, "I feel like staying down here all day."

The political machine to elect Bobby Seale and Elaine Brown is growing, encompassing all of Oakland. The pace of the campaign is increasing, drawing closer to April 17th, when the people will seat Elaine Brown on the City Council, and replace John Reading with their true representative, Bobby Seale.

-- 5 --

S.F. BLACK CAUCUS ENDORSES BOBBY SEALE

The Central Committee of the San Francisco Black Caucus, last week, issued the following statement: "The nineteen seventies have produced many spokesman from the Black community, but few have shown through concrete, viable, and for-real action what can be done with the combined efforts of the Black community. One of the few Black men that have demonstrated the type of initiative that has ultimately made the Black community and in fact, all oppressed and disenfranchised people aware of what can be done working together, is Brother Bobby Seale. Mr. Seale has been a man of action geared towards ensuring the survival and dignity of the Black and other oppressed communities. It is because of these aforementioned actions that the San Francisco Black Caucus extends to Brother Seale our unequivocal endorsement for mayor of Oakland. It is our feeling that Bobby Seale will be the first mayor of Oakland, California, who is truly representative of the needs, aspirations, and real potential of the people of Oakland.

We encourage all our constituencies to get out and spread the word about Brother Bobby Seale. Most of all we emphasize the necessity of people everywhere to avail themselves of change, and VOTE for BOBBY SEALE for Mayor of Oakland. As far as the San Francisco Black Caucus is concerned, Brother Bobby Seale is the only candidate of the people.

-- 5 --

WOMEN ORGANIZE FOR PEOPLE'S CANDIDATES

On Saturday, January 27th, the first meeting of the Bay Area Women for Bobby Seale and Elaine Brown was held at 1200 Lakeshore Avenue in downtown Oakland. There were 25 women present from places as close to the campaign city as Berkeley and as far away as San Francisco. This was a luncheon meeting which brought together women who are interested in using their power (women are over ½ of the population in Oakland) to make Oakland the People's City.

Elaine Brown, who chaired the meeting, stated that it would take all of the skills and talents of every representative there to bring about a landslide victory in Oakland in April

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1973. After Elaine spoke, the women made committments that would help to assure Bobby and Elaine's success.

They will be holding cocktail parties and fund raisers; they will help to organize voter registration drives which will be of particular importance to the candidates at this stage in the campaign. Representatives from the Feminist Party will see to it that the campaign gets adequate media coverage. Two of the women plan to do extensive research about the city of Oakland in the area of welfare, child-care facilities and women's voting patterns.

The women who came represented domestic workers, factory and teachers unions; they were housewives, professional researchers and attorneys. They were from all strata of the Oakland community from poor to middle income, Black and white.

While the women were eating a beautiful lunch, enthusiasm about the campaign could be heard all over the spacious room. Comments like "I will do anything that I can to see Bobby Seale Mayor of Oakland"; "We've had enough of this and enough of that, its time for Bobby Seale and Elaine Brown"; "What other candidates can I support?"

In all it was a very productive meeting, one that destroys the idea that women are submissive, backwards and incapable of involving themselves in politics.

-- 6 --

RACIAL CLASH AT MERCED HIGH SCHOOL

(Merced, California) - Racial violence in the high school of this small, racist Northern California town adds further evidence to the lack of concern this government has for the education of poor and particularly Black youth. Recent clashes between Black and white students resulted in the closing of Merced High School last week for two days. This action halted education for 2,400 students at the school as tensions mounted.

On January 24, Merced police, backed by the California Highway Patrol, took a wooden stick, a chain, a tire iron, a six-inch hunting knife and a pistol from students as a fight was about to erupt outside the school.

This followed racial battles at school basketball games on January 16th and 17th. Degrading accusations by white students that Black students were responsible for several parked cars being burglarized during the games sparked the long smoldering hostility into active racial battle.

Last March, the Black and Mexican-American students at Merced High School walked out because 14 "Points of Concern" of the students had not been shown any concern by the school administration. These included: the hiring of Black instructors (there were no Black instructors at the high school at that time); that Black Studies be offered in the school curriculum and that all students be judged alike, without regard to racial difference, when punishment was administered.

The majority of the Black students, their parents and the Black community are solidly behind these demands. The Merced School Board and Frederick Pfitzer, principal of Merced High School, refused to grant the community its requests. The school administration claims that the clashes of last week are unconnected with the incidents of March last year which surround the 14 "Points of Concern" walkout.

The Black community refutes this. It is the antagonism that grew out of the March incident and the failure of the administration to meet the educational needs of the Black and Mexican-American students that is causing the present confrontation, community leaders insist.

Merced (population 23,000) is located about 80 miles southeast of San Francisco. Its two main "industries" are Castle Air Force Base and grape farming. It is about 40 per-cent Mexican-American and Black.

The Black and Mexican-American population of Merced suffers under the racist and reactionary institutions of Merced set up to serve the needs of the U.S. Air Force and those same grape growers who for years attempted to keep Mexican farm workers unorganized and working under near-slave conditions on their farms.

One of these institutions is the school system. The town's one high school is located in the white community.

-- 14 --
Black students are bussed to this school from the Black community. Of the approximately 250 teachers in the entire school system, only three are Black.

Black students are given no college counseling. Because of this, no Black student from Merced has ever received a college scholarship. Black students are even shut out of school organizations and extracurricular activities. In the course of the present confrontations American Nazi Party leaflets were distributed on the high school campus and stuffed into lockers of Black and Mexican students.

White students, many of them from the farming country surrounding the town, calling themselves "cowboys", have driven onto the campus in their father's pickup trucks with guns openly displayed. One of these guns and some stereo equipment was the property that was stolen at the basket-ball game.

The flagrant racism and utter disregard for the interests and demands of Black and Mexican-American students of the Merced school system's administration is typical throughout this country. The response of the Merced students and the Merced com-community to such racism and disregard is also typical of a growing determination among Black youth, the Black community and its allies and friends to expose and defeat these evils. By doing so they protect and forward the interests of the total community which suffers when the education process is disrupted, interfered with or halted altogether.

-- 6 --

EMERYVILLE, H.S.: STUDENTS PRESENT DEMANDS

(Emeryville, California) - Emery High School, in recent days, has been the scene of demonstrations, class boycotts and confrontations. Discontent had been simmering in the student body but it reached a boiling point when the Dean of Girls, Rita Dixon, walked into a class and loudly told seven sisters, "You're expelled because you don't live in this district."

This expulsion violates a district policy which allows upperclassmen to continue attending a school even if they have moved from the district. The Dean's actions exemplify her racist attitude toward the students. The students walked out in a boycott that was so effective that it forced all three schools in the Emery Unified District to close and brought about the dismissal of the Dean of Women pending investigation.

Several meetings were held with the students, parents, teachers; the district's Board of Education was present. A panel of five students acting as spokesmen for the 350 member student body, explained the causes for the school's unrest.

The quality of education steadily deteriorated as the district transformed from an all white to a predominately Black student body. The Emery Unified School District is the richest district in the state of California, yet the schools do not educate the students. The system's white administrators spend money constructing beautiful buildings such as Emery High School, which is equipped with bowling alleys and swimming pools. In contrast, the educational equipment is lacking or out of date. Many of the student's text books are ten years old and the library is stocked with books from a library that was demolished in 1945. The school does not prepare students for college and many of its graduates are completely illiterate. The teachers, with a few exceptions, are openly hostile to the students; the Dean of Women is a former sergeant in the Marine Corps and she treats the students as though they were recruits rather than human beings.

At the first meeting, the student panel presented the board members with a list of demands which included: (1) Removal of the Dean of Girls. (2) The implementation of an Orientation Program for 7th grade students. (Emery High consists of grades 7-12) (3) Creation of a post-graduate job placement program. (4) The creaion of an improved Business-Vocational-Education Program.

The Emeryville students, supported by their parents, quickly exposed the school board's weak arguments to justify their openly racist actions. The pressure applied by the community forced the school board to relieve the Dean of Women of her duties (pending an investigation); reinstated the breakfast program on Monday, February 5, 1973, and promised to implement the other student demands. Although Emeryville is a very small community, the action taken by the students marks an important step in the struggle to provide our youth with a relevant education.

-- 7 --

S. U. REPORT: POLICE AND SCHOOL OFFICIALS BLAMED

(Baton Rouge, La.) - "Prompt State and Federal action is in order for the lodging of criminal charges against:

"…the Sheriff's deputy or deputies responsible for firing live ammunition into the bodies of Denver Smith and Leonard Brown resulting in their deaths;

"…law enforcement officers and University authorities who failed and refused to provide immediate medical attention and treatment for the critically wounded students.

"The action of the University Administration in reneging upon promises made to students, ignoring their fundamental due process rights is to be condemned."

The above quoted statements highlight the conclusions of the recently released "Report of the Black People's Committee of Inquiry on the Deaths of Southern University Students Leonard Brown and Denver Smith on November 16, 1972." While the Report does not say so in specific words, the significance of its findings and conclusions can be boiled down to a single word: Murder. Black communities throughout the country have begun to demand that charges be brought against both the Sheriff's deputies and University officials for this crime.

It was in the wake of the wanton and tragic deaths of two Southern University students on November 16, 1972, that the Black People's Committee of Inquiry was born. Headed by Heyward Burns, Director of the National Conference of Black Laywers, and D'Army Bailey, Berkeley City Councilman, the Committee took as its task, "…to probe, in detail, the deaths of Denver Smith and Leonard Brown." Their purpose: "to bring the maximum amount of relevant information possible before the nation and the world, and to assist in bringing any person criminally liable for these deaths before the bar of justice." They have accomplished their goals admirably.

The findings of the brief, 30-page report, establish, without a doubt, criminal activities on the part of a number of State and University officials. Starting from the inability of the all-white State Board of Education to "deal with the administrative and emotional problems at Southern University", the report compiles evidence on the Sheriff of East Baton Rouge Parish who was quoted as threatening, "there might be a possibility that someone would be killed…", and documents the statements

-- 12 --
of certain University officials, who, when implored to assist the critically wounded students replied, "…that's good for them. They knew what they were getting into… They deserve what they got." This report relentlessly documents evidence of criminal culpability.

As far as the actions by the white Sheriffs and Sheriff's deputies, (those racists who precipitated the violence on November 16, 1972, by firing tear gas cannisters into the crowd of Black students and then followed by shotgunning the two young Black students to death), we can expect no better. Such are the realities of America for the Black community; age-old realities which we must eventually confront in an appropriate manner.

However, in regards to the actions of certain Black Southern University officials, the findings of the report are perhaps the most disheartening. The actions of the Administration of Southern University, and particularly, the actions of the school president, Dr. G. Leon Netterville, clearly demonstrate their moral responsibility for the two student's deaths. At every turn, the school administration acted in "bad faith". If they had not reneged on their pledge of amnesty to all student demonstrators, thus leading to the arrests of four students in the early morning hours of November 16; if they had not made a "charade of academic freedom and student-faculty participation in decision making"; if they had assumed responsibility towards their own Black community and the education of our young, the deaths of Denver Smith and Leonard Brown might not have taken place. The report finds that the Southern University administration: "…failed and refused to afford to the students and faculty due process of law…; failed and refused to act in good faith…; failed and refused to provide immediate medical attention and treatment."

Appointed by the all-white State Board of Education (a Board which has never had a Black person among its members in history), Dr. Netterville and his administrative clique must stand alongside the others, racist whites who were actually responsible for ordering and pulling the trigger. They all must face charges of murder.

-- 7 --

NIXON DISMANTLES O.E.O.

(Washington, D.C.) - Only days after his inauguration to another term of office as President of the United States, Richard Nixon has made it clear to the poor of America exactly what he has in store for us. The Nixon administration recently confirmed here its plan to dismantle the Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO), a federally funded poverty program agency.

The upcoming demise of OEO, a brain-child and cornerstone of the late Lyndon B. Johnson's "Great Society", was acknowledged by Roy L. Ash, who is the budget director for Richard Nixon. He stated that "There will be many other reductions over and a'ove the OEO."

-- 14 --

OEO's poverty programs are presumably to be swallowed up and taken over by other federal agencies, with the government's Department of Health, Education and Welfare receiving the bulk of them. However, the largest and most meaningful component of OEO, more than 900 community action agencies across the country, which have been financed to the tune of $384 million yearly, would be ended completely as far as federal support is concerned.

OEO was never the answer to poverty in this country. Most of its administrators gave allegiance to corrupt government rather than to the poor they professed to serve.

OEO will be dead within 60 days unless Congress objects, and there is opposition to Nixon's latest move against the poor in that branch of government. Congress' Black Caucus accused Nixon of calling on the poor to become self-reliant while denying the tools they need to become so. The 16 Black representatives that comprise the Caucus demanded programs which included the creation of public jobs, training poor people to fill them, housing subsidies, a national health program designed for the poor and an unspecified guaranteed income.

Funds for these demands can be taken from Nixons's 81.1 billion dollar defense budget request, which he undoubtedly needs to protect the corrupt government from the world's poor population which it has continually robbed.

Nixon's actions can be combatted by the people. A realistic alternative is being provided the people of Oakland, California, through the campaign of Bobby Seale and Elaine Brown for Mayor and City Councilwoman.

Bobby and Elaine have outlined a plan to create employment for the, poor and under-employed of Oakland. With adequate jobs, the impoverished community would have no need for poverty programs such as OEO.

When elected, Bobby and Elaine will implement their job platform in Oakland. This example can be followed around the country -- progressive people's candidates chosen by the people from among the people, taking political office and using that office to serve the needs and aspirations of the people.

-- 8 --

PEOPLE'S PERSPECTIVE

BALLOTS FOR PRISONERS?

The New York Civil Liberties Union has asked the Supreme Court to guarantee a vote for persons in jail. Attorneys for the Union are seeking a reversal of state court decisions which deny voting rights to all prisoners. They contend that "administrative inconvenience" is no defense since 1970 amendments to the Voting Rights Act provide absentee ballots for some prisoners.

HOME FOR SCHOMBURG

In New York, a block long site to house the unmatched Schomburg Collection of Black literature and history has been secured by the City. A complex including a research library, a museum and a small theater is planned. The site is located on Lenox Avenue between 135th and 136th Streets.

ENDORSEMENT FOR FRENCH
LEFT

According to a poll published by the Paris newspaper L'Aurore this week, the opposition Communist-Socialist Alliance will defeat the present Guallist government of President Pompidou in the upcoming French Parliamentary elections.

D'ARMY BAILEY'S LIFE
THREATENED

The "contract" that is out on the life of Berkeley City Councilman, D'Army Bailey is clear evidence of the active presence of a hidden fascist element in the Bay Area. The community should be alerted.

U.K. PRIVATE CLUB RACISM

Britain's highest court has officially legalized racism. Five judges in the House of Lords renowned as "Law Lords" ruled that private clubs can continue refusing membership on grounds of race. Most of the clubs covered by this ruling are the bastions of the so-called aristocrats who control Great Britain.

NAVY "MISFITS" HUNTED

Under the guise of getting rid of misfits, the Navy is carrying on a quiet witchhunt within its ranks. The sailors being classified as misfits in most cases have been active in struggling against the racist practices of the Navy. These sailors, both Black and white, are being given general discharges, which can hinder them in finding employment after they leave.

-- 8 --

COURT CITES HARD HAT RACISM

JOB TRAINING FOR MINORITY
YOUTH TO BEGIN

(San Francisco) - Skilled trade unions throughout the country take heed. Last week, U.S. District Judge Robert Peckham ordered Operating Engineers Local 3 to fill 70 per cent of its apprenticeship openings in Northern California with minority youth.

This action arises out of damage claims brought against the union by victims of past discrimination by the union. Monetary claims trials are still pending.

Of Local 3's 40,000 members, claimants charge only one-half of one percent are Black and three and one-half per cent are Latinos. The union covers 46 Northern California counties, 14 Nevada counties and the states of Utah and Hawait.

Judge Peckham's order to Local 3 requires that future apprenticeship openings must be filled by 30 per cent Blacks, 30 per cent Latinos and 10 per cent Oriental and other minorities.

Employers in the trades serviced by Local 3 have always attempted to justify discriminatory hiring in skilled areas by claiming they can not find trained or experienced poor and oppressed people. Those skills include operators for bulldozers, graders, cranes and other heavy construction equipment.

A spokesman for Local 3 told BPINS the union was proud of its accomplishments in the field of minority involvement in apprenticeship training. He called the union-employer program "one of the finest in the country". If this is true, the question arises as to why its membership does not reflect some success. The program is conducted by the Joint Apprenticeship Committee, under the direction of Jack McManus.

The denial of apprenticeship opportunities to Black and other poor people has traditionally been used to keep them out of skilled trades. Unions nationally have played a major role in this process, to protect their relatively good paying jobs for their almost lily-white memberships.

Local 3 officials feel Judge Peckham's ruling will put pressure on employers in the construction field to hire "graduates" of the apprenticeship program. They expressed concern that their efforts to prepare minorities for skilled jobs was met with resistance by employers to hire minorities.

Concerned citizens, and especially Black, Latino and other people who are discriminated against should first guarantee that their youth are placed in those programs that make special provisions for them. Also, every failure on the part of an employer to hire those youth after their training should be exposed and fought against.

No opportunity must be provided for either the union or the employer to undermine the intent of Judge Peckham's order.

-- 8 --

HUEY P. NEWTON ON TV

Huey P. NEWTON, leader of the Black Panther Party, will be the guest of William Buckley on "Firing Line" Sunday night, February 11 on Channel 9 at 10 p.m.

You'll be sorry if you miss him!

-- 9 --

ANOTHER YEAR OF PRISON

PAROLE RELEASE DENIED
WESLEY ROBERT WELLS

(Sacramento, California) - The California Adult Authority has recently, on January 30th, refused to consider making parole possible for Wesley Robert Wells, a Black man who has been incarcerated by the State for over 45 years.

Prison officials are still trying to "break" Wesley Robert Wells. The San Quentin prison administration is attempting to force Wells into transferring to Vacaville Medical Facility to take part in their STRESS program (a program to test a prisoner's endurance and patience; to discover how much a prisoner can physically and emotionally withstand). Wells has refused to take part in this. Evidently, there must be an ulterior motive for the prison officials wanting to involve him in the program, as they have had 45 years to observe how much Brother Wells take, physically and emotionally.

He was first imprisoned when he was 19 years old for allegedly receiving stolen goods. Since that time Brother Wells has had to undergo the most severe physical, mental and legal torture; some of the most blatant acts of injustice ever directed against a Black man. In 1947, Wesley Robert Wells was sentenced to die in the gas chamber for throwing a spittoon at a guard. People from all over the world petitioned the (then) Governor of California, Goodwin Knight, not to execute Brother Wells. His life was spared, but his sentence changed to life imprisonment.

Brother Wells, in speaking of his 45 years imprisonment, has said, "They tried to break my spirit; to teach me my place. To accomplish this, I was often unjustly punished and often subjected to degrading, cruel and inhuman treatment."

Wesley Robert Wells went into prison a young man; he is now old. He must be freed to spend his remaining years on the other side of the prison walls. In his words: "I can't see what they can expect from me, other than my life. If they wanted that they should have taken it."

Yet, rather than take his life, the California prison authorities have spent close to 46 years trying to teach Wesley Robert Wells, a Black man, "his place." They have failed. And, in their continuing, futile attempts to destroy the spirit of Wesley Robert Wells, they have only proven the resiliance and strength of oppressed humankind -- the struggle for goals of justice and human dignity which can never "break", never die.

-- 9 --

A PEOPLE'S VICTORY

BROTHER THOMAS C.
WANSLEY FREED

(Richmond, Virginia) - After ten years of unjust imprisonment, Thomas C. Wansley, political activist and victim of a state frame-up, was recently released on bail. Brother Wansley has been held since he was 17 years old for the alleged rape of a white woman.

He was convicted in 1962, during a period marked by hysteria among the ruling elite of Virginia and the white South generally, over the just struggle of Black people for basic human rights and dignities. The Lynchburg, Virginia press sensationalized the story and paved the way for a blatently unfair trial by a jury of biased and fearful non-peers.

Brother Wansley says that, "It is the support people gave me that has enabled me to come this far…I know they were not doing it for just me, but because they want to change things." He called his release "a people's victory".

While in prison, Brother Wansley's spirit remained unbroken. He actively fought to advance the cause of freedom by sueing the Virginia State Penitentiary system to desegregate its facilities and reform its cruel and repressive methods.

With the help of the American Civil Liberties Union and wide spread community support, he forced the state to enact some reforms. However, Brother Wansley reports, "There have been a few changes on the surface, but it's still a terrible place to be. For Black men and for white men -- it's bad for both. The rehabilitation program is a joke."

Despite the protests of one reactionary judge that Brother Wansley's release would "endanger the safety of every woman in Virginia", he was free on $10,000 bail, pending the state's appeal to a higher court in an effort to keep him locked away.

In the words of Helen Greever, director of the Louisville, Ky. based Southern Conference Educational Fund, which played an instrumental role in freeing Brother Wansley, "Wansley's release on bail shows again what the power of organized protest can do. This victory gives us renewed strength to intensify our struggle for his full freedom, and for freedom for all political prisoners."

-- 9 --

CORRECTION

In the January 27, 1973, issue of THE BLACK PANTHER, an incorrect address was listed for contact with the Black Culture Association at Vacaville Prison Medical Facility in our article "Black Prisoners Request Tutors". The address to contact should have been:

Mr. Jim Mayfield
BCA Outside Coordinator
2730 79th Avenue
Oakland, CA. 94605
Tel: (415) 635-9527

-- 10 --

WHITES FOR BOBBY AND ELAINE

Last week an organization established by white people was formed for the purpose of helping to elect Bobby Seale to the Mayor's seat in Oakland and Elaine Brown to the City Council. The group, to be known as Whites for Bobby Seale and Elaine Brown, will work to organize Oakland's white residents, helping them to understand that Bobby and Elaine are candidates for all people, not just Black people.

The Black Panther Intercommunal News Service learned from Chuck McAllister, the head of the organization, that hundreds of whites are already working in the campaign. The group will hold a conference February 17th at Oakland Technical High School from 12:00 noon to 5:00 p.m.

White people from all over the city are being invited to find out what they can do to help the campaign. Several thousand whites are expected to attend. Bobby and Elaine will speak, there will be entertainment and a free dinner will be served. The committee plans to organize over 500 white voter registrars, McAllister said.

Whites for Bobby Seale and Elaine Brown will help the people's candidates to landslide not only in the Black and minority communities, but also in the white communities. If whites understand that Bobby and Elaine will serve the overall community, if they are informed of their position on situations that need to be changed in the city of Oakland, they will vote for the People's Candidates.

-- 11 --

GRAY PANTHERS

BPINS notes the appearance on the national scene of the Gray Panthers, an organization of senior citizens reportedly dedicated to a militant involvement for radical change in matters concerning this country's elderly.

As presented in the January 28, PARADE Sunday newspaper magazine, it would appear that 67-year-old Maggie Kuhn, fiery leader of the Gray Panthers, was inspired by the Black Panther Party in more than name.

"The name", she is reported as saying to critics, "is a symbol of social action and social change, and there's a certain militancy rather than just a docile acceptance of what our country's doing."

-- 12 --

SUPPORT THE SAMUEL L. NAPIER INTERCOMMUNAL YOUTH INSTITUTE

The Samuel Napier Intercommunal Youth Institute is a school designed to help our children think. It is located in the Oakland Bay Area and it points out through example that other schools have provided only the most basic courses; courses that have little relevance to the survival of poor people. We are trying to expand the concept that the whole world is the children's classroom.

The youth at Samuel Napier receive instruction in language arts, mathematics, science, health, physical education, political education and people's art. All of these courses are geared to the development of a well-rounded human being.

We need the help of all interested people in making our school run smoothly. Since its inception in 1970, its enrollment has rapidly increased. We need more instructors; instructors with everchanging ideas to cope with the everchanging ideas of the children.

If you have teaching skills and can donate some of your time, please contact the Black Panther Party at 8501 East 14th Street, Oakland, California; or phone 638-0195. The children, our youth, are our future. Without their growth, we, as a people, cannot survive.

ALL POWER TO THE PEOPLE

-- 13 --

PEOPLE'S PETITION

FOR IMMEDIATE PAROLE OF BROTHER DAVID
HILLIARD FROM THE CALIFORNIA PRISON
SYSTEM OR AN APPEAL BAIL BOND WITH
A RETRIAL JURY OF HIS PEER-GROUP.

We the people, residents of the world community, in the spirit of revolutionary intercommunalism, do hereby redress our grievances and petition the courts of America and the California State Government and Parole Board: That David Hilliard be released from his prison incarceration in the California Penal System to the people of our communities on parole or an appeal bail bond.

Brother David Hilliard, political prisoner and a member of the Black Panther Party, was in fact wrongfully convicted on false charges by a predominately white racist jury, as all members of the Oakland Black community were systematically eliminated from the jury selection process in his trial.

In light of these facts, we the undersigned, therefore petition that David Hilliard be granted his human and constitutional rights, that is, parole from prison or an appeal bail bond by the American courts pending appeal of his case before higher courts, and that his retrial jury be of his peers, a true representation of a cross section of the community. NAME
ADDRESS
CITY
COUNTRY
REG.
VOTER?

-- 14 --

MIDWEST CONFERENCE

(Chicago) - Strategies for Radical Change in the U.S. and the Role of the Black Worker are two of several topics to be examined at a weekend conference opening here February 23.

Organized by the Midwest Conference for a Relevant Social Science, the three days of meetings will consist of panels and discussions on a wide variety of subjects relevant to the Black community.

They include Community Organizing, Organizing against Racism, Radical Historians, Prison Revolts, Role of the Vanguard Party in the Socialist Revolution, Radical Movements in the Universities and the Struggle of the Arab People.

The sessions will be held at the Midlands Hotel. The organizers are providing free housing for those who need it as well as child care for participants. A small registration donation is being requested.

For further information write to Midwest Conference for a Relevant Social Science; c/o William A. Pelz; 1237 W. North Shore Avenue; Chicago, Illinois 60626.

-- 15 --

A PROGRAM FOR SURVIVAL

Free Breakfast Program

Provides children a free, hot breakfast every school morning.

People's Free Food Program

Provides free food to Black and other oppressed people.

Liberation Schools

Provides free educational facilities and materials to Black and other oppressed children to promote a correct view of their role in the society.

Intercommunal Youth Institute

Provides Black and other oppressed children with a scientific method of thinking and analyzing things, basic skills for living in the society and a concrete alternative to established learning institutions.

Legal Aid Educational
Program

Provides full legal assistance to those involved in legal problems, as well as legal aid classes.

Free Busing to Prisons
Program

Provides free transportation to prisons for families and friends of incarcerated men and women.

Free Commissary for Prisoners
Program

Provides imprisoned men and women with the funds to purchase necessary commissary items inside the prison.

David Hilliard People's Free
Shoe Program

Provides free shoes to the people made at the David Hilliard Free Shoe Factory and elsewhere.

Seniors Against A Fearful
Environment (S.A.F.E.) Program

Provides free transportation and escort service for senior citizens to and from community banks the first of each month.

People's Free Community
Employment Program

(Being Implemented)

Provides free job-finding services to poor and oppressed people who cannot find work.

People's Free Medical Research
Health Clinics

Provides free medical treatment and preventative medical care for the people.

People's Free Plumbing and
Maintenance Program

Provides free plumbing and repair services to improve people's housing conditions.

Community Cooperative
Housing Program

(Being Implemented)

Provides decent housing, cooperatively owned and managed by the resident families.

People's Sickle Cell Anemia
Research Foundation

Instituted to test and establish a cure for Sickle Cell Anemia, to create better educational programs around Sickle Cell Anemia and maintain an advisory committee of doctors already researching Sickle Cell Anemia.

People Free Clothing Program

Provides new, stylish and quality clothing free to the people.

Intercommunal News Service

Provides news and information about the Black and other oppressed communities throughout the U.S. and the world.

Free Pest Control Program

Free household extermination of rats, roaches, ants and other disease carrying pests and rodents.

People's Free Ambulance
Service

(Being Implemented)

Provides free, 24-hour speedy transportation to people in need of emergency medical care.

People's Free Dental
Program

(Being Implemented)

Provides free dental check-ups and treatment for the people, as well as an educational program for dental hygiene and preventative dental care.

People's Free Optometry
Program

(Being Implemented)

Provides free eye examinations, treatment and eye correctional equipment (glasses, etc.) for the people.

-- [16] --

GOING UP THE LINE TOGETHER

Today the whole country is exploding with joy

At the news of history adding new Dien Biens to old glories,

While the mountains of foreign invaders' bleached bones are

rising many layers higher.
Oh! The comforting sight of aggressors of yore

Scrambling onboard homebound vessels!

Feats of unfading fame flourish on the battlefields,

Heroes bring honour to the land like millions of flowers

bring fragrance to a field,
Like cascades of silt bring fertility to the Red River.

More solidity is instilled into the Fatherland's Brass Wall.

The call of past proud millenniums

Turns bamboo sticks into redoubtable weapons,

Each orchard into a base,

Each inch of ground into an impregnable fortress.

The enemy multitudinous legions,

Forests of guns, mounts of shells, innumerable armadas and

swarms of planes
Are reduced to impotence by our entire people's stamina

And incredible courage.

Streams in the Long Range are still babbling

Remembrances of unsung exploits

Of simple peasants, of innocent youngsters,

Of rustic old ladies and emaciated village elders.

Thirty million people are still there

Like the sun glowing for myriads of years

Like the moon shining on mid-month nights since time out of

mind.
Oh day of pride and of historical greatness,

When our revival occurs in daring deeds,

When the whole nation aware of who is the real foe,

North, South and Centre going up the line together,

To behead the hydra of tyranny

And restore peace in the land of our ancestors!
Tran Tien Dat